With more people seeking healthy living tips, here are some free opportunities to start new healthy habits this fall!

Submitted by Joy Taylor

Most of us know the things we need to do to be healthier – eat well, move our bodies, get good sleep – but how many of us are actually doing it? We are so fortunate in West Hartford to have beautiful parks and plenty of opportunities for fitness, but finding the time and motivation is another story.  If you are one of those in need of a nudge to get out and do it, take advantage of some of these free wellness offerings this fall:

First Church West Hartford and the John P. Webster Library at 12 South Main Street is opening these new classes for the whole community. The series is being taught by three different instructors and is called Healthy Body, Healthy Mind, Healthy Spirit!

“The John P. Webster Library – located in First Church – is so happy to sponsor these fitness classes as part of our mission to instill important habits for a healthy body and spirit,” said the library director Jennifer deSimas.

Each instructor provides an opportunity for meditation/silence as well as movement. Use links to register; all classes are free.

• FitMix with Kathi, led by Kathi Boratko – Tuesdays, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. – Sept. 17 through Oct. 29. This will be a well-rounded class including resistance training, cardio, and balance using multiple fitness modalities. Chairs will be used for seated and standing support. Please bring a mat, light weights and a small ball. No tools? No worries! Some tools can be provided. REGISTER HERE
• QiGong with Cynthia Hoag – Thursdays, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. – Sept. 19 through Oct. 31. QiGong is a Chinese exercise that promotes the flow of qi, or energy, in the body. It can reduce stress, depression, or fatigue while improving immune function and providing a sense of balance and clarity. In Cynthia’s class, you will gain mindfulness through movement.   May participate seated or standing. REGISTER HERE
• Chair Yoga with Janice Olson – Thursdays, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. – Sept. 19 through Oct. 31. This is an all-levels class. We will move through traditional yoga postures (asana) and flow (vinyasa) with the support of a chair. Whether you are a beginner or seasoned yogi, you will enjoy the many physical, spiritual, and emotional benefits of this yoga practice. REGISTER HERE
• Cynthia Wolcott, YTT is offering a complimentary yoga class featuring JOYLS Essential Oils on Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 9:30 a.m. in the “Fireside Circle” room at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 2080 Boulevard, West Hartford.

“Joy and I have enjoyed collaborating around our passions. By putting our skills together, we hope to help our students start new healthy habits at any age,” commented Cynthia. Cynthia leads a customized-on-the-spot all-levels yoga class for restoring your body, mind and spirit.

In the Sept. 25 class, Joy will demonstrate how easy it is to make a natural yoga mat cleaner spray using pure essential oils – which you can make and take home. Healthy snacks included. Contact Cynthia to register: [email protected] or 860-324-7051

• “Fall into Wellness” on Oct. 2, 6:45 p.m. at Essential Health, 645 Farmington Ave, Hartford with essential oil coaches Joy Taylor and Mira Morel Slight. This free class will center around the natural, immune-supporting tools we can find in nature. Come get some refreshers and learn new things about the power of essential oils for mind, body, and home wellbeing.

“Essential oils are becoming more and more the ‘in thing’ for non-toxic cleaning, as well as enhancing wellbeing. But these aren’t ‘new’… for example, you’ll see essential oils mentioned hundreds of times in the Bible,” said essential oil coach and licensed massage therapist Mira Morel Slight.

• The Book Talk to Get You on Track with Dorothy Putnam, CPT, FNC, EOC on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, at 12:30 p.m. Are you fed-up with feeling stuck? Need some motivation to set and keep your health goals? Want health advice that is easy to comprehend and implement? Plan on attending a very special author talk on Saturday, October 19 at 12:30 at Essential Health, 645 Farmington Ave., Hartford.

Dorothy brings a lifetime of healing work as certified personal trainer, functional nutrition coach, and essential oil coach and she just published her first book on the topic: Empowered Health, Naturally

In the book Dorothy outlines what she calls The Core 12. The Core 12 are her foundational lifestyle practices that can be, for the most part, easily incorporated into even the busiest days yet still have a big impact on helping you reconnect to Nature and get you firmly on the path to empowered health.

She even designed a companion journal to keep you accountable and on track with your health goals as you embark on incorporating The Core 12.

“The Core 12 are not difficult or scary, for instance – practice gratitude, find laughter, and get good sleep are a few of my Core 12,” said Dorothy.

The book, along with a companion journal, is available on Amazon and Dorothy will have some for a special price at the event. Please RSVP to Essential Health, 860-269-3228, x1.

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