PERSONAL HEALTH BEHAVIOR CHANGE
According to the World Health Organization nutrition is the intake of food considered in relation to the
body's dietary needs. However, nutrition does not just stop at the foods that someone eats. To be
considered in good health, a balanced diet must be combined with regular physical activities to help in
the aid of being considered in good health. A person's nutrition has an effect on how the person can
look, feel, think and even act. As nutrition decreases the risks of disease and illness become greater.
Some of the main problems associated with poor nutrition are obesity/underweight, cardiovascular
diseases, cancers, diabetes and reduced immunity to diseases. In many cases poor nutrition can be
prevented, it is just a matter of what the person will do for themselves.
One of the more common effects of poor nutrition and lack of physical activities is found in Type 2
Diabetes. Type 2 Diabetes is when the body can no longer use its insulin effectively, or create enough of
it. This lack of insulin can have many different effects on the body. The symptoms of it include excessive
excretion of urine, thirst, constant hunger, vision changes and fatigue. These symptoms are usually not
found as early as they are in type 1, and are usually found after complications for diabetes are occurring.
Another major result of poor nutrition and poor activity habits is in obesity. Obesity is one of the largest
factors of health problems affecting people that can be easily prevented or fixed. Obesity is when the
amount of fat in the body is much greater than amount of muscle. The causes of this are when someone
eats many unhealthy foods, food in great portions, and lack of exercise. Because of this obesity has a
large effect on the stresses you body must try to handle. Some of the typical problems that result from it
are heart disease, kidney disease, and high blood pressure and cholesterol.
One of the ways that poor nutrition can be measured is by the person's body mass index (BMI). The BMI
is used to measure person's body fat based on the height and weight of that person. The BMI has four
different categories into which a person can fall: Underweight - A BMI below 18.5, Normal Weight - A
BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, Overweight - A BMI between 25 and 29.9 and Obesity - A BMI of over 30.
The BMI does have some restrictions to it in that it may overestimate body fat in athletes and others of
muscular build, or it may underestimate body fat in older persons and those who have lost muscle mass.
Knowing these facts helps to understand why what someone eats and what activities they are involved
in is important. Because of this I have begun to work through the Transtheoretical Model to incorporate
a health behavior change for myself. Over the past few months I have passed over the first two stages of
the Transtheoretical Model: Pre-contemplation and Contemplation. In these two stages of the model,
the person goes through the idea of not wanting to change or having a feeling of no need for change
now or in the near future, to the idea of a change is needed and it will be coming in the near future (In
six months or less). The first stage for me occurred at the beginning of the semester. I did not really have
any plans to change the way I have been eating or working out because I have been doing it for so long.
However, as the class continued on I learned a lot more on problems that can result for the lack of
proper nutrition and how easy it could be to improve these aspects of my life. Because of this I have
moved into the next stage of the Transtheoretical Model, Preparation. At this stage I have begun to look
into possible ways for me to improve what I have been doing and come up with a plan that will be
implemented within the next month.
Over the past four years, I have obtained many bad eating habits and have lacked in proper exercise due
to living the college life. So to accommodate for these problems I have come up with a strategy during
the Preparation stage of the Transtheoretical Model as a way to try and improve both of these aspects
in my life. To accomplish this I used a computer program in which I have become very accustomed to,
and split the plan into two different stages: Eating more meals and attempting and completing more
physical activities. The first thing I had to do to improve these habits was to come up with a way to make
myself eat more meals and improve the healthiness of these meals and snacks. An excel file was then
created as a way for me to record the types of meals and snacks eaten. This file contains a column for
each day of the week along the horizontal axis. Along the vertical axis there is a list of three meals:
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, and three different snack times. Snacks only take up one row, while each
of the three meals contains three different rows. Behind each cell is a list of hidden cells that can be
referenced for each cell. This list contains different types of snacks and meals according to the types of
food involved. Snacks have varying foods such as crackers, fruits, vegetables and so on. The meals
however only consist of 5 different types of meals. Each meal is associated with some of main course
that consists of either: chicken, meat, fish, pasta and salads. Depending on what is eaten for each snack
or meal, a pull down menu can be opened to display the possible inputs for that cell. So, the main idea is
for me to fill up all three of the main meals (Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner) and try to have at least two
snacks a day. These meals should vary over the week and try to include at least every type of meal from
the pull down menu.
Figure 1 - Excel file of daily food Intake showing the pull down menu as well as the calculation cells below.
Below the chart is a small estimate that will then calculate the percentage of meals eaten for that week.
The total possibility for filling up the week is set up to 84 different entries. Since the number of misses
for the week is easier to count, the number of misses for six day and for seven day are counted and
placed into the appropriate spaces. For example, if I was to miss out on eating 4 meals during a six day
span, the number four would be input into the 6 day misses entry. With the number of misses per week
input, the percentage of meals eaten for the week is then automatically calculated. Depending on the
percentage, an output of Good or Bad is displayed to the left. If the percentage of meals eaten is below
72% the output Bad will be displayed, and anything above 72% provides a Good output. The reason the
value of 72% was chosen was because of the previous eating habits in which many meals were skipped.
72% could be used as just a starting value, and as the time passes a higher percentage can be input later.
In order to ensure the plan is followed, a list of rewards was set-up to go along with the Meal
Completion Excel File. If after six days of healthy eating, a Good output from the six day estimate, I
would then be allowed to choose any types of meals for the free day. The meals would not have to be
counted and recorded. I would not limit myself to having to create meals and planned snacks, but would
be allowed to go out to eat and plan a separate set of meals for the day. If after six days I received a Bad
but was still able to receive a Good output from the seven day estimate, a point would be added to a
carry-over list. This carry-over list would be tallied up with other weeks in which the seven day total
passed (but not the six). Once this carry over list reached 4, or equivalent to one full month’s worth, the
free day would then be accepted and could be used like the six days of healthy eating. This day could be
used for any day of the week and would count as a full day, but could not be tallied into the calculation
of the seven day total.
The other step to improving my overall nutrition is to improve my workout schedule. Similar to the food
intake excel file, a workout schedule was created. The table once again consisted of a seven day week, in
which inputs could be placed into the different columns. For the workout schedule, all seven days of the
week have a different part of the body to focus on with one rest day. Two of the workout days have
specific areas which do not have much variation in the workouts done. These days are set up on Sunday,
which focuses on the core of the body and uses no weights, and Wednesday which is to be used as a
cardio day consisting of running and bicycle workouts. The other four days of the week each have a
specific area of the body to work out and have a list of multiple workouts to choose from. For example,
Monday focuses on a chest workout and only has a list of routines that focus on the chest, while
Tuesday’s are set-up for back/shoulders and has a completely different set of workouts from those of
Monday. This set-up allows for me to make sure that all parts of the body can get a workout.
Figure 2 - Excel file showing the exercise input sheet. Gives example of pull down menu used, as well as the input
and calculation cells.
Similarly to the food intake sheet, a cell was created to show if the workouts for the week was sufficient
enough. Below each day of the week is cell that asks for the number workouts performed for the day.
Assuming on average that each work out will take approximately ten minutes to complete, six different
workouts should be completed giving a total of one hour per day. These numbers are then totaled up
and compared to the minimum value of hours that should be completed each week. Many sources say
that the average individual should work out for an average of one hour per day, five days a week.
Therefore, considering a half an hour work out for Sunday and Wednesday, the other workouts should
total up to 24 workouts, or four hours worth. If the total number of hours is equal to or greater than this
minimum number, the cell at the bottom of the worksheet next to the Weekly Workouts will display a
reading of Sufficient Work. On the other hand, if the time is smaller than required, an output of Need To
Do More will be displayed.
To ensure that this step is then completed, a different set of rewards was established. Because this is a
harder process for someone to complete, the reward system allowed for better compensation. Each
week completed with a successful rating will once again be worth one point. For every four points
obtained, I would allow myself to spend ten dollars on electronics, i.e. movies, video games, CD’s.
Although this does not seem like much, these values can quickly add up and after three straight months,
a bonus of another five dollars will be added. On the other hand, if I was to miss two weeks in a row or
receive a “Need More Workouts”, all points would be reset. This is a way for me to ensure that I would
not become lazy and try to skip over a couple of weeks at a time.
There are many different things that can affect someone’s health and well being. Two of these main
factors are the eating and workout habits of an individual. Improvements in nutrition can help to extend
the life of the person involved, improve mental abilities, physical abilities, the way someone looks, and
even the way they act. One of the toughest things to overcome when trying to improve your health is
the lack of time and planning. Because of this a plan was established using a computer program to help
record the types of foods eaten and even the exercises performed. As a way to ensure the process will
be followed, a list of rewards was also created. If I am able to follow the plans and system set-up, I feel
as though this will be a great way for me to improve my nutrition.
Bibliography
College, P. a. (2009). The Nutrition Source: Healthy Eating Pyramid. Retrieved October 2009, from
Harvard School of Public Health: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-youeat/pyramid/
Teague, M., Mackenzie, S., & Rosenthal, D. (2005). Your Healt Today: Choice In A Changing Society. McGraw Hill.
USDA. (2009, November 12). Lifecycle Nutrition. Retrieved November 2009, from Food and Nutrition
Information Center:
http://riley.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?info_center=4&tax_level=2&tax_subject=257&topic_id
=1358
World Health Organization. (2009). Nutrition. Retrieved October 2009, from World Health Organization:
http://www.who.int/topics/nutrition/en/