Move

It!
From mellow sessions of yoga
and wine, to adrenaline-filled
zip-line tours along the Minnesota
River, there are many creative
ways to have fun and stay fit
during a meeting or event.

By Julie Kendrick

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P H OTO S : J E S S R O S E N B E R G ; A M U S E E ; M I N N E A P O L I S BY B I K E

Clockwise from top: Jessica Rosenberg leads a group in a yoga session; Amuse brings yoga and wine together in harmony; Bike helmets with
built-in speakers add color commentary to Minneapolis by Bike tours.

itting still and staying indoors all

day? Thats so last century, says
these up-and-at-em Minnesota
entrepreneurs, each with a unique
way to power up a group. Beyond the countless
benefits for physical activity in ones lifestyle,
the perks of working exercise into a meeting
or event cant be ignored. Participants feel
more energized, focused and ultimately more
productivewhether its taking the afternoon
off for an outdoor adventure, or five minutes
away from the computer to stretch. And whats
more, they might even get to know a colleague
better. So lace up your sneakers, get warmed

up and read onthere are plenty of exciting

escapades in store.
PERFECT OFFICE
WO R KO U T
Sitting is the new smoking, says Derek
Gorney, a two-time Ironman triathlete, former professional soccer player and founder/
CEO of Perfect Office Workout. Hes developed a series of guided deskside workouts to
offer energy boosts throughout the day. The
human body isnt designed to sit still for a
long time, Gorney says. If you get up and
moving, the blood starts flowing, the body is
re-engaged, and thinking is much clearer. He
urges meeting and event planners to consider
incorporating movement into their schedules.
If you want people to get something out

of the content youre presenting, its more

likely to happen if they have a chance to
be active, he says. At one recent meeting,
Gorneys speech included periodic breaks to
lead attendees through some strength and
flexibility exercises using fitness bands hed
brought. Working out like this can help you
maintain a higher baseline level of fitness,
he says.
AMUSE
There are almost as many different styles of
yoga as there are varieties of wine. For Leslee
D. Miller, certified sommelier and owner of
wine consulting and event planning firm
Amuse, those two facts are the foundation
for deliciously themed group events. Miller,
a practicing yogi, pairs her wine expertise

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Perfect Combination:

Charitable
Giving and
Fitness

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RBC Wealth Management added a 5K to its charitable donation.

with local yoga teachers including Omaur Bliss,

Baron Carr and Jennifer Fahler. The yoga classes
can be in any style the client prefers, with postclass wine tasting themed to the yoga experience.
A recent event for a group of female lawyers
included poses focused on women and energy,
with after-session wines from female winemakers. Its a more active and casual way to get to
know people, instead of just taking them out to
dinner, Miller says.
JESSICA ROSENBERG
FO R M OV E M E NT A N D
MINDFULNESS
Whether you want to start a conference off with
an inspirational session of movement and breath,
or learn some chair yoga techniques to help you
get through another day at the cube farm, Jessica
Rosenberg is the person to call. Even taking five
minutes at your desk for mindfulness and movement can create receptivity to help improve your
thinking, she says. The work I do with people
at conventions, meetings and workplaces is like
giving them an oxygen cocktail to reboot and
re-center. Rosenberg recently conducted earlymorning yoga sessions before the start of the
2014 Meeting Professionals International World
Education Congress in Minneapolis. I led the
group in movement and breathing, then ended
with a visualization to set them on the path for
their day.

KERFOOT CANOPY TOUR

Describing his zip-line tour course as light adventure, Lee Kerfoot, who has installed more than a
mile of zip-line cable about 45 minutes from the
Twin Cities airport, says he started the business
to share his passion for outdoor recreation. The
three-hour experience takes participants on lines
as high as 175 feet, with runs as long as 1,200 feet.
The fastest part of the course is a descent into
the Minnesota River Valley. The location is wellsuited for group events, with an open field space
to accommodate registration, award ceremonies,
catering and tents. Its a great team-bonding
experience for corporate groups, Kerfoot says.
Minnesotans seem to agree: Kerfoot Canopy Tour
was voted Best Zip Line Tour in Minnesota in
2014 by WCCO-TV viewers.
CIT Y RUNNING TOURS
Theres nothing more enjoyable than having
a chance to sweat and sightsee at the same
time, says Jenna Duesterhoeft of City Running
Tours, which operates out of 16 cities nationally. She points with pride to Minneapolis many
miles of running trails that take groups around
lakes, along the Mississippi River, through great
neighborhoods and into the heart of downtown.
We offer guided runs that can be customizable
by pickup/drop-off points, route, distance and
pace, Duesterhoeft says. Every run includes
stops to enjoy scenic views and allow time for

P H O T O S : R B C W E A LT H M A N A G E M E N T ; ( O P P O S I T E ) WA H O O ! A D V E N T U R E S

For Ellie Madson, senior

meeting and recognition
planner at RBC Wealth
Management, a recent recognition trip for the organizations top financial advisors
was a perfect opportunity
to combine charitable giving
and fitness. We researched
in advance to find a locally
based charity to support, and
then we created a 5K run/
walk/stroll activity to accompany our donation, she says.
At the beginning of the trip,
each participant received a
custom fitting for a pair of
running shoes from a local
athletic supply store. The
event, held at the end of the
trip, included a ceremony in
which the companys executives presented a check to
the charity. It required some
prework and planning, right
down to finding locally based
RBC employees to man the
water stations, but the people who participated really
enjoyed it, she says.

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Wahoo! Adventures stimulates groups, such as this Mayo Clinic womens paddle group, with active outdoor activities.

photographs. Exercise definitely brings out

the endorphins, and its fun to see people get
excited and have a great time, even if they
arent experienced runners.
M IN N E AP OLIS BY B IK E
From spring through fall, Alyssa Kohn, founder of Minneapolis by Bike, takes small groups
through city farmers markets, breweries and
other historic spots. She prides herself on a
think-of-everything approach, starting with
the helmets she provides. They have speakers
built into them, so riders can hear commentary as we pedal past local highlights, she
says. Another attention-to-detail example is
the service she provides on the Local Brewery
Tour. Ive arranged for us to have samples
along the route, she says, but at the last stop,
if riders want to stay, they can leave their bikes
to be picked up later. Kohn, who has lived
abroad and taken many tours herself, says,

You can start some really interesting conversations on a bike tour.

THE FIT TOURIST
History and fitness are a great combination,
says The Fit Tourists Stephanie Croteau, whose
business motto is: Get out, get active and enjoy
the outdoors! The retired nurse started her
Minneapolis-based biking and walking tour
company to offer new ways to experience the
charms of the city. When youre traveling
by foot or on a bike, you see so much more
than you would on a tour bus, she says. And
people really appreciate the break from being
sedentary. Sitting in meetings all day can turn
your mind to mush, she laughs. Croteau, a history buff, includes plenty of I-never-knew-that
material in her tours. The mix of learning and
moving is increasingly popular, and Croteau
says, People often tell me theyre amazed by
what they saw in such a sort amount of time.

WA H O O ! A D V E N T U R E S
Fun is the name of the game at for Kerri
Kolstad, owner of Wahoo! Adventures. Her
goal is to encourage everyone to get outside
and play, no matter what their fitness level
is. We provide a guided, almost pampered
experience that allows people to relax and
get into the groove of kayaking, biking or
walking, she says. Kolstad extols the fresh
thinking that comes from being outdoors.
Sometimes the person who never says anything in office meetings will suddenly have
great things to say when the work group is
out in the water, she says. Encouraging organizations to consider what she calls mobile
meetings, she creates experiences in which
participants sit in a presentation, then bike
or hike together to a new location for the
next indoor activity begins. Everyone thinks
more clearly when they have a chance to be
active in the outdoors, she says.

Get Connected
AMUSE
amuseewine.com
612.655.4839

JESSICA ROSENBERG
jesrosenberg.com
612.889.3061

MINNEAPOLIS BY BIKE
minneapolisbybike.com
612.600.7518

THE FIT TOURIST

thefittourist.com
507.533.5348

CITY RUNNING TOURS

cityrunningtours.com/minneapolis
320.420.3106

KERFOOT CANOPY TOUR

kerfootcanopytour.com
952.873.3900

PERFECT OFFICE WORKOUT

perfectofficeworkout.com
414.803.1877

WAHOO! ADVENTURES
mywahooadventures.com
651.280.7299

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