The campus guide to living well
Living well at Fanshawe means taking care of your mental and physical health. Improving and
maintaining your health will ensure success for your academic career and virtually all other
aspects of your life.
“Very often we'll talk about taking care of the big three: eating, sleeping, and the amount of physical activity that you get. If you're not eating healthy, if you don't have good sleep habits, and you're not getting adequate physical activity, it affects your mood and your mental health directly,” said Anita O'Keefe, the counsellor coordinator at Fanshawe's Counselling and Accessibility Services office. She also said that “research shows over and over again that having a balanced life with enough physical activity, good healthy eating, not too much caffeine or alcohol or anything that might affect your moods, and good sleep habits really help you manage any kind of mood disorder that you might have.”
Mentally Healthy
According to O'Keefe, the two most common mental health issues on campus and in our community are depression and anxiety. If you're feeling hopeless, help is always available on campus. In the Counselling and Accessibility department, O'Keefe provides counselling to students. “That's a big part of what we do here. The counselling part is where counsellors are trained to work with students who have personal issues of any kind. They can also include academic and any kind of career exploration that they like to do,” she said. “The accessibility counsellors work with students who have a documented disability of any kind, including mental health.”
In order to work to the best of your ability, it's essential to have health and wellness in all parts of your life: physical, emotional, social and mental, O'Keefe said. “Mental health is a big part of that, and it can affect all the other parts. If a person is not healthy in their mental health, it will affect them physically and emotionally. They'll have difficulty thinking well and performing on tests, and socially, they'll have difficulty with their relationships,” she said.
“In order to have good mental health and be healthy overall, you want to feel like this is your community. In other words, it's really important to belong. When we don't belong, then you're going to find that your physical health, your ability to think, and your mental health is all going to be affected.” She suggested asking yourself the question, “How can I make sure that I become part of this community?” as a starting point. To get involved, help out with the events that are happening on campus. “If you look at the Interrobang, it's always telling you what's going on on campus. The Fanshawe Student Union has activities and clubs. Or you can get involved in athletics,” she said.
When you're dealing with a problem, even if it's little, ask for help. “Don't let it build. Don't think that you have to suck it up, don't be stubborn. If there's a problem that you think, ‘I'm not doing so well with this on my own,' whether it's talking to a counsellor, a family member, or anyone you know is here to help you on campus, ask for the help that you need. But don't try to do it all on your own,” O'Keefe said.
For more information about counselling services, visit www.fanshawec.ca/counselling
Eating Right
Maintaining your mental health and keeping up with physical activity go hand in hand with eating well, but that can be especially tough at school. There are a number of eateries on our campus, such as Tim Hortons, Subway, Pizza Pizza, the Oasis, The Out Back Shack, and so much more. But with so many options available, how you know where to begin?
Gary Deline, operations manager for The Out Back Shack, said the important thing to consider when choosing what to eat is to do some research to find out what the healthier options are.” And, he added, “Avoid the vending machines, because they're just full of junk,” he said.
Deline added that it isn't that hard to distinguish between a healthy choice and unhealthy choice.
“At The Out Back, for example, it would be easy because you could say that our chicken Caesar salad, which is a grilled chicken breast on a Caesar salad, is a lot healthier than chicken fingers and fries. Some decisions like that are far more obvious than other things, because I know that with something like Subway, some of their sandwiches have a lot of salt in them and you wouldn't realize that until you actually did the research.”
At a bar like The Out Back Shack, eating healthy can be tough — there are so many tasty deep-fried options on the menu! — But it's not impossible.
“Items that might be a healthier choice would be the clubhouse, which is made with grilled turkey, or a grilled steak sandwich … You would have to choose your side appropriately with each item, so you could go with a salad, soup or rice. We also have edamame pods.”
The Oasis cafeteria also has stations that offer a variety of options to choose from: Seven Seas International Fare offers stir fry and pasta; Turbo's Deli has fresh sandwiches, subs and wraps made the way you like; you can get your fix of fresh fruit cups, parfaits and veggie cups from Tropical Chiller; and there's also a salad and soup station.
Making healthy food choices doesn't have to be difficult or time-consuming. As long as you do the necessary research, you can make smart healthconscious decisions that can go a long way when it comes to total body health.
Active & Fit
Part of maintaining good health is incorporating physical exercise into your daily routine, and that doesn't have to be difficult.
Sara Bolt is a customer service representative at Fitness 101, the campus gym, in J building. “We're here to get students involved to stay fit and healthy. We have lots of equipment available for the students, including the cardio free weights and machine weights. Upstairs we also have the aerobics studio, in which we have multiple classes that change each semester. We also have a multipurpose room that students can use at any point to do body weight exercises and whatever they'd like.” At the beginning of each semester, the cost of a Fitness 101 membership is $150.
If you don't want to pay for a gym membership or can't afford it, there are other alternatives available, such as the squash courts, which are also located in J building. “Students are free to use the squash courts whenever they'd like … They just have to come to the Fitness 101 front desk and book out a court,” said Bolt. Students can't book the court ahead of time; just show up the day you want a court and hope one's available. You also have to bring your own racquet and balls, but Fitness 101 can supply goggles. There are three courts available, and each “play” is 45 minutes long, “however if there is no reservation after, they can stay a little bit longer than that,” said Bolt.
If you're into sports, you might want to consider signing up for varsity sports or intramurals. Intramurals are non-competitive and you have the option of joining as a team or as an individual player. They include a variety of sports — cricket, indoor soccer and ice hockey are starting soon! — and are played throughout the school year.
For more information about varsity programs and intramurals, including sign-up dates, go to www.fanshawec.ca/athletics.
Be smart about your health. Maintain good sleeping and eating habits, and try to get some physical exercise throughout your day — only then will you achieve your full academic potential.
“Very often we'll talk about taking care of the big three: eating, sleeping, and the amount of physical activity that you get. If you're not eating healthy, if you don't have good sleep habits, and you're not getting adequate physical activity, it affects your mood and your mental health directly,” said Anita O'Keefe, the counsellor coordinator at Fanshawe's Counselling and Accessibility Services office. She also said that “research shows over and over again that having a balanced life with enough physical activity, good healthy eating, not too much caffeine or alcohol or anything that might affect your moods, and good sleep habits really help you manage any kind of mood disorder that you might have.”
Mentally Healthy
According to O'Keefe, the two most common mental health issues on campus and in our community are depression and anxiety. If you're feeling hopeless, help is always available on campus. In the Counselling and Accessibility department, O'Keefe provides counselling to students. “That's a big part of what we do here. The counselling part is where counsellors are trained to work with students who have personal issues of any kind. They can also include academic and any kind of career exploration that they like to do,” she said. “The accessibility counsellors work with students who have a documented disability of any kind, including mental health.”
In order to work to the best of your ability, it's essential to have health and wellness in all parts of your life: physical, emotional, social and mental, O'Keefe said. “Mental health is a big part of that, and it can affect all the other parts. If a person is not healthy in their mental health, it will affect them physically and emotionally. They'll have difficulty thinking well and performing on tests, and socially, they'll have difficulty with their relationships,” she said.
“In order to have good mental health and be healthy overall, you want to feel like this is your community. In other words, it's really important to belong. When we don't belong, then you're going to find that your physical health, your ability to think, and your mental health is all going to be affected.” She suggested asking yourself the question, “How can I make sure that I become part of this community?” as a starting point. To get involved, help out with the events that are happening on campus. “If you look at the Interrobang, it's always telling you what's going on on campus. The Fanshawe Student Union has activities and clubs. Or you can get involved in athletics,” she said.
When you're dealing with a problem, even if it's little, ask for help. “Don't let it build. Don't think that you have to suck it up, don't be stubborn. If there's a problem that you think, ‘I'm not doing so well with this on my own,' whether it's talking to a counsellor, a family member, or anyone you know is here to help you on campus, ask for the help that you need. But don't try to do it all on your own,” O'Keefe said.
For more information about counselling services, visit www.fanshawec.ca/counselling
Eating Right
Maintaining your mental health and keeping up with physical activity go hand in hand with eating well, but that can be especially tough at school. There are a number of eateries on our campus, such as Tim Hortons, Subway, Pizza Pizza, the Oasis, The Out Back Shack, and so much more. But with so many options available, how you know where to begin?
Gary Deline, operations manager for The Out Back Shack, said the important thing to consider when choosing what to eat is to do some research to find out what the healthier options are.” And, he added, “Avoid the vending machines, because they're just full of junk,” he said.
Deline added that it isn't that hard to distinguish between a healthy choice and unhealthy choice.
“At The Out Back, for example, it would be easy because you could say that our chicken Caesar salad, which is a grilled chicken breast on a Caesar salad, is a lot healthier than chicken fingers and fries. Some decisions like that are far more obvious than other things, because I know that with something like Subway, some of their sandwiches have a lot of salt in them and you wouldn't realize that until you actually did the research.”
At a bar like The Out Back Shack, eating healthy can be tough — there are so many tasty deep-fried options on the menu! — But it's not impossible.
“Items that might be a healthier choice would be the clubhouse, which is made with grilled turkey, or a grilled steak sandwich … You would have to choose your side appropriately with each item, so you could go with a salad, soup or rice. We also have edamame pods.”
The Oasis cafeteria also has stations that offer a variety of options to choose from: Seven Seas International Fare offers stir fry and pasta; Turbo's Deli has fresh sandwiches, subs and wraps made the way you like; you can get your fix of fresh fruit cups, parfaits and veggie cups from Tropical Chiller; and there's also a salad and soup station.
Making healthy food choices doesn't have to be difficult or time-consuming. As long as you do the necessary research, you can make smart healthconscious decisions that can go a long way when it comes to total body health.
Active & Fit
Part of maintaining good health is incorporating physical exercise into your daily routine, and that doesn't have to be difficult.
Sara Bolt is a customer service representative at Fitness 101, the campus gym, in J building. “We're here to get students involved to stay fit and healthy. We have lots of equipment available for the students, including the cardio free weights and machine weights. Upstairs we also have the aerobics studio, in which we have multiple classes that change each semester. We also have a multipurpose room that students can use at any point to do body weight exercises and whatever they'd like.” At the beginning of each semester, the cost of a Fitness 101 membership is $150.
If you don't want to pay for a gym membership or can't afford it, there are other alternatives available, such as the squash courts, which are also located in J building. “Students are free to use the squash courts whenever they'd like … They just have to come to the Fitness 101 front desk and book out a court,” said Bolt. Students can't book the court ahead of time; just show up the day you want a court and hope one's available. You also have to bring your own racquet and balls, but Fitness 101 can supply goggles. There are three courts available, and each “play” is 45 minutes long, “however if there is no reservation after, they can stay a little bit longer than that,” said Bolt.
If you're into sports, you might want to consider signing up for varsity sports or intramurals. Intramurals are non-competitive and you have the option of joining as a team or as an individual player. They include a variety of sports — cricket, indoor soccer and ice hockey are starting soon! — and are played throughout the school year.
For more information about varsity programs and intramurals, including sign-up dates, go to www.fanshawec.ca/athletics.
Be smart about your health. Maintain good sleeping and eating habits, and try to get some physical exercise throughout your day — only then will you achieve your full academic potential.
