Health and wellness continue to be top of mind at meetings, especially as planners gear up for another holiday season — a time notoriously known for overeating, over drinking and fewer daylight hours available to spend exercising. Here are five tips for how meeting planners can incorporate a healthy dose of wellness into their meetings this fall.
- Start the Day Early: During an event, it can be difficult to fit in a workout routine, especially later in the day. Meeting planners can offer attendees a start-the-day-early workout such as a hike or walk prior to the official start time of the meeting. It encourages attendees to get off on the right foot as well as offers planners their own option to get some exercise in before the craziness ensues.
- Incorporate Exercise Breaks: For attendees who cannot make the early-morning workout session, meeting planners can organize an exercise break in place of the traditional coffee break. A 15-minute yoga session or Zumba class can provide a much-needed boost of energy that will last longer than a shot of espresso.
- Fitness Trackers: With the launch of the Health app on iPhones and other fitness-tracking devices, tracking steps can be a good way for meeting planners and their attendees to keep an eye on their movement throughout the day. Meeting planners can incorporate it into an event by making it a game to see who can get the most steps over the course of the event.
- Stay Hydrated: It can be easy to forget to drink water during an event, which is why giving attendees a refillable water bottle at the start of a meeting can be an extremely handy — and healthy — takeaway.
- Healthy Menus: Long gone are the days of donuts and croissants at meetings. Instead, meeting planners can find several healthy, affordable options from the Healthy Meetings Toolkit, developed by the National Alliance for Nutrition and activity. The toolkit discusses everything from sample menus to portion sizes to make sure meeting planners are bringing the best options to their attendees.
