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Cultivating
Healthy Body, Mind & Spirit
Chicago
Botanic Garden Offers Wellness Programs in June
GLENCOE,
Ill. - The magnificent gardens, tranquil lakes and gently
rolling hills of the Chicago Botanic Garden are the backdrop
for innovative wellness programs designed to teach and promote
heart-healthy behaviors and activities.
“The
valuable information we want to share about cardiac health
-- exercise, good nutrition and stress management -- is
enhanced by how and where we share it,” said Maria
Gabaldo, coordinator of the Buehler Enabling Garden
and lead instructor for the “Bring Your Heart to the
Garden” program. “Behavioral scientists have studied
the effects of green spaces on human well-being and have
concluded that being in planted landscapes can lower heart
rate, decrease tension and increase deep breathing. Studies
have also shown that green spaces improve focus and concentration,
another benefit of the Garden setting.”
The
multi-tiered wellness approach includes “Wellness Day
at the Garden,” a free day of health education and
inspiration, presented by the Chicago Botanic Garden and
Prevention magazine. The event will take place in the McGinley
Pavilion overlooking the Great Basin, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
on June 21. Attendees can learn about the positive results
of the Garden’s various wellness programs and meet with
the Chicago Botanic Garden’s horticultural therapy and lifestyle
experts who run the programs. Introductory classes in tai
chi, yoga and fitness walking; food demonstrations by Prevention’s
“healthy chef,” Tom Ney; and speakers from
the American Heart Association and Prevention will be featured.
“Cardiovascular
disease is epidemic in our society. People need to be educated
on how to incorporate heart healthy activities into their
daily life,” said Dr. George Gubernikoff,
director of the Cardiology Fellowship Program at Northwestern
University Medical School. “Our hope is that visitors
will go away from this event with a greater awareness and
understanding of what it takes to engage in heart healthy
lifestyle changes.”
Gubernikoff
collaborated on the development of “Bring Your Heart
to the Garden,” a four-week series of classes that
will have participants walking, cooking and relaxing in
the beautiful surroundings of the Chicago Botanic Garden.
The series, piloted in
2002, is being offered through the Garden’s Horticultural
Therapy Services department and was developed by exercise
physiology, nutrition and horticultural therapy experts.
Each week in June and in September, program participants
attend a two-hour session conducted in the Buehler Enabling
Garden, and other easily accessible locations throughout
the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Participants
sign up for one of these tracks in June:
Mondays,
9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Wednesdays,
8 a.m. to 10 a.m., or 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
and
Fridays, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
The
following tracks are being offered in September:
Tuesdays,
10 a.m. to noon
Wednesdays,
9 a.m. to 11 a.m., or noon to 2 p.m.
and
Thursdays, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
All
sessions include walking, “hands-on” food preparation
using fresh ingredients from the garden, and a stress management
activity. Additionally, participants attend sessions from
8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Saturdays. During this time,
top Chicago chefs prepare and share heart-healthy dishes
at the open-air kitchen in the Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable
Garden.
According to Gabaldo, the program has met
with overwhelming enthusiasm. “People who participated
last year showed a 13 percent increase from baseline measurements
in mental well being,” she said. “Judging from
their comments, this unique approach to wellness can make
a real difference in peoples’ lives.”
“My doctor told me that my bad cholesterol (LDL) was
on the rise,” said Monica Vachlon,
a pilot program participant. “I was hoping this class
would kick-start me into a better lifestyle. It did exactly
that … after taking the class and continuing regular walking
and watching my fat intake for six months, I lost 10 pounds,
dropped my LDL by 25 points and increased my HDL (good cholesterol)
by 10 points. My doctor was impressed and I was thrilled.”
The Chicago Botanic Garden also offers enriching lifestyle
programs, including fitness walks, tai chi, adult yoga and
runners club, for members. For more information, call the
Member Event Hotline at (847) 835-6860,
or visit the Web site at www.chicagobotanic.org/lifestyle.
Call (847) 835-8215 for information on
Chicago Botanic Garden membership, or visit the Web site
at www.chicagobotanic.org/member/index.html.
Cost
for “Bring Your Heart to the Garden” is $120 for
Chicago Botanic Garden members and $145 for nonmembers.
Parking at the Garden is free to program participants. To
register or for more information, call (847) 835-8250,
or visit the Garden’s Web site at www.chicagobotanic.org/member/index.html.
“Bring Your Heart to the Garden” is sponsored by
Prevention magazine, with additional support from Whole
Foods.
More
about the garden:
The
Chicago Botanic Garden is a 385-acre living museum owned
by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County and managed
by the Chicago Horticultural Society. The Garden is open
every day of the year, except Dec. 25, from 8 a.m. to sunset.
The Chicago Botanic Garden is located on Lake Cook Road
in Glencoe, one-half mile east of the Edens Expressway.
General admission is free; select event fees apply. Non-members
of the Chicago Botanic Garden pay $8.75 for parking. On
Tuesdays, senior citizens age 62 and older pay $5.75 for
parking. The Chicago Botanic Garden is accredited by the
American Association of Museums and is a member of the American
Association of Botanical Gardens & Arboreta and the
Association of Science-Technology Centers. The Gardens Web
site is www.chicagobotanic.org
