For the past year, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare (MLH) has been challenging Memphians and people across the Mid-South to lose one million pounds as a community within three years through the Healthier 901 initiative. So far, 6,828 pounds have been lost by those who have joined through the Healthier 901 app.
This Saturday to celebrate the initiative’s first year and push for more success, MLH will host its second annual Healthier 901 Fest on Saturday at Shelby Farms Park. “Everyone is so excited,” says April Wilson, one of Healthier 901’s associates. “We have made it even better this year.”
This year’s fest will have live cooking demos by Kelly English and other local celebrity chefs, giveaways, live music, and food trucks. There will also be fitness classes throughout the day including tai chi, yoga, meditation, hip-hop, jazzercise, aerobics, and more.
“This year, we really want people to find their fit,” says Sarah Farley, Le Bonheur’s communications specialist. “We’re having the Find Your Fit Zone this year with about 20 different vendors who will be on site with various fitness activities. So you can try it out and see if you like it, and then work with that vendor for a longer term to explore whatever that exercise or activity is. There’s a million ways to get active. You don’t have to go to go to the gym; you don’t have to walk on a treadmill.”
There’ll also be the Le Bonheur Family Zone, which will have pickleball courts, hula hoops, bungee trampolines, a rock wall, a ninja tower, and educational activities. Both Wilson and Farley recommend downloading the Healthier 901 app before attending the fest to get enrolled into the raffles for special giveaways.
The app and Healthier 901’s website will also have more information about ongoing programming throughout the year. Wilson, for instance, speaks of working with businesses, churches, and schools. “The things that we’re doing out there in the community are really bringing everyone together,” she says. “And what I can see just from outside looking in, people are really enjoying learning about health and just being active. If you’re moving constantly every day on a daily basis, of course, you gonna see pounds drop, but your overall goal is to be healthy.”
Healthier 901 fest, Shelby Farms Park, Saturday, August 31, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., free.