On Tuesday, the powerlifters took a much needed day off from competition and ventured to The College of New Jersey for Special Olympics Healthy Athletes. There are a lot of benefits from visiting Healthy Athletes-being in an air-conditioned building during a 90 degree day was the first one that we noticed! We got registered and started in Health Promotions. Each athlete had their weight, height, bone density and blood pressure measured. They also went through education stations about hydration, portion control, sun safety and smoking. All the stations gave every athlete a nice parting gift. We have already used the sunscreen!
Next, we went upstairs to Opening Eyes. Each athlete received a free eye exam. They went through 12 stations which included checking eye pressure, color blindness test and refraction. At the end, Andy, Ben and Kayla got to pick out a free pair of glasses and Sara picked out a pair of sunglasses. Ben's glasses were even cut on-site and he's been wearing them around USA Games.
The last station we stopped by was the Special Smiles station. There were dentists from around the country examining athletes' teeth and they passed along notes for each athlete. Then, they had mouth guards made to protect their teeth. Before they left, they picked up a new tooth brush and toothpaste. It was an enjoyable way to spend our day off.
