LANDOVER, Md. — Giant Food has kicked off the #HealthyAtHome #GiantFoodChallenge this month in May to foster virtual connections with its customers by offering them free diet, health and fitness advice.

The challenge will be led by Giant’s in-house team of 11 licensed nutrition professionals, who have developed a suite of digital resourses that includes free online classes and webinars.

Modeled after the World Health Organization’s #HeathyAtHome campaign, the challenge will be hosted on Giant’s website and social media channels.

“As the fatigue of sheltering in place wears on, we’ve been hearing from many of our customers a desire to move more and eat healthier,” said Giant Food director of healthy living Lisa Coleman. “We’re hoping this challenge will help to get our community moving towards a healthier lifestyle and engaging with one another in a fun and safe way. Ultimately, if we all do our part to stay healthy — and at home — it will help protect essential workers like our associates who can’t stay home because of the vital role they play in our communities.”

The #HealthyAtHome #GiantFoodChallenge will offer simple weekly goals that build on each other to create habits for a healthier overall lifestyle. For example:

• Week 1: Eat a fruit and/or vegetable at every meal and take 10 minutes each day to stretch.
• Week 2: Try out a new fruit or vegetable each day, or try preparing a favorite in a different way. Get at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day , with walking, dancing or yard work all counting toward that goal.
• Week 3: Include a whole grain, like brown rice or whole-wheat flour, in meals and snacks. Find a new fitness class online to try out.
• Week 4: Aim for one meatless meal every day. Then, work to increase daily steps around the house, yard or neighborhood.

No registration or cost is required to participate and there are many ways for individuals, community groups and businesses to get involved. They can:

• Join Nutrition at Noon every Monday in May at 12:00pm to kick off the weekly challenge.
• Sign up for the weekly challenge email at [email protected] to receive the Weekly Challenge as well as tips, recipes and online resources.
• Participants are encouraged to share their own #HealthyAtHome experiences on Instagram Stories or Facebook Live, or with a picture on Instagram, Facebook and/or TikTok tagging @GiantFood and using the #HealthyAtHome and #GiantFoodChallenge hashtags.

Local groups and businesses looking for a personalized challenge are invited to reach out to the Giant Nutrition team for a video or group shout out on the Nutrition at Noon weekly challenge series. The nutrition team can even provide tailored tips for participating group and businesses during their virtual team meetings.