Embrace Your Best Self: What the Renewed You Wellness Challenge is All About
As we enter a new year, the Slainte Fitness team at USLI is here to support you in achieving your wellness goals and staying accountable. One way we do that is by offering our free, annual 14-week wellness challenge, Renewed You, which begins on Monday, January 12, 2026.
This year’s theme is Live with Purpose, and we hope to inspire you to commit to live like you mean it and become the healthiest and happiest version of yourself.
Every week, you will receive an email outlining a few simple habits to focus on and several “move,” “eat” and “live/inspire” tasks to complete. Our goal is to help you make positive changes, one small step at a time. We’ll provide motivation, educational resources, guided workouts, recipes and more to help you stay engaged along the way. In 2026, we’re offering even more resources to support your wellness, including mobility training to keep your joints healthy and guided meditation and yoga videos to help you strengthen both your body and mind.
Here is some additional information about the categories you will be focusing on and why they’re important:
Move
- Cardio: This category focuses on improving your cardiovascular fitness — supporting heart health, strengthening the immune system, and boosting energy and mental well-being. Start small, aiming for 15–60 minutes of movement twice a week, and gradually increase over time. If you’re already meeting this goal, challenge yourself by trying a new type of cardio, increasing your workout duration or intensity, or adding an extra session each week. Your body will benefit with a stronger heart, lungs, and overall endurance.
- Strength: This category focuses on resistance training, which improves overall health, reduces disease risk, prevents injury, and builds strong muscles and bones. Each week, you’ll receive two workouts designed by our nationally accredited trainers to help you meet recommended strength goals. You can follow along with on-demand videos or use provided PDFs to complete the exercises on your own — all you need is a set of dumbbells and a mat. These workouts incorporate a variety of styles and difficulty levels, so there’s something for everyone.
New this year: Enjoy bodyweight workouts with a cardio and core focus, plus a live Renewed You workout every Tuesday at 12 p.m. ET throughout the challenge.
- More:Movement throughout the day — beyond structured exercise — is essential for both mental and physical health. Regular activity boosts focus, creativity, and productivity, while long periods of sitting can make it harder for your body to process sugar and may lead to insulin resistance. This category focuses on increasing your overall daily movement by standing, stretching, or moving each hour. You can sign up to participate in one of our Daily Chair Flow stretch breaks, offered Monday through Friday at 11:10 a.m. ET and 2 p.m. ET on Webex.
Eat: Good nutrition is the foundation of a healthy life. It can reduce inflammation, boost mood and energy, and support overall well-being. A balanced, sustainable diet is also the most effective approach to weight management. This category focuses on simple, lasting habits — like meal planning, portion control, eating more vegetables, staying hydrated, and balancing your macronutrients each day.
Live/Inspire: Wellness isn’t just physical — it’s also about a healthy mindset. This category focuses on gratitude, motivation, sleep, stress management, and mindfulness. Tasks may include journaling what you’re grateful for, connecting with others, or practicing one of our mindfulness techniques.
Ready to participate? All you need is at least one set of dumbbells and a yoga mat; loop bands may be helpful but aren’t required.
Participants who make it through all 14 weeks of the challenge — by submitting at least one task per week — will be entered into our grand prize raffle for a chance to win a $2,000 USD American Express gift card. Plus, throughout the challenge, we’ll have weekly giveaways, with Apple Watches, fitness equipment and apparel up for grabs.
Join us. Prioritize yourself and live with purpose, one powerful choice at a time.
About the author
Ms. Megan Petriello is an Assistant Vice President, Team Leader and a Fitness and Wellness Specialist on the Slainte Fitness team at USLI. Ms. Petriello enjoys staying active by teaching HIIT classes, running and strength training. Ms. Petriello gets the most enjoyment from living an active lifestyle, and she is an avid believer in the power of positive thinking!