As sorority sisters, the Energizer bunny’s got nothing on you. You just go, and go, and go, and . . . .
You’ve got essays, lab reports, group projects, chapter quizzes and the ever-dreaded midterm and final exams looming.
On top of that, you’re the chapter tee-shirt chair this semester, and the company you’ve been working with isn’t very good--they messed up your order and sent an entire shipment of size smalls. Now you’ve got to get a new shipment expedited in time for rush week.
If you stop long enough to think about the madness of it all, the whole system crashes. Your GPA plummets and your chapter goes without awesome tee-shirts.
You have to be on it all the time. In your chapter house, sisters work like well-oiled machines in a factory, building greatness.
The problem is that you’re not a machine. You’re a person, and if you don’t take care of yourself things can go bad in a hurry. Poor physical and mental health can have negative impacts on a sister that build over time.
Fortunately, there are sorority health tools that can help improve sisters’ well-being and provide support to them as students and chapter members.
OmegaFi wants to see sisters thrive. That’s why we’re going Beyond the Kale with these Sorority Health & Wellness Tools.
Wake up from Your Sorority Kitchen Nightmare
Sorority kitchen menus can make a huge difference in sisters’ health and wellness.
You might overlook a nutritional diet as a useful sorority tool, but as they say, you are what you eat.
If you’re made of pure junk food, you won’t likely be the best sister you can be. You’ll lack the energy, motivation and wellness to make it through rush week, let alone the rest of the semester.
Your diet affects many aspects of your health, including cardiovascular, blood sugar, risk of certain cancers and much more.
According to Harvard Medical School, a poor diet can harm your mental health as well.
That’s a disaster for any sister.
The healthy solution happens to be closer than you think. In fact, it’s in your sorority house kitchen right now.
Sisters can benefit from having a professional nutritionist in the house, or bringing one in to help the kitchen staff and house manager plan a healthy, well-balanced menu.
The menu should be robust and offer a variety of options for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, allergy-specific or other special diets sisters may have. Talk to sisters about their preferences when planning a menu, and have a nutritionist give a presentation to sisters about eating healthy.
The goal should always be to keep sisters dining in the house rather than seeking fast food options.
Speaking of fast food, don’t. Your wallet and your body will thank you.
Leggings: Good for More than Laundry Day
Sometimes you don’t have time during the week to clean your wardrobe, so it sits in a hamper in the corner of your room overflowing and looking sad.
You throw on a pair of leggings, the only clean piece of clothing left in your dresser.
Remember that one time, freshman year, when you wore them to the campus gym and got in some cardio? That was so long ago, a distant memory . . . .
How could you possibly have time these days to hit the gym?
Make time. And bring the leggings. Trust us--your health depends on it.
Your chapter should encourage each sister to sign up for a sorority intramural sport during the semester.
If you don’t have time for all the practices and games of an organized sports team, however, there are less time-consuming ways to exercise as a busy sorority sister.
Get on a gym schedule with other sisters so you can hold each other accountable, even if it’s just a half hour of cardio.
Otherwise, you can buy a pair of athletic sneakers and run or bike across campus.
If you have to go it alone, sorority communication tools can help.
When scheduling solo workouts early in the morning or late at night when there isn’t a lot of foot traffic on campus, being aware of campus emergency phones can help you communicate with safety officials in case of an injury or dangerous situation. These are usually brightly-colored poles with flashing lights attached so you can spot them more easily.
You can also keep up with each other’s workout progress through sorority communication software such as GINsystem. If sisters want to meet up last minute, you can even use this app to share your GPS map information with them securely, share calendar dates, photos, video and more.
Ideally, when sisters work out together they can hold each other accountable and create a network of support. When you have to go it alone, being aware of sorority communication tools can be a crucial support as well.
Don’t Have a Sorority Health & Wellness Chair? Get One!
With so many responsibilities, sisters’ health can easily end up on the back burner when you’re left to manage it alone. Adding a health & wellness chair position to your sorority chapter can make a world of difference.
This officer would take charge of initiatives to keep sisters as happy and healthy as possible. She would bring in university officials to present and orient sisters on tools and services available to them. Some useful campus experts include:
- Mental health professionals: stress, anxiety and other mental health
- Student academics officials: tutoring, scholarships and general tips
- Greek Life officers: sorority-specific tools for opportunities and support
- Athletic trainers: tools for physical health and wellbeing
- Nutritionists: dietary health
- University clinic medical staff: explain services, offer seasonal flu shots, etc.
- Health services: safe sex education and tools, contraceptives and prophylactics
- Campus police: student safety tips and tools, police services
The health & wellness chair should tailor her duties to the specific needs of the chapter, and help direct sisters who’re struggling to the appropriate resources.
Beyond a specific officer position, sisters can provide the best sorority health and wellness tool by supporting each other. Celebrate healthy lifestyle choices with each other, post that workout pic on Instagram, and help guide sisters away from unhealthy choices.
Your chapter is only as healthy as its members.
What steps has your chapter taken toward health and wellness? What tools do you think would benefit sisters most? Give us your recipe for success in the comments below.
