“When I started the program I was technically diabetic and I had a high A1C. I weighed almost 300 pounds. I used to dread going to the doctor. I was sick and didn't know it...and I credit VLM for turning that around.”
- John, Age 74 | Lost 80 pounds
Watch John's Story ►
Get the health you need to live the life you want.
The VLM program has helped thousands of people reduce the risk of developing diseases like diabetes by reaching and keeping a healthy weight.
Healthy Habits
Through 16 weekly lessons and 8 monthly lessons, learn new habits to sustain a lifetime of healthy living.
Support
Your personal health coach provides customized recommendations to guide you towards lasting results that work for you and your schedule.
Tracking
We provide all the tools you need to track your progress, including an integrated digital weight scale, a top-rated pedometer, and online food log.
People succeed with VLM.
Here's how it works.
Prediabetes is a condition in which blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough for an official diagnosis of diabetes. If you are pre-diabetic, you have a higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes and other serious health problems including heart disease, kidney disease, nerve damage, and stroke.
There is good news, however—prediabetes does not have to progress to type 2 diabetes. Research shows that losing 5% to 7% of your body weight and getting at least 150 minutes of physical activity each week can help you prevent or delay type 2 diabetes.
According to the American Diabetes Association, adults who are overweight and have one or more additional risk factors can be considered at risk and/or prediabetic.
Risk factors include: being 45 years of age or older; a family history of diabetes; a family background that is African American, Alaska Native, American Indian, Asian American, Hispanic/Latino, or Pacific Islander American; having a history of diabetes while pregnant (gestational diabetes) or having given birth to a baby weighing nine pounds or more; and being physically inactive. If you feel that the information above may apply to you, please complete the VLM registration form to assess your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
PEBB will cover 100% of the cost of the VLM program for all PEBB members over the age of 18 who meet qualifying health criteria. This includes the integrated digital weight scale, pedometer, fat calorie counting book, personal health coaching and access to the VLM website administered by Canary Health.
Tracking daily activity such as steps taken or calories takes less than five minutes to complete. Each of the 16 weekly lessons take as little as 10-15 minutes to complete. Throughout the program, you will be asked to review progress and plan you next week’s activities every week which can take less than 20 minutes.
VLM is a year-long program. There are 16 weekly lessons, followed by 8 monthly lessons. You will continue to be able to access the program to plan and track physical activity, nutrition and weight after you have completed the year-long curriculum.
You will complete 16 weekly lessons followed by 8 monthly lessons to get the knowledge and skills needed to adopt healthy habits. You will be asked to track daily activity such as nutrition and exercise. Once per week, you will be prompted to complete weekly tracking and plan activities for the next week. Throughout the program, your coach will monitor your progress and email you via our secure messaging system to help guide you through the program and encourage you to meet your goals.
Your health coach will be assigned to you when you sign up for the program. You will communicate with your coach through secure messaging (confidential email) so you can write to them directly from the service. The relationship you develop with your coach will provide a strong foundation of support, accountability, education, and additional tools necessary to help you reach your goals. Your VLM coach is an experienced healthcare professional chosen by VLM because of his or her experiences, skills and commitment to helping individuals lose weight and improve their health. They come from a variety of health related backgrounds such as nursing, nutrition, and physical therapy.
There are two goals for VLM. The first goal is for you to lose 7% of your body weight by eating healthier. There is strong evidence that losing that amount can significantly improve your health. The second goal is to work towards 2 ½ hours of brisk physical activity each week.
You can expect:
- to learn useful and valuable skills related to nutrition, exercise, and overcoming obstacles to help you reach your health goals.
- weekly communication, support and progress notes from a VLM coach.
- online tracking tools that help you record your weight, dietary intake and exercise including graphs that illustrate your weight loss and physical activity accomplishments.
- results: you will eat better, exercise more, lose weight and improve your overall health for the long term.
The VLM program currently has partial support for mobile devices such as an iPad and other tablets. Full support is expected in the near future, but it is recommended that you use a computer with a standard web browser (Firefox / Chrome / Internet Explorer) if you encounter any difficulties.
The VLM service is the online version of the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP). The DPP is a research-proven lifestyle management program in which individual patients meet in face-to-face, one-on-one counseling sessions with a skilled coach to educate and support them in their weight loss efforts. The DPP, funded by the National Institutes of Health, was a landmark multi-year study with 3,234 adults with prediabetes in 27 U.S. cities. Through this intensive behavior change intervention, patients increase physical activity, improve nutrition and lose 5-7% of their body weight. Additionally, the DPP decreased the progression to diabetes by 71% for those individuals over 60 years old and by 58% for other adults. The University of Pittsburgh developed the DPP and then partnered with DPS Health (now Canary Health, Inc.) to develop the web-based VLM service. DPS Health has been providing VLM to healthcare providers, health plans and employee wellness programs for more than 10 years.
Congrats, you took the first step. What's your next move?
Get StartedQuestions? 844-862-1697