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That's why we change up the challenges every month. We try to incorporate all the different spheres of wellness because it's not just one thing.
Sam D'Arc:Welcome, everyone, to the Driving Vision Podcast brought to you by the Zigler Auto Group. And here with me, Auto Group director of talent development, Mike Van Ryn. Welcome, Mike. Hey. Thanks, Sam.
Sam D'Arc:Be sure to subscribe to the podcast. Like it if you do, and leave a comment. Hey, everybody across the Zigler Auto Group. It's becoming a fun tradition. So we're back with coach to the Zag, coach Jess.
Sam D'Arc:Jess, welcome.
Jess Polnasek:Thanks, Sam.
Sam D'Arc:And then, of course, our own Araya Daniels who's our health champion, at large. Right, Araya? Welcome.
Ariah Daniels:Thanks, Sam.
Sam D'Arc:So as always, we're here to celebrate the contest winners from last month's AM Wellness Health Challenge and set up our next contest. And last month's contest, Araya, reminded me of a contest from the past where, actually, somebody got hurt, Araya. So tell us, what what is our last month contest remind us of?
Ariah Daniels:Yes. So, last month's squat challenge took me back to the days of our lunch challenge and I can't remember if it was October or November last year, somewhere around then, but Yeah. And it sounds like what we're about to hear in a little bit from what Jess told me, coach Jess said that our 2 top contenders were going head to head last minute yesterday, and
Sam D'Arc:It was a battle.
Ariah Daniels:See the results. Yes. It was a battle for sure.
Sam D'Arc:How do we find this out? I feel like we should have a way to know this, but we don't know this. So we'll have to do some research. Alright, Araya. Should we do this starting with the top, winners?
Sam D'Arc:Let's bring that screen.
Ariah Daniels:So our top 10 July winners, top top ten for the squats challenge. I guess I took 10th place. So Congratulations. Happy to be on there. And then, Nathan Krasno, Troy Kennedy.
Ariah Daniels:Sam, looks like you beat me out. So 7th place there.
Sam D'Arc:It's
Ariah Daniels:6 Monica Mackey. Jess beat us both in 5th place.
Sam D'Arc:Congrats.
Ariah Daniels:Us. Great job, Jess. Thanks. In 4th, Mark and then our top 3 here Angelina Rodriguez, this was a surprise to me, so Steve Macinger from our Hoffman Estates team. He was in first for a while and him and Don were going back and forth and she wanted to win.
Ariah Daniels:So congratulations to Don Vankowski of our our Schaumburg team. It's, I'm looking at these numbers here, and this just blows my mind. 24,307 squats, Dawn.
Sam D'Arc:My goodness. July. So They both have incredible squatting capabilities right now. After doing 40 7,000 squats between the 2 of them, coach Jeff's strong legs. Yes?
Jess Polnasek:Yeah. I mean or they're in a lot of pain right now.
Ariah Daniels:Yeah. Yeah. Probably both. Yeah.
Sam D'Arc:You know, it was interesting, Araya, when we did the lunch challenge way back when, I remember what that was like. Like, when you focus on one thing over that period of time, just a month, the results you see in the development you see in that one area is incredible. And then it it goes back if you don't stay up on it. Right? It's interesting.
Ariah Daniels:Well, like, physically, and I even think, like, so mentally. Right? Like, back and forth to have the competition with someone by your side there, like, just pushes you past the limits that you didn't think that you were able to to accomplish. Right? So I'm sure that both Don and Steve really appreciated that.
Ariah Daniels:If I remember correctly, Steve was also competing against, you and I, Sam, for first place in that lunch challenge. So Yes. Yeah. Physically physically and mentally. Right?
Ariah Daniels:Being able to compete that way.
Sam D'Arc:And Before we go into the next month's contest, I I wanna make just a quick little side statement. So it's interesting to me, 27 100 ish employees. I don't know the number of employees right now that are actively engaged in our monthly competitions. But as a percent of 27100, it could be higher. And here's one thing that's fascinating to me, is once you engage in these once a month and you see the benefit all the way around because if you follow us through the course of a year, if you follow coach Jess and you follow a riot through the course of a year, you're gonna come out a very whole individual.
Sam D'Arc:You don't need to do it. You don't need to just, like, become great at one thing in 1 month. Just do all 12 months. Why do you thinks why do you think some people choose not to get in when the benefits can be so big? We're stronger.
Sam D'Arc:We're We're healthier. We're better connected. We have more energy. We can deal with the stress. Right?
Sam D'Arc:Like, last month, there was some stress. There will be stress this month and next month. It's a political season. There's all sorts of crazy things going on in the world. Mhmm.
Sam D'Arc:What is the challenge to to everybody saying I wanna be a?
Jess Polnasek:You know, that's my everyday Yeah. Is trying to get people involved and engaged in their own health. And there are so many barriers, so we try and make things as simple as possible and bring it to you. And that's why we change up the challenges every month. We try to incorporate all the different spheres of wellness because it's not just one thing.
Jess Polnasek:And, Sam, you're a testament to, participating in those challenges every month, or I think you said the last 14 months and just the Yes. The health benefits that you've seen both physically and mentally is what everybody can see if they just start somewhere.
Sam D'Arc:And, you know, I think some people lie to themselves. We lie to ourselves. I did it to myself for a long time. I sat on this call, and I was, like, I travel too much. I work too much.
Sam D'Arc:I'm you know, I don't have enough time. Like, you can come up with a whole ton of excuses that are great excuses, but they're all BS at the end of the day. Right? Like, all you have to do is decide to commit. And then I love what they said, the the 1% guy who came and spoke to us at Ziegler University, I forget his name, the speaker series.
Sam D'Arc:Yes. Like, just a little bit every single day over a long period of time, it changes. It somehow changes your DNA. So, Araya, what do you have to add to that? Coach Jess, that was great feedback.
Sam D'Arc:I think, Araya, you
Jess Polnasek:might Yeah.
Ariah Daniels:I mean, to piggyback off of that, I think we don't know what we don't know. Right? And I was in the same boat as you were, Sam, like, came up with every excuse in the book that there ever was. And Yeah. Then I saw people who were, I thought, busier than me and I'm like, okay.
Ariah Daniels:Well, they're fitting this into their schedule, then I certainly can. And I think until you don't understand the benefits that come out of just taking care of yourself and working out, trying to make good intentional choices about your nutrition, like all of it makes you feel better. It helps you show up better, and you don't know that until it just becomes something that you start, you know, starting small, starting that 1%, those small changes that you can make that really take you forward and catapult you into something even greater. And you don't know until every day you're just doing it. And finally, you're looking back and you realize, I couldn't live without it.
Ariah Daniels:But a
Sam D'Arc:riot, it's it's easy for you because you're fit. And you wake up early in the morning naturally and, like, you just easily you just easily glide in
Ariah Daniels:with us.
Sam D'Arc:Right?
Ariah Daniels:There's always more. There's always more to be done. I think we all sell ourselves short of what we're capable of, and there's still there's still way more, of what I see in my potential down the road, you know, physically health and wellness wise. Right? I just think that there's there's just so much more.
Sam D'Arc:So the challenge to everybody this month, because we're about to announce this contest. Right? So this is the month to get involved. At first, it's fun because it's something everybody can do. It's super engaging because because there'll be a team element here.
Sam D'Arc:But if you've ever even just been on that fringe where you're like, hey, I wonder if I could be pushed into it, get pushed into it this month because there's always going to be a lot of stuff going on. There is this month, but this month is that month. And the only difference between the way you feel now and the way you are today and 30 days from now is just taking that first step and just going. Now I sound now we sound like we sound like PBS television or, like, some sort of, like, a fundraiser. Like, we're raising money for Drive For Life or something.
Sam D'Arc:Jess, what do you think?
Jess Polnasek:Hey. If we can sell it, we're gonna
Sam D'Arc:sell it.
Jess Polnasek:Alright. There we go.
Sam D'Arc:Alright. So what's our contest for August? It's the Olympic challenge, Jess.
Jess Polnasek:Yes. So to celebrate alongside of the Paris 2024 Olympics, we wanted to do something fun and different. So, we have an upper body exercise. We have a lower body strength exercise. We have a core exercise, and we have endurance exercises.
Jess Polnasek:So that's your walking, running, biking, swimming, rowing, whatever it is. It all counts. So there's multiple ways for you to earn points. If one of these isn't for you, that's okay. You can pick a different one.
Jess Polnasek:You can do multiple. You can stick to 1. You can go back and forth. Whatever you'd like. Basically, the way the points will work is you get one point for each exercise rep.
Jess Polnasek:So if you do 10 push ups, you just got 10 points. If you do 1, mile, you get one point. So one point for endurance mile. I know. We're pushing straight.
Sam D'Arc:Wait. Running a mile is equal to 1 push up?
Jess Polnasek:I know. Right? We're pushing the strength portion because we want you to train like an athlete
Sam D'Arc:I like it. Alright.
Jess Polnasek:This year Very good. This month. So, yeah, I mean, push you to those those strength exercises. If you watch my recorded call, today or this month, it's all about training like an athlete. And, you know, even though you may not be an athlete, whatever realm of life you're in, whatever stage of life in right now, there's certainly aspects that can cater to you.
Jess Polnasek:Yeah. So, yes, push ups for your upper body exercise, lunges. Don't get any PTSD with that,
Ariah Daniels:for the lower body. Yes. You do.
Jess Polnasek:And Russian twists for the core exercise. So we're trying to hit that full body, and we can't wait to see. I'm gonna be participating alongside of you guys too, so it's gonna be great.
Sam D'Arc:Alright. We have to add one more thing that you get a point for. Alright. So I've been talking about the benefits. You know, this is coming, Araya.
Sam D'Arc:I've been talking about the benefits for 2 months, and people have just been giving me a hard time of yoga. Right? Yoga is awesome. It's interesting, and it's something that most people would never think to do. But as I've started to become consistent, like, I've seen the benefits of it.
Sam D'Arc:Do we get points for a yoga class? I think 1 yoga class, one point. No.
Jess Polnasek:Okay. We can add that
Sam D'Arc:in. Perfect. Perfect. Araya, what
Jess Polnasek:do you think of that?
Ariah Daniels:That's a bonus point. I will say I did yoga this morning, and in my yoga, there were lunges and push ups. So you could get it inside the class.
Sam D'Arc:Point. Every cycle where you do down dog, up dog, whatever. Alright. That works. That works.
Sam D'Arc:That's fair.
Jess Polnasek:I can add that in now.
Sam D'Arc:You get multiple points. So, Araya, what, how do you wanna wrap us out on this? Last time talking
Ariah Daniels:about excited for this. I think just going back to what you're talking about being a team. Right? Like, team Olympics, I think about team z Olympics. That's kind of what we're calling and, talking about August for, and it'll be fun.
Ariah Daniels:Go grab a couple people around you and go have a, you know, Russian twist off, I guess. Right? So go do what you can do to log those points. Sounds like the strategy would be to focus on some of those strength moves instead of the endurance, if you're really chasing gold. And, yeah, have fun doing it together.
Sam D'Arc:Coach Jess, closing comments?
Jess Polnasek:And just remember too, we wanna meet you where you're at, so we wanna make it easy. You can do these anywhere. You don't need equipment. If you're like, oh, I can't do a push up, do a push up against the wall. Do a push up on your knees.
Jess Polnasek:You can modify these exercises. Absolutely.
Sam D'Arc:Alright, everybody. Go out and, have fun with the Olympics this month, and I will see you, next month. Oh, so
Ariah Daniels:I have a quick quick reminder then. So if you are not registered in the AM Coached app, go download it. It is in orange and purple icon, and our invite ID is simply Ziglar. Coach Jess will send you a welcome message, and you can get in there immediately and start logging today.
Sam D'Arc:Wait. And can my family members join if they wanna join us?
Ariah Daniels:Your family members can join for free.
Sam D'Arc:Yep. Awesome. Alright. Very cool. Thank you, Araya.
Sam D'Arc:Thanks, coach Jess. See you, next month.
Ariah Daniels:Thanks, Sam. Thanks, Sam.
Sam D'Arc:A special thanks to all who contributed to this week's podcast. Until next week, how are you driving vision
Ariah Daniels:today?