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September 2025
Welcome to the Level Up Newsletter, a resource for all state employees to take advantage of wellness and professional development opportunities.
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Gov. Stitt invites Oklahoma state employees to the 2025 Health and Payroll Deduction Expo
2025 Health and Voluntary Payroll Deduction Expo
All state employees are invited to join the 2025 Health and VPD Expo, where you can meet with the 2026 insurance and voluntary payroll deduction vendors and receive a variety of wellness screenings and information from health providers.
Date: Sept. 30.
Time: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Location: State Capitol Building, second and fourth floors.
Vaccinations are available at no cost to state employees attending the event. To learn more or reserve a timeslot, select this link.
Finding your perfect cardio routine
Cardio is essential for fitness, improving your heart health and endurance, and fat loss – but the key to sticking with it is finding a type you enjoy. There are two main forms of cardio:
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LISS (low-intensity steady-state) cardio, such as walking or cycling, is gentle on joints and great for building endurance.
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HIIT (high-intensity interval training) cardio, such as sprinting or circuit workouts, burns more calories in less time and boosts your metabolism.
While HIIT is time-efficient and builds power, LISS supports recovery and reduces stress, making it easier on the body. Many people combine both for a balanced routine, allowing them to benefit from fat-burning intensity and steady endurance-building workouts.
No matter your choice, making it fun keeps you consistent – whether it’s hiking, dancing, boxing or swimming. The best cardio workout? The one you love enough to do regularly, because sustainability beats intensity every time!
Prescription: Add some cardio to your program.
Sig: Starting today, add a new form of cardio training to your current routine and repeat.
Prescription fulfillment: Email the details of your new habit to Ryan Hulcy.
 Written by Ryan Hulcy, Thrive health and wellness assistant, and personal training and nutrition expert.
Hearty Solutions: Tackling September One Step at a Time
This month's Hearty Solutions video illustrates the significant benefits of incorporating a daily walk into your routine. Featuring insights from state employees, the video demonstrates how walking can enhance cardiovascular health, strengthen bones and muscles, support digestion, and improve brain function. It also shows how walking can help reduce stress, boost mood and promote longevity.
The video offers practical tips and motivational guidance to inspire viewers to adopt walking as a low-impact, accessible path to lasting wellness, one step at a time.
Tulsa pickleball league scores new location
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State employees enjoyed last spring’s Tulsa-area pickleball league so much that it will continue every quarter! A new location has been secured at Hicks Park Community Center, 3443 S. Mingo Road, Tulsa, OK 74146. Matches will be on Wednesday evenings from 6-8 p.m. The cost will be around $20 but could change depending on the number of players. Request more information, and register here.
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Martial Arts Self-Defense Camp
Own your space, sharpen your skills and step into confidence!
Starting Saturday, Oct. 4, at 1 p.m., The Forge Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) in Edmond will host a four-week Martial Arts Self-Defense Camp. This program is designed to empower, energize and equip participants of all experience levels.
Whether you're a 70-year-old with joint concerns or a 20-year-old MMA enthusiast, The Forge BJJ’s coaches tailor every movement to meet you where you are. This class blends the best of jiujitsu, sanda and krav maga to help state employees ease into the world of self-defense. You’ll learn how to move with purpose, respond under pressure and develop body awareness that translates far beyond the mat.
There are only 40 spots available. Bring a friend, bring your focus, and build something powerful – one takedown at a time.
New Year’s Day hikes
As the new year approaches, it's the perfect time to consider your resolutions with a focus on health.
On Jan. 1 each year, TravelOK hosts walks in various state parks. Stay tuned for upcoming details on locations and times!
Select the button below to request additional information.
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Give Well, Live Well: The Wellness Benefits of Generosity
What if giving wasn’t just good for others but transformative for you too? This month, we’re spotlighting the science and soul behind generosity. From boosting your mood to lowering stress and even extending your lifespan, giving is a wellness strategy with heart.
Whether you're donating dollars or offering time, this toolkit shows how giving back is a powerful way to move forward.
Walking Club
Sign up to join the fun and stay tuned for news about group walks and events.
Step out for your health this October
October presents an ideal opportunity for walking, with cooler temperatures and vibrant tree colors. Consider challenging yourself or your agency to participate in a walking competition!
HealthCode provides an excellent platform to monitor both personal and agency activity. To get started, register here. Select Bronze, then OK State Gov’t Employees, then choose your agency to set your goal.
For any questions, please submit a ticket to Thrive.
Walk with Ease program returns
Thrive, in collaboration with the Oklahoma State Department of Health, offers Walk with Ease, a six-week walking program developed by the Arthritis Foundation.
Designed for individuals with or without arthritis, this multicomponent, low-impact initiative can help anyone integrate physical activity into their daily life.
For more information, email Anahi Figueroa.
Break Time
Break Time is a 15-minute desk stretching and relaxation session offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Participants are welcome to join whenever they are available. To register and select your preferred time, submit a service request.
Shape Your Future offers tasty new recipes
Greek turkey meatballs with lemon-dill brown rice
In this recipe, Greek-inspired herbs come together with ground turkey for delicious meatballs. Paired with brown rice, you will have yourself a tasty, healthy dinner. Serve with steamed broccoli or asparagus to increase the nutritional value of this meal.
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 Course schedule
SLS offers both free and low-cost continuous learning opportunities to all state employees.
Coming up:
SLS wants your input on upcoming courses
Please let us know which skills and competencies we can help you develop or enhance, as well as any topics you are interested in learning about.
Workday@OK Learning tip
Did you start a required training and need to go back? To locate your assigned training in Workday@OK:
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Log in to Workday@OK.
- Select the Menu in the top left corner.
- Navigate to your Learning app.
- Select My Learning.
- The course should be listed under your required learning or have an option to pick up where you left off.
Highlighted course
To register for the highlighted courses and more Statewide Learning Services offerings, visit the Upcoming Offerings schedule in the Workday@OK Learning app.
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Speed of Trust Series
In the five-part Speed of Trust webinar series, individuals learn that trust is a tangible and measurable performance multiplier. Trust is today’s currency – and everything a leader says and does affects the level of trust on their team.
When trust is low, people become suspicious, guard communication, speculate and disengage. As a result, productivity grinds to a crawl and costs increase. We call these trust taxes.
When trust is high, people become confident, and communication, creativity and engagement improve. As a result, productivity speeds up and costs decrease. We call these trust dividends.
Leading at the Speed of Trust helps leaders strengthen their trust signals to convert trust taxes into trust dividends and propel their team further, faster.
Dates: Tuesdays, beginning Sept. 16.
Time: 10-11:30 a.m.
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Course feedback
Navigating Difficult Conversations webinar
“I am very grateful that I came across the OMES newsletter, which highlighted the availability of these free professional development courses. I recently completed the Navigating Difficult Conversations webinar, and I truly appreciate that this type of high-quality learning opportunity is made accessible to state employees at no cost.
Programs like these provide valuable tools that not only strengthen our workplace communication but also contribute to our overall professional growth.
I am excited to continue exploring future courses and look forward to taking advantage of additional learning opportunities as they become available.”
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 Currently reading
Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport.
In Deep Work, author and professor Cal Newport flips the narrative on impact in a connected age. Instead of arguing that distraction is bad, he celebrates the power of its opposite. The first half of the book makes the case that, in almost any profession, cultivating a deep work ethic will produce massive benefits. The second half introduces a rigorous training regimen, presented as a series of four rules, for transforming your mind and habits to support this skill:
- Work deeply.
- Embrace boredom.
- Quit social media.
- Drain the shallows.
Deep Work is an indispensable guide to anyone seeking focused success in a distracted world.
LinkedIn Learning highlight: Rethinking Productivity in the Age of AI
Boost your productivity in the age of AI by learning strategies to communicate with impact, manage priorities and automate everyday tasks.
Certified Public Manager certificates in Workday@OK
Are you a graduate of a Certified Public Manager (CPM) program? If so, does your Workday@OK profile boast this badge of honor?
If the answer is no, select the button below for instructions on how to show off your certification. Graduating from the nationally accredited CPM program is a huge accomplishment that should be proudly displayed.
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Employee benefits: Did you know?
Open Enrollment for Plan Year 2026 is just around the corner!
Prepare to add new dependents to your benefit coverage by having all necessary documents ready to upload in Workday@OK. For assistance with planning, visit the Employee Benefits Department (EBD) webpage to access updated premium rates, the Benefits Enrollment Guide and the benefits calculator.
Following the recent legislative session, House Bill 1187 has been enacted. As a result, new opt-out options will be available for Plan Year 2026, with changes taking effect on Jan. 1.
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Open Enrollment virtual vendor sessions
Open Enrollment begins on Oct. 1. To explore your benefits options, attend our upcoming virtual sessions. These sessions offer the opportunity to connect with vendors and have your questions answered directly.
Select the hyperlinks to register for the sessions or review the recordings in Workday@OK. Recordings will be made available the day after each live session.
State of Oklahoma job opportunities
Explore current open positions across state agencies that align with your professional interests and goals, or share job opportunities with qualified individuals in your network to help strengthen the state's overall talent pipeline and build a skilled and effective public workforce.
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