The Gift of Health & Wellness over a Weekend

As a busy professional, wife and mom of two young boys – it is a rare treat to escape the daily chaos of life. But, I was fortunate (with the support of my husband) to take time for myself this past weekend. My good friend Michelle and I jumped in my car and took the 40-minute drive to Sparkling Hill Resort in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia. The gift of health & wellness was quickly upon me.

As a self-proclaimed Type-A personality, relaxing isn’t always easy for me to do – especially when I have a to do list 10 miles long BUT it happened - thanks to my employer CoreHealth.

Boost Employee Moral with Employee Wellness

Last month the CoreHealth team had our usual fiscal year-end review and as a thank you for our commitment and hard work, CoreHealth leadership gave each of us a generous wellness fund that we could do as we wished providing it was related to health & wellness.  The smiles on everyone’s face was pretty cool as each of us thought about how we would use the fund. It was an instant employee morale booster.

Ideas whirled around everyone’s heads with some helpful suggestions on how this wellness fund could be used including: a seasons pass to Big White Ski Resort, exercise equipment, a new bike, gym membership, kayaks or whatever we choose.

Incentivizing Employee Wellness

It wasn’t lost on me that this reward supported the core values of our company and included one of the fundamental components of a successful incentive for employee wellness – personalized rewards. As a technology company that powers programs for wellness providers around the world, we know a thing or two about incentives (our platform tracks rewards and incentives for participants). While wellness incentives can be controversial at times (depending on who you talk to, some are believers and some are not) - you couldn’t ignore the excitement in the room. True, this reward wasn’t directly related to a wellness program as such, it did serve as a reward for our efforts which helps employee morale.

Hallway chatter was infectious as we shared how we would spend the fund and boost health.

My Choice: Serenity, Relazation, and Me Time

After some serious contemplation (which included one idea of purchasing some new fitness equipment), I chose a getaway to a European-style spa for two nights. Why? Because the whole experience supports health & wellness in a way that was personal for me.

Health & Wellness in a Weekend

• Peace and Quiet – If you have young kids, you know how rare it is to have a moment to yourself and hear yourself think! Sparkling Hill is geared to adults only so it’s quiet. I relinquished my referee shirt and left behind my loud, non-stop busy kids (whom I love very much) who seem to think picking on each other is a national sport (of which they would be winners).  I was long overdue from some rest and relaxation.
• Relaxation – as soon as you step foot in the Sparkling Hill KurSpa, you are surrounded by 40,000 sq. ft. of treatment space including 7 steams and saunas, indoor and outdoor pools, spa services and serenity and steam room, and so on. As per their website, the KurSpa provides guests with the wellness retreat of a lifetime - a claim to fame they truly live up to.  I don’t think it’s possible to leave this place without feeling relaxed.  It’s truly an experience like no other. Two nights can feel like two weeks!
• Good Food – their breakfast buffet is amazing along with a great selection of healthy and delicious menu items. Plus, healthy beverages are always available including water with cucumber or oranges and a concoction of wheatgrass, honey and some other magical ingredient – sure to help you detox and replenish after sitting in the steam and saunas!
• Exercise – this sanctuary is surrounded by numerous hiking trails that are quiet where you can meander near the Okanagan Lake or around Predator Ridge Golf Course. For those of you who love the outdoors (like I do), it’s a calming experience to be surrounded by nature while getting your heart rate up. In this day and age of digital technology, I was quite happy to leave my smartphone in my room and be present in the surrounding beauty.
• Sleep – their beds are so comfy, you don’t want to get out of them. It was very refreshing to wake up after a sound night of sleep.  We all know how important it is to get a good night of sleep.

Recharged & Grateful

No, this isn’t a promotion for Sparkling Hill Resort…. I just wanted to emphasize how a weekend away can do wonders for employee wellness but even more importantly, a wellness experience (reward) that was near and dear to me, goes a long way.

If you are looking for a unique way to supercharge employee morale and re-energize your staff health & wellness, a wellness fund is a great idea.  It’s a unique, personalized and appreciated reward for your workforce.

Track Wellness Incentives

If you provide wellness incentives and rewards to your workforce and need an easy way to administer, CoreHealth corporate wellness platform can help.

About CoreHealth

CoreHealth Technologies Inc. is the leading corporate wellness platform trusted by more than 1000 organizations, ranging from medium-sized businesses to Fortune 500 enterprises. At CoreHealth, we believe that developing the best employee wellness programs is all about giving wellness companies the right code, design and access to the latest innovations. With the most customization, integrations and reliability of any software in its class, CoreHealth’s powerful platform lets users focus on growing great companies. For more information, explore the CoreHealth website.