Insurance company Philam Life recently mounted a wellness expo in Trinoma, Quezon City to promote its Live Better campaign—an initiative that aims to encourage Filipinos to lead healthier lifestyles.
Bernadette Chincuanco, Philam Life’s Head of Brand and Communications said, “The year 2017 is a very special year for Philam Life because we are celebrating our 70th year in the Philippines. After all these years, Philam Life has remained very relevant to our consumers because we continuously innovate our products and services and Live Better is just one example of our program to demonstrate that.”
“Philam Life is known as an insurance company, and everybody knows that when you’re an insurance company, all you talk about is either death or getting sick; but in recent surveys we’ve done, were actually surprised that many Filipinos remain concerned about their health. Since we’re supposed to be ‘a real life company,’ we figured that we should start helping them with their goals for health,” Chincuanco told some reporters.
“And it just so happened that we have an innovative product called Vitality Program, which helps Filipinos live longer, healthier, and better. If you ask me how, treat it like a life coach. It actually helps you become healthy from beginning to end. We’re not just talking about one facet of health; we’re talking about all facets—physical, mental, and even financial,” she added.
Rewards and boosters: It pays to be healthy
In line with its wellness campaign, the insurance company has also launched a breakthrough product called Philam Vitality, which encourages clients to be more health conscious by downloading its Vitality health and fitness app on your mobile phone, registering in the app to participate, and tracking one’s progress by linking with any fitness device or any fitness app to one’s Philam Vitality app.
Members who hit their fitness goals get rewarded with treats from Philam Life retail partners like free movie tickets, discounts to hotels, free gadgets, and more.
Besides the rewards, Vitality members also get a boost in the coverage of their insurance policies with no added cost—just the points they earned from being fit and healthy.
Click here to learn more about Philam Vitality.
Fitness couple goals: Solenn Heussaff and Nico Bolzico
To further inspire Filipinos to start their journey to total and holistic wellness, Philam Life introduced celebrity couple Nico Bolzico and Solenn Heussaff; host and TV personality Raymond Gutierrez; and vlogger Wil Dasovich to be the face and ambassadors of the insurance company’s Live Better campaign. Volleyball players Alyssa Valdez and Mika Reyes also graced the media launch.
During a sit-down interview with some reporters, Nico and Solenn—whom many consider as “couple goals”—shared their top tips to start one’s fitness journey.
1. Give time to your health.
Nico: I allocate a certain amount of time to my health, to my working out. I make sure that I wake up every morning a little bit earlier like one hour earlier, and I spend my 45 minutes in a gym if I don’t play football because that’s not just for the way you look; it’s also about the way you feel. After doing that, I have a shower then I feel much better, happier, I have more energy, your head is cleaner, you make better decisions, you’re in a better mood, you treat people better, and you have like a better aura. You start with that aura, and other people will also feel it, so it’s kind of like a positive snowball effect.
2. Surround yourself with people who will support you.
Solenn: Like they say, ‘birds of the same feather flock together,’ so if you hang out with people that are always in the night clubs drinking, you’re going to end up in a night club drinking. If you’re going to hang out with people who hike during the weekends, you’re going to end up hiking during the weekends. Choose your groups wisely. But of course, we drink every now and then; you know, we need to unwind. It’s about balance.
Nico: For me, the fact that I married the sexiest woman alive, it puts a lot of pressure on me to look fit but like she said, we kind of synergize a lot. We support each other; we push each other. Having her next to me, and see her taking care of herself, how she eats, how she works out, of course, it pushes me to be even better and vice versa. Also, I believe that I wouldn’t be able to do all these, this kind of lifestyle if she is not having the same lifestyle as me.
3. Stop the excuses.
Solenn: Stop the excuses. You do have time no matter what your job is.
4. Stick to one serving.
Solenn: Balance your food and stick to one serving. One serving is one plate not a platter. Use dessert plates so it looks fuller. You trick your brain in eating more but it’s really not.
5. Pack your own meals and be aware of healthy alternatives.
Solenn: Pack a meal or at least a snack when you go to work. Bring an apple to work instead of having that turon in the street; just small things like that. Know that there are alternatives when you go to restaurants. When your job requires you to eat out all the time, ask them to replace the steamed rice with steamed vegetables.
6. Drink a lot of water.
Solenn: Drink water all the time before you eat.
Nico: My number one tip is to drink a lot of water. That’s very, very important. Drink at least two to three liters a day. The more, the better; especially when you wake up, before eating or going in the kitchen, get three glasses of water. That will start your metabolism.
7. Stay focused and disciplined.
Nico: I work out in different ways. When I do sports, when I play football, I have a lot of fun; but 80% of the time I work out, I’m not having fun. 80% of the time I go to the gym—I spend 45 minutes in the gym—it’s very intense, very boring; but I train my mind, focus, and say, ‘” need to work on this because what comes after is happiness for me.”
8. Control your consumption of food throughout the day.
Solenn: Eat like a king during breakfast, queen for lunch, then dinner like a pauper. It is better to stick to light meals during dinner like soup, salad, grilled chicken, or vegetables. Then eat dinner three to four hours before you sleep.
Nico: Eat dinner early to give more time for digestion.
