Shape Your Future offers FREE tools and resources for all Oklahomans
OKLAHOMA CITY (Feb. 8, 2021) – Shape Your Future, a program of the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET), is making it easier to make healthy choices in 2021. Shape Your Future is partnering with organizations across the state to help Oklahoma families adopt healthy habits.
Each week in the Shape Your Future Healthy Kitchen, Chef Valarie Carter, MPH, of the OU-TU School of Community Medicine, brings easy recipes to life that are a great way to kick-start the new year. Shape Your Future also offers a variety of FREE online tools and resources for adults and kids to live healthier lives.
In Oklahoma, 1 in 3 children ages 10–17, is overweight or obese, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health. Plus, Oklahoma has the seventh highest rate of obesity among high schoolers. Shape Your Future and TSET are focused on giving Oklahoma parents and organizations tools and resources to help make the healthy choice the easy choice.
“Starting out a new year with new goals for you and your family is great, but it can quickly get overwhelming,” said Julie Bisbee, TSET executive director. "Try making a one change, even if it's something small like eating more fruits and veggies, drinking one more glass of water or even getting up 10 minutes earlier to do some exercises around the house. Small changes add up. You feel better and have more energy. This helps you and your family live a healthier life.”
Carter says getting started can be as simple as cooking a few more meals at home.
"Eating healthier, sticking to a budget and New Year resolutions can go hand-in-hand,” Carter said. “This is a great time of year to use some of those stored-up items from your pantry and freezer to make healthy meals, save money, and tidy your kitchen. You probably already have several foods on hand to help you eat more whole grains, beans, and fruits and veggies.”
Try adding these small steps into your family’s daily routine:
- Eat whole grain cereals instead of sugary cereals.
- Choose a whole wheat bagel instead of a cinnamon roll.
- Move during TV commercial breaks instead of sitting still.
- Drink water instead of soda (or other sugary drinks).
- Snack on unsalted mixed nuts instead of sugary candy.
- Get proper sleep and make sure to turn off your screens an hour before bed.
Need free online tools that help you stay on track or get started? Try these today:
- Chef Valarie Carter, MPH, wrote a guest blog for Shape Your Future that talks you through an easy-to-follow meal plan and healthy New Year’s tips to get started on a fresh routine in 2021.
- Shape Your Future’s Health Quiz is a seven-question quiz designed for adults 18+ to kickstart their health. This resource gives tailored results on how to start making small, healthy changes immediately in your daily routine.
- If you or someone you know is struggling with drinking too many sugary drinks, visit our Sugar Calculator! It’s a great place to see how many calories you’re consuming. Remember, when it comes to healthy drinks, water is the healthy choice. So, rethink your drink and choose refreshing, ice-cold water over sugary drinks. Also, try our Sugary Drink Quiz. It is a great tool for both adults and kids to find out how much hidden sugar is found in commonly consumed beverages.
- Eating healthy and getting regular, daily exercise is also a major component to jumpstarting a healthy lifestyle. Shape Your Future offers meal plans and healthy recipes that are easy to make and have minimal ingredients.
- An active lifestyle has both immediate and long-term benefits for your health. It can improve your mood and help you sleep. Plus, it can help you control your weight and increase your chances of a longer, healthier life. Check out activities and simple ways you can get 30 minutes of physical activity every day, and how your kids can get 60.
- If you’re looking for accountability this new year, consider joining the Shape Your Future Oklahoma Facebook Group that connects Oklahomans who are striving to make healthy choices for themselves and their families. Join now! https://www.facebook.com/groups/shapefutureok/
This toolkit is made for you
Download the Shape Your Future healthy toolkit that is equipped with a weekly meal plan, grocery store planner, and a 5-day workout plan to start your new year off right.
For more healthy resources you and your family can adopt in 2021, visit ShapeYourFutureOK.com.
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Shape Your Future (SYF) is a community health education intervention that encourages Oklahomans to eat better, move more and be tobacco free. SYF was developed in 2011 by the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) and the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH). It provides simple messaging for moms and influencers in the lives of children to eat more fruits and vegetables and to be more physically active to improve overall health. SYF strives to educate parents, teachers, caregivers and all Oklahomans on how to make the healthy choice the easy choice.
The Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust serves as a partner and bridge builder for organizations shaping a healthier future for all Oklahomans. TSET provides leadership at the intersections of health by working with local coalitions and initiatives across the state, cultivating innovative and life-changing research, and working across public and private sectors to develop, support, implement and evaluate creative strategies to take advantage of emerging opportunities to improve the public’s health. To learn more, visit TSET.OK.GOV.
TSET – Better Lives Through Better Health