The Prince George Citizen – BodyBreak pair offer ways to keep fit, have fun
Hal Johnson at the Healthier You Expo Sunday gives a health talk with BodyBreak partner Joanne McLeod.
That attitude set up the pair, made famous by their BodyBreak fitness television spots, as a fitting and popular draw for Sunday’s Healthier You Expo at the Civic Centre.
“You’re so lucky Prince George, you have an amazing playground to be active in,” said McLeod.
Johnson and McLeod’s hour-long presentation in front of a full house outlined a variety of ways people can keep fit and have fun, interspersed with personal anecdotes about their 25-year healthy-living partnership and their experience on the Amazing Race Canada.
“It was really about trying to get all Canadians – regardless of your ethnicity, regardless of your ability, of where you lived in Canada – all Canadians can live work and play together,” said Johnson. “And that really was the essence of BodyBreak and why we thought we could bring it together.”
The seventh annual event was put on by the Citizen, Prince George-Valemount MLA Shirley Bond and the Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society.
In addition to the headliners, the expo also featured presentations on topics such as a gluten-free diet by Candice Manahan; yoga for seniors by Emma Faulkner; stress prevention by Dr. Faiza Jabbar; wellness in the workplace by Kerensa Medhurst; and diabetes prevention by Dr. Tahir Chaudhry.
Bond said she was pleased with the turnout.
“It’s been busy right from the beginning,” she said. “We see seniors coming for their flu shots, we see others coming to hear special speakers, we had a fantastic cooking demonstration and of course, people are here also to hear Hal and Joanne. I very much want to thank the sponsors who helped us bring Hal and Joanne to Prince George.”
UNBC student Cameron Scott attended the expo especially for Johnson and McLeod and admitted to being star struck.
“It brought me back to my childhood years,” he said of the BodyBreak music that accompanied the pair as they made their way to the stage and led the audience through a warm-up exercise.
The theme for the 2013 Healthier You Expo was Healthy at Work, Healthy at Home, an idea that partially sprouted from a forecasted economic boom in the region, said Bond.
“So we thought it was a helpful opportunity for us to focus, not just on our own personal wellness, but also making sure that workplaces are healthy and safe places,” she said.
IMSS executive director Baljit Sethi said that if people are healthy at home, that can translate into well-being in the workplace, but that there were other things to consider when faced with sitting in an office all day.
As has been the tradition in the seven years IMSS has partnered with the fair, there was a strong multicultural element to the event.
“We do some workshops [on topics] that are the main issues in certain communities, health issues and all that,” said Sethi. “And we are organizing the workshops in their own language so they can fully understand and participate.”
Source: The Prince George Citizen