Chris Basso
Professor Bullard
Contemporary Health II
March 13, 2014
Behavior Change Project
Week 1:
Contemplation-
A behavior that I would like to change is within the areas of nutrition and exercise. If I follow a solid workout and nutrition plan I should be able to reach my goal. The long term goal I have set for myself is I would like to gain 5 pounds of muscle over the next 4 weeks. I plan on accomplishing this by spending an hour each day at the gym about 5-6 days a week. During this process I will weight myself, as well as keep track of my body fat to ensure I am gaining lean muscle and not fat. As long as I do not hit any serious barriers along the way, this is a realistic goal. Gaining a little more than one pound each week serves as an attainable time table. If I can reach this goal by March 13, then this behavior change project will have been a success.
This is a desired behavior change for me because working out and nutrition is a huge part of my life. In high school I was an athlete, but I was the small and quick player on the team.
Since I cannot grow in height, I want to expand my body by building muscle. Right now I have hit a plateau in most of my workouts without seeing a change in how much weight I can lift. The goal I decided to set will assist me in breaking any plateaus and continuing to take care of my body.

Week2:
Preparation-
I will begin this behavior change on February 13, giving myself 4 weeks of training and eating right to obtain my goal. This is an appropriate time for me to begin this because once the spring season comes around I will begin cutting weight and working on my abdominal region.
In doing this, I not only lose fat weight, but a little bit of muscle mass as well. When trying to gain muscle weight I can be lenient with what I am eating, but in the spring I will have to be even more careful with what I eat.
Short term goals-
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During week 1 I will begin to limit the amount of fried foods I consume to twice a week.
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I will begin consuming around 3,000 nutrient dense calories a day in order to gain weight and continue this throughout the next 4 weeks
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I will purchase shrimp, salmon and Cod at the grocery store to add more seafood into my diet
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I will be going to the gym 5-6 days a week, following a strict weight lifting program
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Every meal I eat will also have 2 servings of fruits and vegetables
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I will wake up at 9:30 am every day in order to have breakfast so I can add extra calories into my diet
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A reward for week one would be having a cookie on Sunday for doing so well
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During week 2 I will limit the amount of fried foods I consume to once a week
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There will be an increase in chicken, turkey, salmon and lean beef into my diet.
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Refined grains will be slowly declining from my diet like white bread and pasta
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I make an effort to eat whole grain products instead of refined grains

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My reward for week 2 will be going to the movies with some friends
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During week3 I will completely cut out fried foods
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This week I will begin using a mass gainer protein powder to assist my body in getting excess calories
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By this time, instead of eating refined grains I will only eat whole grain bread and pasta
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My reward for completing week 3 will be getting an extra hour of sleep instead of waking up at 9:30am
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During week 4 I will basically be eating only vegetables, lean meats, legumes, seafood, fruits and nuts
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There will be absolutely be sweets in my diet such as baked goods or ice cream
Steps-
In order to change this behavior there are several barriers that I will have to overcome. The cafeteria at Rowan does not always have the most nutritional choices. I will make sure I eat as many vegetables, whole grains, fruits lean meats, and legumes as possible. Every time I go to the cafeteria I will make a plate of vegetables and fruits before I eat anything else. Then I will find the best options for protein I can and eat that will some legumes. I will avoid the refined grains and fried foods and stick with the healthiest option. Another issue is that my mom does the food shopping at home and does not always buy the healthiest items. To combat this problem I will go food shopping with her and help her make the best choices to keep healthier foods in our house. This means no frozen dinners, no refined grains or baked goods and no fried foods. Instead I would pick out more vegetables, chicken, lean beef, whole grain bread, fruit and yogurt with little to no sugar. One of the main issues I struggle with is that my friends like to order pizza and Chinese food on the weekends which is not the healthiest food to eat. If I do

decide to get food with them, I will attempt to make a more nutritious decision when ordering. If we get Chinese food I will order either chicken and vegetables, or beef and vegetables. This way
I can still order food with them but it will not be greasy and fried like many of the items. On a pizza night I could choose to get a grilled chicken salad, or just eat one slice of pizza as opposed to three or four slices.
I will be at the gym 5-6 days a week for about an hour doing weightlifting and a little bit of cardio. Each day I will be working a different body part whether it is chest and triceps, back and biceps, shoulders and trapezius or a lower body leg workout. This routine will be supplemented with a healthy diet that I will gradually be changing throughout the four weeks. Instead of jumping right into a completely new meal plane, I will slowly cut out processed foods and add natural foods. Due to the fact that I have to wake up at 9:30am I will be going to bed at 11pm each night. This way I will not be too tired in the morning to wake up.

Behavior Change Contract
1.
I Christopher Basso, agree to attempt my goal of gaining five pounds of muscle mass by the date of March 13, 2014.
2.
I will begin on February 13, 2014 and plan to reach my goal by March 13, 2014.
3.
To reach my final goal, I have devised the following schedule of mini-goals. For each step in my program, I will give myself the reward listed. a.
In week 1 I will begin consuming around 3,000 nutrient dense calories a day in order to gain weight and continue this throughout the next 4 weeks. i.
My reward for this will be having a cookie on the Sunday of week 1. b.
During week 2 I will limit the amount of fried foods I consume to once a week. i.
My reward for this will be going to the movies with some friends. c.
By week 3, instead of eating refined grains I will only eat whole grain bread and pasta i.
My reward for this will be sleeping an extra hour the next morning instead of waking up at 9:30am.
My overall reward for reaching my goal will be to take a weekend trip to Lake
George with my friends and go snowboarding.
4.
I have gathered and analyzed data on my target behavior and have identified the following strategies for changing my behavior: a.
Step one of changing my behavior is going to be setting my goal of gaining 5 pounds of muscle mass in four weeks. b.
Step two is going to be selecting the activities or exercise program I will be following. I will be following a 5x5 workout plan, which means I will do 5 sets

of 5 repetitions for my compound lifts. My compound lifts will be followed by accessory lifts in order to have an efficient workout. c.
By signing this contract, I am making a commitment to this program and the behavior change that I would like to accomplish. I signed this in front of my Dad to ensure that I have a witness who can help keep me going if I start to struggle. d.
Beginning this program I started off slow by gradually changing my diet. Each week I make more progress whether by eliminating unhealthy foods, or adding healthy foods. I will continue working out just like I always do, but I have picked a new exercise program that I will maintain throughout the four weeks. e.
The progress that I make will be recorded and assessed in the journals that I will be keeping on a week to week basis.
5.
I will use the following tools to monitor my progress toward my final goal: a.
A caliper to measure my body fat week by week so I can gain muscle weight and not fat weight b.
A scale to see progress in weight gain c.
Journal entries to keep track of progress, emotions, actions and feelings during the four weeks d.
My plate has a feature that I will be using to keep track of all the food I eat and exercise I get
6.
I sign this contract as an indication of my personal commitment to reach my goal:
Chris Basso

I have recruited a helper who will witness my contract and make sure that I continue to make progress. My dad will be assisting me when I may be feeling down on myself, or if I am struggling to break through any barriers that might prevent me from reaching my goals.

Week 3-6
Action-
February 1 st Journal 1,
After coming up with the behavior that I would like to modify, I am feeling pretty confident that I can accomplish my long term goal. It is not going to be easy, but if I stick to a program and nutrition plan then I should be fine. Working out is a huge part of my life and I think this behavior change is exactly what I need. I am worried about the current environment I am in and how that is going to play a factor in this process. Since I live on campus at Rowan
University, I eat most of my meals at the cafeteria. This leaves limited choice for the foods that I will be able to consume on a daily basis. Although I do believe in myself, I am having some doubts about whether or not I can actually accomplish my goal.
February 9 th Journal 2,
As the date gets closer and I am preparing to start my behavior change, the fear of failure is more real than ever. I have begun setting short -term goals that will help me out along the way. I can look back on these goals and they will help keep me on track if I start to feel like I’m not doing this right. On top of that I have rewards for when I accomplish my short-term goals to keep me motivated. These are just little things to look forward too. Even if I come close to reaching my goal, I will be happy because I know that I gave it my best shot. I have an awesome support system in my family, especially my Dad. He knows that I want to accomplish my goal, even if it’s not a life altering goal, it still is important to me. A big reason for me choosing this goal is because I want to play Rugby this spring. If I can put on weight and strength, it will elevate my game. Being bigger and stronger can help me avoid getting injured. I usually just

workout to stay in shape and feel good about myself, but this behavior change project is giving me a new challenge. It is exciting in its own way.
February 13 th Journal 3,
Today was the first day of my lifting and nutrition program, and overall I would say it went well. The toughest part about today was waking up at 9:30am and eating breakfast. A big struggle I have is waking up early in the morning. I have never been a morning person and I most likely never will be. The next four weeks are going to be challenging not only physically, but mentally as well. I was able to eat 4 separate small meals today to spread my calorie consumption out throughout the day. Unfortunately I didn’t meet the 3,000 calories that I would have liked to, but I came close. I am disappointed in that, but its only day one so I am not going to let that affect the rest of the week. I think if I can fit in about 6 small meals a day, with a snack or two in-between I will definitely reach my goal.
February 20 th Journal 4,
At the end of week 1 I am feeling better than I thought I was going to. I met my calorie requirements four out of the seven day week which is not too bad. On the phone, my Dad reminded me not to get discouraged and just try to meet my goals the next week. I was able to make it to the gym 5 days this week, and had a great week of workouts. Sometimes I get frustrated with myself when I cannot lift my intended weight, or if I fail during a set. I had my workout partner Troy there to keep my spirits high the entire week. I went from 159.3 to 160.8 on the scale, so the program seems to be working. My body fat is still at 18% which is good but
I hope it begins to decrease as the process continues. The hardest part is watching my friends enjoy any foods they want, and I am gradually trying to decrease eating any fried, baked or

processed foods. It is also difficult when the cafeteria is serving foods that I want to eat, but can’t in order to reach my goal. Tonight I will be rewarding myself with a cookie because I have made progress towards reaching my goal.
February 27 th Journal 5,
The end of week 2 has come and I can really feel a difference in my body. Cutting back on fried and greasy foods has definitely given me more energy at the gym. A lot of the time those foods can make you feel bloated and lazy, without them I am feeling pretty good about myself. This also has to do with the increase in fruits and vegetables in my diet. I would not be telling the truth if I didn’t admit that I have been craving Buffalo wings or some type of dessert.
I made it to the gym 5 days of this week, and did a little more weight than I had the previous week. With this change in diet comes a better overall workout. I was able to meet my 3,000 calories a day for only 3 days this week, which was a bit disheartening. The scale still says about
160.8, meaning I did not make any weight gains this week. My body fat is at about 16% which is most likely a result of eating healthier foods. The reward for this week was going to the movies with some friends which was a nice break from everything else I have going on.
March 7 th Journal 6,
Unfortunately I had a setback this week that I did not expect. I was only able to make it to the gym 4 days of this week because of an increase in school work. This definitely put me down a bit, but after talking to some friends I know I can’t let it ruin the rest of this process. On the plus side I was able to get 3,000 calories for 5 days of this week. I avoided all fried foods and ate even healthier then the first two weeks. I am still hanging in there mentally and emotionally which I am surprised about. As much as I miss eating comfort foods and all the

foods I like, I feel better physically as well as mentally. I finally passed 160.8 and hit 161.3 on the scale which means I am slowly making progress. The caliper still has me at 16% body which is good because it means I am not gaining fat weight. My body has started to adjust to waking up at 9:30am every morning. The last week I was struggling to wake up, but now I finally have found a rhythm. Luckily my reward for this week is sleeping in for an extra hour which I am more than excited for.
March 13 th Journal 7,
At the end of the process I was not able to reach my goal, but I still do feel like I made a lot of progress. This last week I ate 3,000 calories a day for 4 of the days, and mainly stuck with lean meats, seafood, vegetables and fruits. I found this week to be the hardest since I could not cheat with my diet at all. In this week I had to eat the healthiest and lift the most weight which made it very physically challenging. Overall, I am proud of myself at the end of this. Not only was I able to reach 162.1 on the scale, but I proved to myself that I can eat healthy if I set my mind to it. I only fell about two pounds short of my goal which is not too bad. Being that my body fat is still at 16%, I never gained any fat weight. Being in a college environment definitely affected me reaching my goals to the fullest extent. I am surrounded by unhealthy foods and poor decisions, so this entire process was a struggle for me. The fact that I did as well as I did has really made me proud of myself. Waking up at 9:30am everyday was the hardest part of this entire process and I cannot wait to start sleeping in again. I plan on continuing to go to the gym just as I always have, but now I can complement that with an even healthier diet. Now that this is over I hope to reward myself by going snowboarding in Lake George over spring break.

How do you feel about your behavior change?
I thought that I did pretty well for the behavior change goal that I set for myself. This process was not easy, and I pushed myself outside of my own comfort zone limits. Generally I find that waking up early and eating healthy are not two of my strongest points. During this process I was able to prove to myself that I could accomplish goals if I really applied myself.
What strategies were used?
I used simple strategies to combat any barriers that I faced throughout this process. If I found myself surrounded by unhealthy foods, I either left that environment or made the best choice possible. When I woke up a little bit later then 9:30am, I made sure to eat extra calories to make up for the ones that I missed out on.
Were goals met? Long-term? Short-term?
Although I didn’t meet my long-term goal, I did come close to meeting it which I am proud of.
For short-term goals I was able to cut out fried foods, eat more seafood, cut out refined grains, substitute whole grains, go to the gym 5-6 days a week, wake up at 9:30am almost every day and eat a well-balanced diet. These short-term goals were all met for the most part, and assisted me in attempting to reach my long term goal.
What was the most difficult thing about trying to change?
The most difficult thing about trying to change is that you are pushing boundaries that you have never pushed before. I struggled the most with waking up early every day during this four week process. I know that may sound simple to many people, but my body just doesn’t function well in the morning. Once you really apply yourself mentally, it almost becomes second nature.
After the second week I found myself in a rhythm and did not even mind waking up early.

What was the easiest thing about trying to change?
Change is never easy for some people, but what I found to be easy was cutting out fried and processed foods. The reason I found this too be easy, is because after one realizes how great there body feels without those foods, they don’t even want them in their body. Going to the gym was a completely new experience when my body was fueled by natural foods. Not only did I feel stronger and more energetic physically, I also felt better mentally.
What was the most satisfying thing about trying to change?
The most satisfying part of change is that you prove to yourself you can accomplish anything you truly set your mind to. I can apply these lessons to school, work and many other aspects of my life. When I really want something, or want to do something I will know that I can achieve it by fully applying myself.
What worked well?
Having a support system is probably what worked the best in this process. This way they can keep you motivated and you have someone to turn to when you feel discouraged. As long as the support system is a person that you trust, it is the best thing to have when trying to change a behavior. They can keep you externally motivated as well as light the fire for you to be internally motivated. A support system plays a huge role in a successful behavior change process.
What would you do differently if you tried to change a behavior again?
The one thing I would do differently is utilize my support system more than I did. They can really contribute to the success of the individual, and I took that for granted. My Dad and friends reached out to me to make sure I was okay more than I reached out to them looking for guidance.
I am very stubborn and like to do things all on my own and this backfired on me. My biggest

recommendation for anyone trying to change a behavior is to not let their pride get the best of them.
What have you learned about yourself?
I have learned that as long as I apply myself, there is no task too challenging. There will always be roadblocks along the way but I have to keep moving forward. When I didn’t let my mistakes get the better of me, I found that I was able to make up for them. Instead of getting discouraged
I can be proactive instead of reactive.
Will you continue to work on this behavior change?
I think I will continue to work on this behavior change, because this is a goal that will affect my future. If I continue to follow this plan I will better myself in physical, mental and emotional ways. No longer will I eat bad foods that make my body feel lazy and bloated, or sleep the day away. Now I know I can change these aspects of my life. I do plan on sleeping in for a couple days to take a small break from the four weeks of hard work I put in.