Albert Lea featured in AARP’s magazine

Article on Vitality Project is spread on 6 pages

By Sarah Stultz | Albert Lea Tribune

Published Wednesday, December 30, 2009

The AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project is again gaining notable publicity in a six-page feature in the January/February issue of AARP The Magazine, the world’s largest-circulation magazine.

Calling Albert Lea the Minnesota Miracle, the magazine delves into the lives of a handful of residents affected by the project, explaining what the venture involved and how it resulted.

The article, teased on the cover of the magazine, begins on page 42 in the printed edition. It is written by Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner and can also be seen online at http://www.aarpmagazine.org/health/minnesota_miracle.html.

It begins with the experience of Albert Lea resident Brian Mattson.

Mattson, 38, joined the Vitality Project on the night of the kickoff — May 14 — at the request of his mother. That same night he discovered his life expectancy through the online Vitality Compass tool. Though he was 38 at the time, his life expectancy was only projected to be 52.

After the project started, Mattson began eating more fruits and vegetables, joined a walking moai in his neighborhood and got a pedometer to measure the number of steps he took in a day, the article states.

At first he struggled making 6,000 steps a day, but now he averages 12,000 steps a day, he said. The project also reinvigorated his outlook on life.

“It’s just incredible how much better I feel. About everything,” Mattson said in the story.

For Mattson and other participants, the project focused on four areas: Eating better, becoming more active, connecting with others and finding a greater sense of purpose.

“The ultimate goal: for the people of Albert Lea to adopt these healthy habits so naturally, so painlessly, they wouldn’t even realize how radically they were changing their lives,” the article states.

By the time the pilot project concluded in October, the life expectancy of those who took the Vitality Compass before and after the project rose by an average of 2.9 years. Two-thirds of locally owned restaurants added life-extending foods to their menus, and 35 businesses pledged to make their workplaces healthier.

There were 15 initiatives residents could participate in.

The first two pages of the AARP The Magazine article about the Vitality Project shows a walking moai on Lakeview Boulevard.

The article continued with the story of Moraa Knoll and her husband, Michael.

Through the changes they implemented into their lives because of the project, Moraa lost 30 pounds, Michael’s waist size went from 38 to a 32 and the diabetes symptoms for both virtually disappeared.

Moraa said the Vitality Project made her feel better about Albert Lea — and America.

Next, the article talked about the experience of residents John and Jackie Abrego.

Among the changes they made, the Abregos cut out junk food and fast food and started cutting up vegetables and fruit together every Sunday for the rest of the week.

Their grandchildren have also jumped

on board.

Chris and Jen Chalmers talked about how the Vitality Project reinforced the good things they were already doing in their lives and also encouraged them to do more. They’ve biked to church on Sundays with their kids and have also biked to the weekly farmers market.

“I’ve been thinking about what I’m eating,” 10-year-old Sam Chalmers said. “I used to eat a whole lot of cheesy puffs. Now I know they’re not good for me, so I cut them out.”

He said the project has also helped him meet more people in the city.

In addition to the first-hand stories of these residents, the article featured a two-page photo of a walking moai on Lakeview Boulevard and a photo of a walking school bus.

It also had mugshots of several of the people featured and a box explaining how local leaders are extending the project by converting the Jacobson Apartments building into the new Vitality Center. AARP, United Health Foundation and the Albert Lea Medical Center have donated to the efforts.

The Vitality Project has also recently been featured on CNN.com, Oprah.com, “The Doctors,” “Nightline,” “Good Morning America” and USA Today, among other regional newspapers, television news and radio broadcasts, to name a few.

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