At the beginning of the ed tion component, healthy food and beverage choices were provided. variety of foods was introduced to give members new ideas to try t home: for example, adding bran to a low-fat trail mix was suggested during the session on fiber. The ed ucation component involved many topics. Nutrition was a key m that covered several sessions. In formation re garding Canada's Food Guide for Healthy Eating (M nister of Public Works and Govemmen Services Canada, 1997), portion sites, fats, sodium content, fiber, and label reading was presented and discussed. An in-depth analy sis of the calories, sugar, fat, and salt content of fast foods and sug- ared drinks was included because the patients tended to consume a great deal of this type of food. Stress management, the benefits of humor, self esteem issues, and creative contentment were also part of the education component Guest speakers, including a nurse a dietician, and a psychologit from the Hypertension and Cholesterol presented information during the educational segments. In addition, a massage therapist taught relaxation techn visually impaired gentleman who had experienced success as a moun tain climber shared how he could achieve personal goals despite his handicap. This session encou the group members to focus on rec ognizing and developing their own personal strengths. Some topics were broken into various stages and presented over a few week. Information was re viewed periodically to reinforce the teaching. Members also divided into smaller groups to discuss and leam the informat ion. Each author was able to sit with a smaller group to answer questions and provide as- sistance related to topics the mem- bers were leaming. Members would then return to fat content, a variety of learning tools were us sed, such as vials mea- ring the amount of fat in various foods. Considerable discussion oc curred when members were able to see the amount of fat in the vials of various foods. Each member had the opportunity to choose afat vial and share the fat content of the food it represented with the other members. In addition, an overhead projector was used to display a sam ple menu. Members divided into small groups and used handouts on fat content to develop an alterna tive, low-fat menu. They retumed to the larger group to present their menus. Their homework was to make one low-fat change in their diet during the following week and to discuss this change with the group at the next session Exercise Component The exercise component fo lowed the educational class. It was held in a room adjacent to the gymnasium three floors down from the OSS. Initially, members would
from the Relubilitatin D The first 10 minutes was used a warm-up period. Then the members participated in exer- cises to increase their heart rate strengthen their muscles. Exercises focused on the upper and lower bely and abdominal core, Gentle stretching was also a primary theme to help improve flexibility. Members would offer