Giant Food launches #HealthyAtHome virtual challenge

Giant Food of Landover, Md., today announced the #HealthyAtHome #GiantFoodChallenge for the month of May to foster virtual connections and offer guidance for ways to stay active and healthy while following guidelines for social distancing.

The free-to-all challenge will be led by Giant's in-house team of 11 licensed nutrition professionals who have developed a suite of digital offerings including free online classes and webinars to support the community in working toward their health goals while staying safe at home.

Giant Food, a division of Ahold Delhaize USA, operates 163 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and the District of Columbia with approximately 20,000 associates.

Modeled after the World Health Organization's #HeathyAtHome campaign offering guidance to individuals and families, the challenge will be hosted on Giant’s website (https://giantfood.com/) and social media channels to encourage the community to move more and add healthier options to their plates.

“As the fatigue of sheltering in place wears on, we've been hearing from many of our customers a desire to move more and eat healthier," said Lisa Coleman, MS, RD and director of healthy living at Giant Food. “We’re hoping this challenge will help to get our community moving towards a healthier lifestyle and engaging with one another in a fun and safe way. Ultimately, if we all do our part to stay healthy — and at home — it will help protect essential workers like our associates who can’t stay home because of the vital role they play in our communities.”

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The #HealthyAtHome #GiantFoodChallenge will offer simple weekly goals that build on each other to create habits for a healthier overall lifestyle:

Week 1: Eat a fruit and/or vegetable at every meal and take 10 minutes each day to stretch.

Week 2: Try out a new fruit or vegetable each day, or try preparing a favorite in a different way. Get at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day — walking, dancing or yard work all count.

Week 3: Include a whole grain, like brown rice or whole-wheat flour, in meals and snacks — and find a new fitness class online to try out. Week 4: Aim for one meatless meal every day. Then, work to increase daily steps around the house, yard or neighborhood.

No registration or cost is required to participate and there are many ways individuals, community groups and businesses can get involved. Customers can join Nutrition at Noon every Monday in May at noon to kick off the weekly challenge and sign up for the weekly challenge email at [email protected] to receive the Weekly Challenge as well as tips, recipes and online resources.

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Participants are encouraged to share their own #HealthyAtHome experiences on Instagram Stories or Facebook Live, or with a picture on Instagram, Facebook and/or TikTok tagging @GiantFood and using the #HealthyAtHome and #GiantFoodChallenge hashtags.

Last week the retailer began offering free, weekly online nutrition and healthy living classes aimed at supporting the greater community, as well as individuals with chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease. “At a time when the CDC recommends individuals postpone regular, non-urgent healthcare visits and instead use telemedicine when available, these free online classes serve as an extra preventative measure to ensure healthy living habits between doctor visits,” the company said.

“Research shows that even limited short-term access to regular health care during a crisis can have long-lasting effects on lifestyle conditions like diabetes and heart disease,” added Coleman. “Our customers are cooking more, often on a limited budget, and are feeling uncertain about how to best adapt their routines. Our goal is to provide easily accessible support during this stressful time which can often exacerbate issues like obesity, heart disease, diabetes and more.”

Customers can choose from the following online classes based on their current health needs:

• Nutrition at Noon: For those who have general healthy living questions, join Giant nutritionists Monday-Friday at 12 p.m. EST for quick, 15-minute Q&A sessions. Topics discussed during these classes include healthy snacking habits, must-have pantry staples and healthy meal ideas for at-home cooking.

• Eating for Heart Health: Attendees can learn about foods that promote heart health, manage cholesterol and hypertension, and how to improve blood pressure, pulse rate and other heart vitals in this weekly online web series.

• 6 Steps to a Healthier You: Whether it's a concern about weight, chronic disease management or just optimizing health, participants will learn how to identify relatively simple and gradual lifestyle changes to help them live healthier lives.

• Eating for Prediabetes and Diabetes: Those with prediabetes and diabetes can learn practical and delicious ways to keep blood sugar rates in check. Attendees will also be able to learn some simple lifestyle changes to prevent the progression of prediabetes and diabetes.

Giant is also offering free personalized online consultations with their team of registered and licensed dietitians for customers who have further questions about their health and wellness. Consultations are by appointment only.