HealthMiles Blog

Member spotlight: Laura C

I traveled from Louisville Kentucky to Nagoya Japan to see the country and visit my sister and her family. Since this trip is approximately a 24-hour flight with layovers and plane changes and does not allow for smoking breaks, I decided this was my reason to quit smoking and become healthy. I also needed to be able to keep up with the quick walking pace of the Japanese culture.

I joined Virgin HealthMiles and put the cigarettes down. Every time I wanted to smoke I would take a quick walk. I have now been smoke-free for over 8 months and was able to visit my family in Japan.

While in Japan we visited many areas with my GoZone pedometer attached averaging 12,000 to 18,000 steps a day. Off we went to Kyoto Japan, the Original Japanese Capital. There we had to climb a mountain road to reach one of Japan's most popular temples, Kiyomizudera (or Kiyomizu-dera, "Pure Water Temple"), where this picture was taken:

Leave a comment for Laura
Send us your story: stories@virginhealthmiles.com

Happy Halloween!

Janelle B: "This photo was taken at Lake Rudolph in Santa Claus, IN. They have a tent & RV campground and during the fall they have a special Halloween camping theme. The campers will decorate their sites for the Halloween festivities, such as carnival & trick or treating. It's a great time for the family & great exercise! So this is me & my GoZone at our spooky site."

---

 

William H: "Me inside the Haunted House called Fear Fair on Sept. 25th 2009 which was opening night. For the past five years I have worked as an actor at night and an engineering tech during the day. So haunting the people of Indiana is where my GoZone goes."

---

 

Jody A: "This is me at SeaWorld San Antonio before Howl-O-Scream. Lots of werewolves hanging around. I took a picture with one. He tried to eat my pedometer. But I would not let him. I am literally joined at the hip with it."

---

Remember your GoZone as you're out trick-or-treating this weekend. And add an extra 500 steps to your daily target for each piece of candy you enjoy!

Member spotlight: Linda M

My mother passed away last year and my father wanted her ashes taken home to Northern Ireland, where I was born. It was a very emotional trip for me, but also very rewarding. One of the highlights was a day trip to the Giant's Causeway. The Giant's Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic eruption. It is quite a hike down to the Causeway and then back up, as you can see by my pedometer reading:

 

Since starting with HealthMiles in September 2008, I have lost a total of 57 pounds! I have changed my diet and exercise more than I ever have my whole life! Thanks, HealthMiles.

Post a comment for Linda
Send us your story: stories@virginhealthmiles.com

Trick or Treat!

It's that fun but scary time of year when sweet treats tempt us at every turn: the ones our kids bring home, the extras we didn't pass out, those our co-workers bring to the office... Let us help you prepare for these temptations with a little Halloween motivation.

Up your average daily step count by 1,000 steps, and get 250 bonus HealthMiles! Here's how it works:

• We'll compare your steps on Monday 10/12 through Sunday 10/18 with those you take on Monday 10/26 through Sunday 11/1.
• (Check for your number to beat on your LifeZone home page by the dial.)
• Wear your GoZone on at least 4 days during the week starting Monday 10/26.
• If you increase your daily average for the week by 1,000 steps you'll get 250 bonus HealthMiles
• Remember to upload your GoZone before midnight Monday, November 9th. We'll credit all bonuses by end of day Tuesday the 11th.

Good luck, have fun, and Happy Halloween!

 

Member spotlight: Mona E

At the end of December 2008, our company gave us a goal to measure our activity with a pedometer. The reward would be that if we got to Level 3, we would get a discount on our insurance. Of course I wanted that. This would affect the money I would take home on my paycheck. Then I thought, if I was going to lose weight, I needed the support of my friends at work. This is what I needed to help me lose weight and lower my cholesterol.

My goal was to get 12,000 steps on most days. I did some exercise everyday to get my steps in. I started cutting back – not eating late at night, staying away from sugar, and eating more vegetables and fruit as well as drinking more water.

The first week I lost 3 lbs. I was surprised. The next week I lost 4 lbs. Someone at work complimented me on my weight loss. I didn’t think anyone would have noticed since it was only 7 lbs. I was very encouraged. Then we went to Disney World. I thought if I could maintain my weight loss I would be happy. Well, I moved more in Disney World, made healthier choices, and lost another 2 ½ lbs. I walked over 20,000 steps a day on vacation. I thought to myself: this isn’t bad at all. I still get to enjoy what I’m eating and lose weight. Wow!

I also invested in a Polar Heart Rate Monitor as well. (The Polar HRM measures intensity and exertion, and was a great way to make sure I was working at the pace that's right for me.) So I started getting my heart rate up for 30 minutes a day, and getting my steps in. My goal now is to do this everyday, and so far I have met my goal.

I had a doctor’s appointment at the end of March 2009, and I had worked really hard for three months. I was curious as to what my numbers would be. I wanted all of my numbers to go down, which they had! I'd cut my cholesterol lower that I'd ever imagined, so I didn’t have to go on any medication. The doctor was so proud of me.

I feel much stronger and have lots of energy. So far I have lost 40 lbs. I have 14 more to lose to get into my ideal weight range. I feel that I can do this with the help of eating right, exercise, and being accountable. I’m so glad my employer signed us up for Virgin HealthMiles. It has made a huge difference on my quality of life. I feel great and much healthier.

Leave a comment for Mona
Send us your story: stories@virginhealthmiles.com
What's a Polar HRM?

The winning "Where Does Your GoZone Go?" submission!

It's a wrap. We've got a winner of 1,000 HealthMiles... Our favorite photo submission came from HealthMiles member Dionne T, who's showing us how she keeps herself and her family active. This shot captures the HealthMiles spirit so well! (Click on the photo to get a closer view of this great line-up.)

 

Dionne T: "My GoZone is with me when I stay busy with my 4 young daughters. We race around the neighborhood and play tag, during the cooler evenings here in Florida."

Congrats Dionne!

---

It was a tough competition with almost 1,500 photos to choose from. Here are some runner up submissions that we don't want to let go unnoticed...

Lori S and David S - both HealthMiles members - made their GoZones a part of their wedding day in Kauai, Hawaii! 

---

Kaycee B: "My favorite fun activity is running barrels on my horse Winsom." (Her GoZone is along for the ride!)

---

Alex G: "My 1 year old daughter Eliza and I went for a snowy hike in Montana this past weekend.  We are in Emigrant, MT just north of Yellowstone National Park. (Full disclosure: the moose is actually a bronze statue!)"

---

Turella W and Larry W taking their pedometers to to the Prosser Washington Hot Air Balloon Rally. 

---

Thanks again to all of you who submitted pictures. It was a ton of fun to see everyone in action! We'll keep posting more over the coming weeks.

And if you missed the submission deadline or have an active vacation coming up, hold on to your snapshots for a future photo contest!

Where Does Your GoZone Go? ... Disney World!

Dana W: "[My] GoZone went to Disney World, Orlando, FL on Oct 8, 2009. Had an awesome time and put in LOTS of steps!!"

---

 

John M: "WDW is magical for steps!"

---

 

Sheri C: "My GoZone goes to Disney World. In 8 days I walked a total of 174,080 steps. I'm in the teal shirt between Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse."

---

 

Lacresha P: "I took my GoZone to the GREATEST place on earth, DISNEY WORLD!!!" 

---

 

Susanne L: "My GoZone went to Epcot's Food and Wine Show... It also went along as we trick-or-treated at the Magic Kingdom during the Not So Scary Halloween Party. As always, Disney World exceeded all our expectations."

---

Stay tuned for the announcement of our Fall 2009 Where Does Your GoZone Go? Photo Contest Winner!

Where Does Your GoZone Go? ... overseas

Lisa S: "I’m so glad this picture came out – and that you can see my pedometer on my right hip!
I was in Europe this summer. I visited Dublin, Ireland; Nice, France; Vernazza, Italy; and Geneva Switzerland. The attached is a picture of me as I set out on a two hour trek from Vernazza to Corniglia, Italy (two of the 5 villages which make up Cinque Terre on the Italian Riviera). That body of water pictured is the Ligurean Sea. I am overlooking the village of Vernazza in this photo which is where I spent four amazing nights. It was part of a two week vacation I was on – with no way to upload my steps – and believe me; I took a LOT of steps … 168,656 to be exact! I was worried I had lost my steps when they stopped registering at some point while I was in Switzerland. Fortunately, they were still counting – just not displaying!"

---

Mike F: "My pedometer and I went to the Great Wall of China at Badaling, 43 miles northwest of Beijing, China.  The walk was incredible, steep and packed with people celebrating the 60th anniversary of the birth of the People's Republic of China.  It was a 'Wow!' day."

---

 

Sarah B: "Attached is a picture of me wearing my pedometer in Paris, France in July 2009.  If you look in the background you can see the Eiffel Tower.  My boyfriend and I decided to walk there.  It looked much closer than it truly was!  I believe I put in over 25,000 steps that day!"

---

Christine W along the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland.

---

 

Linda Z and Alice B in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

---

Stay tuned for the announcement of our Fall 2009 Where Does Your GoZone Go? Photo Contest Winner!

Where Does Your GoZone Go? ... around town

Jim S: "I work in downtown Louisville, Ky and often will walk along the riverfront during my lunch hour. Below is a picture of the Belle of Louisville riverboat that is always docked along the riverfront when I take my almost daily walks."

---

 

Steve L: "This is a picture of me with the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum behind me. This is just 1 of many of the walks my friend and I take. Our walks go everyday at lunch and take about 1 hour or more to complete. We have made at least 5 trips up the steps that Rocky ran up on Rocky I. Each time it does get easier. I am recovering from knee surgury. I have gained 50 lbs and plan to walk it all off."

---

Katie S: "My GoZone pedometer and I traveled from our quiet mountains of Virginia to the big city of Boston, MA on a fun, 3-day adventure.  After posing with my husband in The Public Garden for this quick pic, [my] GoZone took me down the Freedom Trail and to the harbor, trekking over 20,000 steps!!!!"

---

 

Nina M: "This photo was taken in front of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir in New York's Central Park. I just moved here for graduate school, and I love to walk to the park for some exercise!"

---

Paul L: "I took my GoZone to San Francisco to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge…3.5 miles across and back!  And that’s not counting the miles walked visiting the rest of the city!"

---

Stay tuned for the announcement of our Fall 2009 Where Does Your GoZone Go? Photo Contest Winner!

Where Does Your GoZone Go? ... to the festivals

 

Beth W: "This shot was taken at the 38th Annual Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, KS. I joined 10,000 of my closest friends for the festival and got lots of steps in while walking to the different stages around the festival."

---

Kevin S enjoyed lots of Irish folk music with his pedometer at the Indy Irish Fest in September.

---

 

Erica A: "I used my GoZone over the weekend at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin, TX.  Walking over 20,000 steps a day through Zilker Park was even more difficult this year due to the rain and mud that covered the entire park. We still have a blast, and I made sure to get those steps on my GoZone pedometer!"

---

  

Dennis N: "I live in Memphis & the Cooper Young Fest is one of the bigger (and I think the best) festivals in the area. I went with my family [in September] and took this picture after about two and a half miles of walking around. We were able to dodge the rain and as you can see in the background, there were lots of others there too."

---

Have one you want to share? Email your photo and a short description - including your HealthMiles Member ID - to gozonephoto@virginhealthmiles.com. Make sure it's a new photo (no repeats from prior contests) and send it by October 15th, 2009.

Be sure we can see your GoZone pedometer! We'll give you 100 HealthMiles for your submission, and we'll award 1,000 HealthMiles for the most interesting, creative, original or otherwise outstanding snapshot. Good luck.