<p>My great grandmother died because of Diabetes. My grandpa, the only man who's ever been there for me like a father, died because of Heart Disease. I saw how difficult it is living with Diabetes, and I know that Heart Disease can come so unexepectedly. I want to live a long, enjoyable life and I want to help others accomplish that goal. I was thinking of writing a cookbook, but what are some other outstanding ideas? If you're wondering why I'm asking this question on here, it's because this would be considered an extracurricular activity.</p>
<p>You’d have to have a really interesting spin on your cookbook, as there’s so many designed for “healthy” living nowadays. Do you have enough background knowledge of what healthy eating is to be able to write such a book? You wouldn’t want your book to be seen as endorsing a fad diet, being generically healthy (and therefore, ignored), or worst of all, causing more harm than good.</p>
<p>You might want to check out your local youth chapters (e.g. big brothers) as they often have programs that encourage healthy lifestyles for youth, that you could volunteer for. You might also want to see if local elementary schools would be willing to let you talk at their schools (moreso on a class/individual basis) about the importance of healthy living. Maybe you could ask a nearby dietician or nutritionist if they know an area where you can get involved and have an impact.</p>
<p>Make sure you don’t end up doing this more for the sake of the EC than for your own sake. I think this is an excellent activity to be interested in (I’m interested in it myself, for my own reasons), and I hope you find something that works for you and gets your message across. :)</p>
<p>What would constitute healthfulness in determining your book’s recipes?</p>
<p>liddochris, that’s great you’re interested in promoting healthy living. My father-in-law died of complications from diabetes and heart disease at the age of 73, so my husband and I are also interested in the subject.</p>
<p>I started running back in 2006. I will tell you that I NEVER expected to be a runner. In 8th grade, all 200 of us had to run a mile. The times were posted on a list in the gym, and I was literally the slowest kid in the whole grade! When I met my future husband, who was fairly athletic, I told him, “Just so you know, I will NEVER be a runner.” But a friend of mine literally dragged me out when she heard I was trying to lose weight. The idea that was revolutionary to me was that I didn’t have to run the ENTIRE way. She told me to run from one telephone pole to the next, then walk to the following one, and keep alternating in that pattern. I thought, “Well, I can do that much at least.” I kept increasing my distance very gradually. It took me a couple of months to run even one mile straight. Since then I’ve run 5ks, 10ks, and three half marathons. I am still incredibly slow (12 to 13 minute miles), but I’m in good shape.</p>
<p>I used the “Couch to 5K” program to start. Here is a link: [Cool</a> Running :: The Couch-to-5K ® Running Plan](<a href=“http://www.coolrunning.com/cgi-bin/moxiebin/bm_tools.cgi?print=181;s=2_3;site=1]Cool”>http://www.coolrunning.com/cgi-bin/moxiebin/bm_tools.cgi?print=181;s=2_3;site=1)</p>
<p>I have helped several women start running with this program. This summer, another runner and I are leading a group of women from our church. We all run together on Monday mornings, then we’re on our own the rest of the week. It is very encouraging to see women who thought they couldn’t run start doing it! I tell them, “If <em>I</em> can run, almost anybody can!”</p>
<p>So if you could start a group that runs, bikes, swims, etc., that would be a great way to promote healthy living. For me, I found that once I started exercising regularly, the weight started coming off and I was motivated to eat better. I run to lose weight, but I lose weight to run better!</p>
<p>Good luck to you!</p>
<ol>
<li>Volunteer at a hospital.</li>
<li>Volunteer at a community health clinic that does patient education on diabetes and other chronic illnesses.</li>
<li>Find out if your city or state health department has a student intern program that would allow you to do outreach and education.</li>
<li>Volunteer for a community organization like the Urban League or YMCA in their health initiatives section.</li>
<li>Volunteer with a local after school program that encourages healthy living.</li>
<li>Start your own community health organization at your high school, and partner with a hospital or clinic or existing organization to do outreach and education.</li>
</ol>
<p>There are also a lot of fitness clubs (cycling clubs, swim teams, running clubs) that also promote healthy living. They may be a group of people who get together to run, swim, cycle, hike, climb, dance, or whatever, but they also do community outreach and education as a part of their program.</p>
<p>Since your inspiration for this activity comes from your grandparents’ experience, how about doing something specifically aimed at the elderly? Perhaps in conjunction with local assisted living or something?</p>