Life! course sessions

The Life! couse is 6 x 90 minute group sessions

Life! course: Session 1

Objectives:

  • To introduce the participants and the facilitator to each other and promote positive group dynamics
  • To introduce the main working methods used in the counselling
  • To promote participants’ realisation that they need a lifestyle change


Main messages:

  • It’s important to me to maintain my health and functional capacity
  • My lifestyle choices make a real difference to my life in the future

Outline:

5+5 min

Getting to know each other

15 min

Group rules

30 min  

How does lifestyle influence health
- What is my current situation?
- Mini-lecture:
Type 2 diabetes and the influence on functional capacity and quality of life.
Prevention of type 2 diabetes

20 min

Dream: What will my situation be like in one year?

8 min

From dream to realistic objective. How to use the Life! tools to reduce risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

7 min

Homework: Self monitoring of diet and physical activity


Materials:

  • Session: How do we want the Life! group to work?
  • Session: Life!  group rules
  • Session: Importance of lifestyle change in prevention of type 2 diabetes
  • Homework: Physical activity diary (v-1)
  • Homework : Salt test
  • Homework : Five a-day
  • Healthy eating leaflet to take home: fruit and vegies


Life! course: Session 2

Objectives:

  • To teach self-monitoring of own lifestlye habits
  • To increase outcome expectations for prevention of type 2 diabetes through lifestyle change
  • To increase self-efficacy in making lifestyle changes


Main messages:

  • Changing my lifestyle is important for my health and wellbeing
  • Together with the other Life! participants, I can succeed at lifestyle change


Outline:

5 min   

Review session 1

10 min

Mini-lecture:
- Effectiveness of lifestyle change in prevention of type 2 diabetes

25 min 

Identifying my own lifestyle habits

20 min

Who are my positive role models?

20 min 

Analysing my previous efforts to change

10 min

Preparing for homework


Materials:

  • Session: Research findings support prevention of T2D
  • Session: Lifestyle change objectives in prevention
  • Session: Testing the quality of fat
  • Session: Testing fiber intake
  • Session: Role models
  • Homework: Legitimite excuses for inactivity?
  • Homework: Studying food cravings
  • Homework: Physical activity diary (v-1)
  • Homework: Eating habits diary
  • Homework: Preparing for goal setting

Life! course: Session 3.

Objectives:

  • To support Life! participants with their goal setting for lifestyle change
  • To assist Life! participants with making action plans related to physical activity
  • To decrease the barriers for action initiation by Life! participants in relation to physical activity habits

Main messages:

  • Planning how to reach my goals makes it more likely that I will succeed
  • You don’t have to be young, healthy and fit to be physically active. Everyone can benefit from physical activity

Outline:

5 min  

Review session 2

10 min

Mini-lecture: delivered by physiotherapist
- Health benefits of physical activity
- ‘Physical activity pie’

20 min  

Investigating my physical activity habits

25 min

Goal setting and planning 1 & 2
- Short-term; what, where, when and how to guarantee success

15 min

Reporting back to group on homework
- Legitimate excuses for physical inactivity
- How to prevent re-lapses

5 min 

Goal planning

10 min

Preparing for homework


Materials:

  • Session and at home: Goal setting and planning for physical activity
  • Homework: How do I reward myself?
  • Homework: How to change unhealthy ways of rewarding myself?
  • Homework: Physical activity diary (v-2)
  • Healthy eating leaflet to take home: Physical activity pie

Life! course: Session 4

Objectives:

  • To guide Life! participants in goal setting
  • To assist Life! participants with making healthy food choices and action plans for healthy eating
  • To show Life! participants that healthy eating does not have to be difficult


Main messages:

  • Planning how to reach my goals makes it more likely that I will succeed.
  • Having a healthy diet doesn’t have to mean hunger and suffering!

Outline:

5 min

Review session 3

30 min

Investigate eating habits delivered by dietitian

Mini-lecture: healthy eating.

30 min

Goal setting and planning 1&2
- Short-term; what, where, when and how to guarantee success

10 min

Reporting back to group on homework
- Understanding cravings and planning for ‘controlled lapses’

8 min 

Goal planning 3.

7 min

Preparing for homework


Materials:

  • Session and at home: Goal setting and planning for healthy diet
  • Session: Examples of small changes in diet resulting in big effects
  • Homework: ‘Controlled lapses’
  • Homework: Feeling good about myself
  • Homework: Eating habits diary
  • Healthy eating leaflets to take home on nutrition (quality of fat, fiber from grain)

Life! course: Session 5.

Objectives:

  • To emphasise the role of one’s own actions in goal attainment
  • To help make the goals concrete: moving forward with small, measurable steps
  • To investigate relapse management
  • To investigate ways to mobilise social support

Main messages:

  • Even if goal attainment is dependent on my own actions, I also will benefit from other people’s support.
  • With regard to my own behavior, I can make it easier for others to support me!

 
Outline:

5 min

Review session 4

25 min

Review lifestyle habits – what changes have been made?

15 min

Review goals

10 min  

Goal setting and planning for the next few months

25 min

How to overcome barriers and mobilise resources for maintenance of new lifestyle habits

8 min

What support is needed during the break between session 5 and 6?

7 min

Preparing for homework


Materials:

  • Session: Testing the quality of fat
  • Session: Testing fibre intake
  • Session: Goal setting and planning for physical activity
  • Session: Goal setting and planning for healthy diet
  • Homework: Physical activity diary (v-2)
  • Homework: Eating habits diary

Life! course: Session 6.

Objectives:

  • To help evaluate goal attainment with regards to DREAM (1st session)
  • To help overcome barriers by appraisal of successes and failures as well as factors that contributed to them

Main messages:

  • Setting new goals, and planning and evaluating actions to reach them enable changes now and in the future

Outline:

5 min

Catch up after the long bre

15 min

Review lifestyle habits – what changes have been made?

15 min

Review of goals

15 min

Learning from success and failures

15 min

Goals for the future

25 min  

Final discussion and evaluation of group sessions

 
Materials:

  • Session: Testing the quality of fat
  • Session: Testing fiber intake
  • Healthy eating leaflets to take home: Physical activity calendar and self-monitoring card
  

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