Getting Started in Your New TOPS Chapter

1 L-048-A (Rev. 4/13) 2013 by tops Club, Inc. 1 Learn It. Live program for use at Chapter meetingsMaterials: pens/pencils 3 x 5 index cards or slips of paper for each member in chapterPreparation:Pass out the index cards and ask members to write down their biggest problem in maintaining healthy eating or exercise habits. Members should not write their names on the cards. Shuffle and redistribute the index cards to Started in your New tops ChapterGet Ready These Chapter programs will help you and your Chapter to structure the educational portion of your tops meetings using the free My Day One booklets you received. Chapter programs are designed to inform, inspire, make members think, or just provide good fun. A variety of programs, contests, and other helpful resources including a week-by-week plan for an entire year of tops programs is available to the Chapter Leader or Designate on in the Leaders Corner.

2 New programs are included in each issue of tops News magazine. Programs may be pre-sented by the Chapter Leader, or you can mix it up by encouraging different members to present throughout the year. Get SetThese two 4-page handouts provide you with a sample week-by-week agenda you may follow for the next six weeks and beyond. Once you have completed the first six weeks, how you choose to present the remaining programs is entirely up to you and your Chapter . Go!Start with Getting to Know You, which is described on this page. If time allows, move on to the program suggestion for Week 1, which can be found on the next page. Let s go around the room and your name What brought you to the Chapter What you d like to achieve as a tops member Any other information you d like to share family, hobbies, job, etc.(After everyone has shared, ask each member to read aloud from an index card, and moderate a two-minute dis-cussion of each problem.)

3 Getting to Know You4 L-048-D (Rev. 4/13) 2013 by tops Club, Inc. Learn It. Live program for use at Chapter meetingsNow that you re beginning to recognize negative thoughts, let s keep practicing the first step of awareness for homework. Over the next week, every time you have a negative thought about yourself, put one penny in a clear jar. This visual will help put into perspective just how many negative thoughts about yourself you have over the course of a week. You may even want to write each negative thought you have in a journal. Then ask yourself: Since I would not say these hurtful things to someone else, why do I talk to myself this way? Listening carefully to what your mind is telling you and replacing negative thoughts with positive ones will help you stay motivated and on track to achieving your goals. So choose to say nice, positive, and encouraging words to yourself. When we think positively, set SMART goals, monitor our progress, and recognize our achievements, we can succeed in living healthier, more fulfilling , Part 2 Materials: pens/pencils 3 x 5 index cards for each member in chapterPreparation:Pass out the index cards and ask members to write down a negative thought they ve had recently.

4 Members should not write their names on the staying motivated were as easy as identifying goals and rewarding ourselves for reaching them, success would be easy. Unfortunately, sometimes we sabotage our success by listening to our own negative thoughts that remind us of our prior mistakes and failures. Because research shows that our mind believes what we tell it, we need to be aware of negative thoughts and turn them into positive ones. In other words, we can change our way of thinking! Here s how it works. Say, for example, we think: I will never reach my goal weight. Who here has had that thought at one time? Well, you can turn it into a positive affirmation, such as: It will take time, but I will make healthy choices each day to help me reach my goal weight. I m worth the effort. Let s try out this technique. Turn the Negative into Something Positive (Have members sit in a circle. Shuffle and redistribute the index cards that they filled out at the beginning of the meeting.)

5 Let s go around the circle. Read aloud your card and change that negative thought into a positive IMAGES/THINKSTOCK/ ( )A Penny for your Thoughts2 L-048-B (Rev. 4/13) 2013 by tops Club, Inc. Learn It. Live program for use at Chapter meetingsWeek 1: Turn to page 4 of My Day One and go over the parts of a SMART goal before asking members to fill out the worksheet on page 5. Week 2: Review If you bite it, write it on page 16 of My Day One. Encourage members to keep a food journal for at least three days over the next week, including a Saturday or Sunday. Ask members to bring in a Nutrition Facts label (found on the back of packaged foods) for next week s meeting. Week 3: Revisit the SMART goals members set in Week 1. Discuss whether or not goal setting was helpful. Also, discuss members food journals and encourage them to continue over the Nutrition Facts label on page 6 of My Day One. Have members review and compare the labels they 4: Ask members if they ve been paying more attention to the Nutrition Facts label.

6 If they have, ask them what they ve noticed. Present Motivation, Part 1 on the next page of this handout. Week 5: Have members share their vision boards and revisit SMART goals that members set in Week Motivation, Part 2 on the last page of this handout. Week 6: Follow up on the A Penny for your Thoughts activity from Motivation, Part 2. Ask for a volunteer to give the next week s Chapter s First Six WeeksIdeas for Week 7 and beyondYou may choose the programs in the second 4-page a program from the Leaders Corner on (available only to the Leader & Designate).Or Choose a program from tops News. L-048-C (Rev. 4/13) 2013 by tops Club, Inc. 3 Learn It. Live program for use at Chapter meetingsWho here has trouble Getting motivated? Raise your hand. Did you know you don t have to be motivated to start something? Researchers have discovered that we get motivated once we begin an activity.

7 So if we simply put on sneakers and head out the door, we may start to feel motivated to go for a walk. Let s take a few minutes to share how we motivate ourselves. (Allow several minutes for small group discussions.)1. What events or things can put a damper on your motivation?2. What tips or tricks get you moving even when you d rather do something else? 3. If you ve hit a plateau or had a setback, how do you regroup and stay focused on your goal?(Call everyone back together from the small groups.)Throughout the tops program, we are reminded frequently that we have a choice in everything we do: what we eat, how often we exercise, how we think, etc. So how can we design our lives so we can easily get and stay motivated? First we need to seriously reflect on who we are now (without dwelling too much on how we got here). Then we need to think about who we want to be (our dreams and desires). As you ll recall, setting SMART goals is one strategy to move from our current status to our future vision.

8 Another approach is to interpret our goals visually with a vision vision board is a creative and fun way to represent your goals; it s a poster or collage that showcases your dreams and what s important to you and helps you focus on what is worth pursuing. your assignment to be completed prior to next week s meeting is to create a vision board. You can cover your vision board with any pictures or phrases that will inspire you to become a healthier you, such as: Magazine cut-outs of the nutritious, colorful foods you will include in your healthy-eating plan Inspiring quotes from articles, poems, or your favorite books Photos of yourself you find flattering, or pictures of people who you would like to look like (keeping in mind that most of us will never again look like our 20-year-old selves or like super models) Pictures of fun activities you d like to do more often playing with the kids or grandkids, golfing, swimming, biking, or whatever sounds fun to youMaterials: No extra materials Vision Boards by tops membersFollow-up: Bring your vision boards to next week s tops Chapter meeting.

9 We will share our vision boards with each other as a a Vision BoardMotivation, Part 12 L-048-B (Rev. 4/13) 2013 by tops Club, Inc. Learn It. Live program for use at Chapter meetingsWeek 1: Turn to page 4 of My Day One and go over the parts of a SMART goal before asking members to fill out the worksheet on page 5. Week 2: Review If you bite it, write it on page 16 of My Day One. Encourage members to keep a food journal for at least three days over the next week, including a Saturday or Sunday. Ask members to bring in a Nutrition Facts label (found on the back of packaged foods) for next week s meeting. Week 3: Revisit the SMART goals members set in Week 1. Discuss whether or not goal setting was helpful. Also, discuss members food journals and encourage them to continue over the Nutrition Facts label on page 6 of My Day One. Have members review and compare the labels they 4: Ask members if they ve been paying more attention to the Nutrition Facts label.

10 If they have, ask them what they ve noticed. Present Motivation, Part 1 on the next page of this handout. Week 5: Have members share their vision boards and revisit SMART goals that members set in Week Motivation, Part 2 on the last page of this handout. Week 6: Follow up on the A Penny for your Thoughts activity from Motivation, Part 2. Ask for a volunteer to give the next week s Chapter s First Six WeeksIdeas for Week 7 and beyondYou may choose the programs in the second 4-page a program from the Leaders Corner on (available only to the Leader & Designate).Or Choose a program from tops News. L-048-C (Rev. 4/13) 2013 by tops Club, Inc. 3 Learn It. Live program for use at Chapter meetingsWho here has trouble Getting motivated? Raise your hand. Did you know you don t have to be motivated to start something? Researchers have discovered that we get motivated once we begin an activity.