Jamieandrews4-Unit 8 Project

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MARSHAS EXERCISE AND FITNESS PLAN










Jamieandrews4
25 September 25, 2012
EF310 Unit 8 Project
Professor Berends
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Marshas Exercise and Fitness Plan

Obesity is a huge issue in America and it is becoming increasingly clear that
something must be done to help prevent it. Over 33% of the American adults are obese,
a 20% increase from the 1960s. (Thompson, ND) The individual I will be doing a health
status questionnaire and PAR-Q, exercise, and fitness plan on will be Marsha. Marsha
is a 51 year old female who is interested in losing weight. I will be discussing her health
status, general medical history, body composition or (BMI), her readiness to change,
motivational strategies, and my recommendations.
The Health Status Questionnaire is an evaluation of a pre-participation health
screening questionnaire that helps the fitness professional determine a participants
current health status and whether it is appropriate for the participant to undergo fitness
testing or begin regular physical activity. In addition fitness professionals can assess the
presence of relevant medical conditions, risk factors for CHD, lifestyle behaviors, and
medications that will assist in the determination of the necessity of a physicians consent
before beginning an exercise program. (Howley, Franks, 2007)
The very first section of this questionnaire is personal and emergency contact
information to include the individuals height and weight, along with who their current
physician is. Marthas height is 55 and she currently weighs is 240 lbs. She currently
does not have a physician and has informed me that she hasnt had a medical exam in
over 3 years.
The second section of the questionnaire covers the individuals medical history.
After completing the Par-Q & You Questionnaire and the Health Status Questionnaire I
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learned that Marsha is at a moderate risk level. When taking her blood pressure it was
152/88 mmHg and she could already have hypertension. There is also a family history
of heart disease on her fathers side of the family. There is also the fact that she is
physically inactive.
Martha has come to me so she can lose weight, but she has also informed me
that she has never worked out before. She works in an office behind a desk all day and
doesnt have any interest for hobbies or physical activities. I wanted to see where she
stood as far as her BMI was concerned. BMI is a persons body mass index, which
gives a good estimate of the ratio of fat to lean muscle in a persons body. I went to
http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/BMI.html. All this site asks for is the individuals age,
height, and weight. Currently Marsha weighs 240 lbs. (or 109 kg) and she is 5 ft. 5 in.
tall (or 1.65 m). The calculation is done by dividing weight in kg by height in meters
squared. Marshas BMI is 40.07. According to this site, as well as the BMI chart in the
Fitness Professionals Handbook, her BMI falls within the Obesity Class III (extreme
obesity) range (Howley & Franks, 2007).
Marthas main goal is to lose weight and I think she is in Stage 2 of her readiness
to change. She is currently inactive but is thinking about becoming more active within
the next month. Martha does need to understand that this type of weight loss and
change will take time. Prudent weight loss goals for clients who are overweight and
obese, range from 0.5 to 1.0 kg wk1. Daily, or near daily, moderate aerobic activity is
suggested. While 30 min day1 of moderate-intensity exercise is a minimum goal,
better success is seen with 45 to 90 min. (Howley & Franks, 2007)
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Motivational Strategies could be a little bit difficult when it comes to performing
certain tasks to keep Marsha more active. One of the most important things Marsha
needs to understand is that she shouldnt overdo anything. If she overexerts herself
thinking that she will lose more weight by doing more activities, she could very well
injure herself and prolong the amount of time it will take to lose the weight. I would
suggest to Marsha to write down three reasons every morning, regarding why she
wants to lose weight. I think putting these reasons fresh in her mind right when she
wakes up, will cause her to make smarter food choices and be more motivated to stay
active. I also think it would be a good idea to take a full body shot once a month. One
with a swimsuit or similar attire, and one with something on that she wants to fit into
better. I believe this will also influence her and motivate her to keep trying. Actually
seeing results to any nutrition and fitness regime is rewarding in itself. Another
motivational strategy I could use is, every time she loses 10lbs, she should treat herself
to something like a manicure, pedicure, or massage. Little rewards like that I feel make
it more encouraging for someone to lose more weight.
For my recommendations, because Marshas blood pressure was above the
normal range and the fact that she is at a Class III extreme obesity level, I informed her
that she would need to have a doctors approval before we could go ahead with the
fitness program. I explained that several conditions frequently coexist with obesity and
that hypertension and diabetes were two of the main ones. With her family history of
heart disease and diabetes she could have some underlying problems that she is not
aware of and that if that were the case we could make adjustments to her exercise plan
with her doctors advice. I also explained to her that the health risks above are
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something that has been proven to increase a persons chances of developing heart
disease.
Although I can not create a precise exercise plan for Marsha until she completes
a physical exam with her doctor, I have come up with a basic structure of what should
be done after her health exam is completed.
I will need to find out what Marshas willingness is for different types of activities.
What she may enjoy doing or what does not appeal to her at all. There are a few simple
things she can do to help with weight loss to get started. For example, she can take the
stairs at work or anywhere else shes at, instead of the elevator and she can also park
further away than she normally does, this will also help burn more calories. These
attempts should be made on a daily basis to incorporate more physical activity, even on
days that she does not go to the gym. Assuming that Marsha is willing to invest her time
into 30 min of structured exercise at least 3 days per week with some type of physical
activity on her own the other days of the week then this would target an average weight
loss of 1-2 lbs. each week. Marsha will need to include exercise that will build muscle
strength as well. This will help boost her metabolism as well as reclaim some of the
muscle mass she has lost from her inactivity. However she will need to monitor her
energy intake as well (Howley & Franks, 2007).
I did log onto http://www.thedailyplate.com/ to see what Marthas caloric intake
should be. Her total daily energy needs are 2,045 calories. In order for successful
weight loss to happen, the amount of calories cut out her diet shouldnt be too dramatic.
Doing that, could cause mood swings, depression, light headedness, and a lack of
motivation to continue with the program. That being said, her calories should only be cut
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by about 250 at a time, not going any lower than a 1,200 calorie diet. I feel by using a
combination of reduced calorie intake and exercising 5 days per week to try and expend
another 500 calories will result in an average loss of 2 lbs. per week. I will also
recommend that she records her body measurements once a week as well as weekly
weigh-ins. These steps along with the motivational strategies used, will help her
succeed with her weight loss goals. She also needs to learn more about how to properly
read nutrition labels. Knowing the servings in a container and what all is in certain foods
will help her to choose better foods for her body. A food journal is highly recommended,
to record daily intake of all foods and beverages.
A good website Marsha can use to log her daily consumption of food as well as
daily activities is called myplate.gov. It shows approximately how many calories a
person has burned during exercise, how many calories theyre taking in from the foods
they eat, what the nutrition content is in the food and how many calories they should be
taking in for their weight goals. Marsha should concentrate on choosing foods that are
low in fat, low sugar, and low in sodium. I would also recommend that 80% of her food
be whole foods. Just a change in her diet alone should cause her to drop some weight.
If she needs a reference, Lab 6-1 has a list of nutritious options for each of these food
groups to help Marsha make good choices (Thygerson, 2009).
Marsha should also be encouraged to write down possible causes for any
relapse that could occur. Such as time issues, money, weather, family conflicts, illness
or injury, or any situation that may be stressful for her. Discussing with her what are
any other barriers that could prevent her from reaching her goals. Options for healthy
food choices at restaurants or at work related functions should also be recorded.
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Even though Marsha has not had much physical activity in her life for quite some
time, it is clear that she is aware that she needs to become more active or risk many
potential diseases. It will be very important for her to have several mini-goals set in
place before she starts as well as small rewards taken when she meets these goals.



















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References
Howley, E. and Franks, B. (2007). Fitness Professionals Handbook. IL: Human
Kenetics
Marcus, B. and Forsyth, L. (2009). Motivating People to Be Physically Active. IL:
Human Kenetics
Thygerson, A. and Thygerson, S. (2009). Fit to be Well, 2nd edition. MA: Jones
and Bartlett Publishers