Month: January 2016

How do you thank someone? … You can too …

Published on by SSpellmanCann1 Comment

FullSizeRender

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog. It is hard to believe three years has passed since ETMOOC. I personally have learned so much in the last three years thanks to my ETMOOC PLN and especially Alec Couros. How do you thank someone who has made such a difference ? For us in ETMOOC it was by helping to create something that will hopefully make a difference for Alec, his family as well as future educators.

According to Harvard Social Psychologist Amy Cuddy people judge you on two criteria when they first meet you .

  1. Can I trust this person?
  2. Can I respect this person?

Alec Couros  @courosa has earned the  trust and respect of so many , but especially those of us in ETMOOC and as a result we wanted to do something special for him. Thus the Mario Couros Memorial Bursary .

Please take time to read the criteria below and if you feel like you too want to thank Alec by contributing to an award that honours him and his dad who meant the world to him, then please do so. Several of us plan to work hard this year to promote and get others to contribute to this award and we hope YOU will join us.

About the award :

The Mario Couros Memorial Bursary will help newcomers to Canada in reaching their dream of being one of tomorrow’s educators by providing financial assistance to pursue their Education Degree at the University of Regina. Mario came to Canada from Greece on December 14th 1957. He lived, worked and raised his family in Saskatchewan. He wanted to make a life and a difference for his family. Mario was a volunteer, a caring supportive father, grandfather, a loving husband and an extremely hard working man. He was a great role model for his children and others as he continued to be a lifelong learner with a fabulous work ethic until his passing. This award is dedicated in his memory.

It is also a tribute to his son Dr. Alec Couros who continues his father’ s legacy by inspiring and encouraging others to pursue their educational aspirations and follow a path to life-long learning.

The bursary will make a meaningful impact by breaking down the financial barriers to higher education and encouraging outstanding academic achievement. By contributing to this bursary you will enable Education students to focus on what matters most : their education.

The goal is to raise $ 25.000 to create an endowment that will allow for a permanent bursary at the University of Regina ‘s Faculty of Education. Your contribution to the Mario Couros Memorial Bursary will live on in perpetuity in memory and honour of Mario’s legacy. 

To donate online:

  1.                    Go to http://www.uregina.ca/giving
  2.                    Click the Donate Now button on the right side
  3.                    Click the In Honour/In Memory button

Enter your donation information and click add to gift basket.

Please ensure you enter Mario Couros under the second tab and continue to payment

If you would like any assistance with contributing please contact Erin Werner at 1-306-585-5432 or erin.werner@uregina.ca .  Those from other countries may wish to do so if they have difficulty contributing.  If you need a paper copy just email her.

You too can help !  Consider letting other educators know they can contribute to this important fund. Each contribution can and will make a difference. Alec has 99.5k followers . If each person following @courosa donated $ 1.00 we would have more than we need to keep this fund alive and help young people who want to be educators.

A very special thank you to all those in ETMOOC that have volunteered to promote this fund and all those who have already committed to contributing. I am so grateful for you . Kindness flows in ETMOOC ‘ers

I look forward to many more years of connecting , growing and learning with all of you. I think my heart is bigger today because of all of you.

Have you or someone you know been impacted by @courosa or @gcouros ?  You may want to really consider contributing. This post yesterday by @gcouros on “Has twitter changed our view?”  is very thoughtful and thought provoking. Twitter has most certainly changed mine for the positive. #lifechanging #friendshipsIneverwouldhaveimagined #grateful

REMINDER:
YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE ! Truly think about donating, even if only a small amount and pass this on to someone who you think would contribute. TOGETHER we are better!

Please consider blogging about this award and sharing on twitter , facebook and google plus . YOU too can help to make a difference. Thanking you in advance. There truly are so many good people in the world and if you have taken time to read this blog post to the end and contribute. I know you are one of them.

Please let us know you have contributed by either DM ing me at @sspellmancann or by posting in the comments section so we can acknowledge YOU!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eliminating Exercise Stereotypes

Published on by SSpellmanCannLeave a comment

IMG_4953

Another guest post from Ryan Fahey @wellnessrf and a great one to start the year.

The other day I was talking to a young lady who informed me that she ‘worked out like a girl’ and somehow did not workout ‘like a guy’. After disagreeing with her, I realized some inner motivation to write a blog post on this dichotomy of exercise myths. I began trying to understand and wrap my head around, what entails working out ‘like a girl’, however nothing came to mind. I mean, when I buy groceries do I buy guy groceries? Or do I buy girl groceries? Because clearly that makes sense, ….but is there really such thing as ‘working out like a girl’? If so, maybe it is just the way we use that statement. It seems that whenever I hear that statement used it is in comparison to ‘working out like a guy’ as if ‘working out like a guy’ is the gold standard….Hmmmmmm……

Given my two days of reflection on this topic I have some conclusions to make…

1) Ladies, take pride in all exercise you wish to participate in whether at the gym, in a Zumba class or in your small apartment. If you are to use the statement above, use it in a positive light. Be proud to workout and to be a girl . Moving is moving and movement deserves respect. Do not simply say, “I can only do girl pushups”. That is nonsense. From a training perspective, you have regular pushups and modified pushups, that is all.

2) Gents, if you agree that there is such a thing as ‘working out like a guy’ again use this language in a positive light. Be careful with your words. Do not use them in a way that degrades how someone else should be working out according to your standards.

3) Gents, start going to fitness classes with the ladies! I have been a bootcamp and aerobics instructor in Canada for over four years and can almost count on two hands the amount of guys that came through the door to participate in my classes….. maybe we could further understand how each one of us workout if we participated in exercises WITH each other, regardless of whether we are XX or XY.

4) To both ladies and gentlemen, take the time to critically think about the type of language you are using at the gym, around your friends and around your workplace. Sometimes positive reinforcement can go very far in breaking down stereotypes. Also, be comfortable enough with your own fitness routine so that you do not feel the need to compare yourself with someone else and their routine.

The bottom line here is that movement is movement. Whether you are a girl or a guy, movement is very important to us all. Be encouraging to those people trying to live healthier lifestyles. That is the standard we need to build healthier communities at large. It is up to each one of us to break down the gender barriers in the fields of exercise, health & wellness

Lastly, I have seen many strong women that I both respect and admire as fitness models and fitness instructors. Their mentorship and guidance are some of the foundational pieces of my health and wellness knowledge and philosophies. Conversely, I have worked alongside 80+ males and elite level coaches whom I learned so much about conditioning, coaching and overall health & wellness in athletics. Tweet me anytime @wellnessrf.

Ryan 2.png

Ryan , of course I’d like to add my two cents. I know sometimes people look at me and think oh she doesn’t work out because  of the way I look. That is far from the truth … you can’t judge a book by it’s cover . I am 57 years old and I still play lacrosse which I absolutely love. I also walk 5 days a week as well as move during musical theatre once a week. I so agree with Ryan. Movement is movement. Let’s work together to eliminate those exercise stereotypes and maybe even stereotypes in general. I take pride in all the movement I do, and though I certainly don’t run anywhere like I used to.  I like that I do run and can still shoot and score. I have to admit I loved it when the past captain of the Calgary Roughnecks, Tracey Kelusky told me I had “golden hands.”  It was a boost, especially for someone my age. I can’t run for beans, but I have golden hands (that was few years ago he said that, but it still brings me great joy.) When Andrew McBride, another past captain of the Calgary Roughnecks would ask me to show the much younger ladies how to shoot or pass, yes inside, I beamed with pride. I am happy I can still play a game that I played and loved in my youth.

In 2016 I plan on moving even more … you may want to join me. Here are a few youtube free workouts  here and here that you may enjoy. I plan on tryng out a few of them myself.