Monday, November 25, 2013

Exercise Specialist

People, especially my parents have told me since day one to do something with my life that I will enjoy. They want me to have the feeling of wanting to go to work, not complaining to go to work. My major here at Muskingum University is Health and Fitness, Physical and Health Education. What I'm doing with these majors is being an Exercise Specialist. I want to teach clients how to exercise and lift the correct way. I want to help others become better while doing these and most importantly don't want them to get injured. I also want to teach classes such as Zumba, Pilates, Yoga, etc. I love to dance and these classes have a friendly environment. Also a lot of people don't like to run or lift and prefer to do some type of dance. I love to be healthy and fit, therefore I feel being an Exercise Specialist will fit me.

Don't Want to Workout but Want to Lose Weight

     It's very common having people not wanting to workout. One of the biggest tools you need is motivation. Motivation is very important because not having it will not make you workout. People look at working out differently. Usually most people hate working out because they either have no motivation or don't enjoy doing it. However some people think working out is a great thing because it releases stress and makes your body feel a lot better.
     People that don't have motivation to exercise I would bring up about taking dance classes such as Zumba, Pilates, Yoga, etc. Whats neat about these classes are you meet new friends, you go your own speed, and most importantly you have fun. I attend these classes because I love to dance while listening to music. I also used to be a dancer so I pick up on the choreography quickly. I feel these classes are great to attend because they're always fun and you're getting the workout in rather than running which isn't always fun.

Stereotypical

     In this world there are many stereotypes. When it comes to men and women you can easily pick some out. One example is women working as an electrician. People would judge and say women can't keep up with men. Another example is men being nurses. People would judge them by saying it's a "women's" job. On a positive note about men nurses is they have a higher opportunity of getting a job and possibly get paid more. 
     When it comes to working out between women and men, we obviously all know men are stronger than girls but girls can be as strong as men. When it comes to lifting, women have a weak upper body and men have a strong upper body. Women obviously can't do as much reps and weight as men, but can lift a lot for having a weak upper body. Me personally, I have a very weak upper body but, however my legs are very strong. They say women have stronger legs than men which I think is great. I feel people shouldn't judge women when lifting but everyone knows it's still going to happen. What I would tell women is keep doing what you're doing and focus on yourself, not others. 

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Time Sheet

    The area that surprised me on how much time I took would be exercising. My total for the week was fourteen hours and thirty minutes. I practice mostly three hours a day but it doesn't feel a lot until you add up the total hours. However, I don't mind it because not only am I getting in shape but I'm practicing with my teammates that I love. The area I spent significantly small amount of time is getting ready. I spend five hours through the week. I usually have some type of physical activity everyday so I have to be in those type of clothes. Therefore, it doesn't take me a while to put on athletic gear. When I have the opportunity to look nice I do and would obviously take a little longer.

PiYo/ Stress Blog

 When Rachel told us about doing PiYos next class I was excited. During PiYos I was loving it. I was a dancer so I felt the moves weren't too difficult and I picked them up quickly.  The moves and balancing felt good on my muscles and joints. I was able to concentrate during it, but sometimes I realized I would hold my breath or not breath the correct way. Rachel said to basically breath out loud because it makes the tension in your body let out and releases stress. My favorite part was at the end when we laid on our backs and closed our eyes and pictured where our happy place was. I thought it was relaxing and it made you realize how great life can be. When the exercise was over I felt relaxed but tired as well. My body felt it could move in different ways such as flexibility. I would definitely do it again because I love working out. In the future I'm looking forward to having my own classes of PiYos, Yoga and Zumba. 

Monday, October 21, 2013

Psychosocial Health

     Drug companies or the physicians who prescribe antidepressants to adolescents are responsible for the suicides of children taking such drugs because one of their jobs knowing their patient very well. They should know if their patient is allergic to a drug or how much amount the patient should take. I also feel parents should be informed of warning signs to watch for their child because if something happens, the parents will be prepared on what to do instead of worrying. The fact their child is on an antidepressant they definitely don't need to start worry and not knowing what to do if something happens to their child.

"Modern antidepressant drugs which have made billions for the pharmaceutical industry will be banned from use in children today because of evidence, suppressed for years, that they can cause young patients to become suicidal." 
                                           http://www.theguardian.com/science/2003/dec/10/drugs.sciencenews

   I think antidepressants administered to children should be banned because children are too young to be talking them. From ABC News Video we watched in class, few of the girls they showed were thinking of suicide.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Stress and Mental Health Blog

       Stressors happen frequently throughout life. Everyone goes through them. They can be chronic, constantly recurring or acute, happening very little. My stressor's are school and playing basketball. I feel most stressed with these because I want to do well and make my family proud. I think sometimes I want it so bad that it hurts me in the end. Instead, it should be natural and let it come to me. Yea these stressors can affect my life but not in a chronic way; more in an acute way. When I feel stressed the issue I face is having trouble sleeping because all I think about is negative thoughts with school and basketball. The stressor I'll always have in life is probably the economy; how to manage my money on how this society is. Hopefully in the future I have a well paid job and be able to provide for my family. To handle stress I try to stay positive and tell myself "everything will be okay."

Challenge: Cell Phone Game

      I went home this past weekend and on Sunday my family and I had lunch. Before we ate I told everyone to put their cell phones in the middle of the table and have the ringer on. First one to answer a text or call before the meal is over has to do the dishes. At the table was my mom, dad and brother. My brother right away was starting to complain because he's attached to his phone. At one point my brother and mother's phones went off. My mother didn't touch hers but my brother did obviously. He couldn't take it because he had a few messages he didn't want to ignore. Therefore, he ended up doing the dishes. My parents loved this idea because we were all interacting with each other.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Healthy Food Blog

       When it comes to food, this week was different than usual. I tried a variety of different foods that included fruits, vegetables, and protein. For fruits I had waffles with blackberries on top. I liked the blackberries because they were refreshing and good for you. Another fruit I tried was guacamole. I had Mexican food with guacamole on it. The texture was weird but it tasted very good. One of the vegetables I tried were beets. When biting into them I spitted it right out. The smell and the taste of it was awful. I would never have beets again. The other vegetable I had was squash in vegetable soup. I liked it a lot and would defiantly have it again. The last food I tried was tofu which is under protein. I thought it taste absolutely awful. The texture was slimy, but I figured I would like it because it looked like chicken which I love. I would never try tofu again. Trying these foods were different for me because I usually eat the same thing. I'm glad I tried these because now I like some of them and will eat them more often. I encourage people to try different things because it will make your life more exciting.
     During fall break I went to Franciscan University to eat with my grandmother. I talked to Chef Rob about organic and non-GMO fruits/veggies. He said they produce organic foods and when it comes to GMO fruits/veggies they but them locally; sourced. Chef Rob definitely knew what he was talking about. There was no hesitation when I asked him questions and his facial expression looked like he wanted to be there; he wanted to help me out. Franciscans cafeteria as a huge variety of foods. I saw they had meat burgers AND veggie burgers. I liked how they had both instead of one or the other. What I also liked about their cafeteria is it fits for everyone and they all can enjoy their meals.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Food Inc Blog

            When it comes on buying food from companies I believe I fall somewhere in the middle. The reason I attend to be in the middle is because of cost, diet, and convenience. I really enjoy organic foods and fruit and vegetables, but the high price discourages me. I constantly ask myself how am I going to save money and do I really need this? When it comes to convenience at home I have plenty of health explanations considering my parents help a lot. However at school its a little different because there are less choices to choose from. Being a student athlete its important to obtain my body properly so I can perform to the best of my ability. 
            After watching the film Food Inc. it has affected my perspective on food. It showed me a side of the food companies that are deceitful and horrifying.; especially how the way they treat the animals which I believe is not right. Watching what they did to the animals made my stomach turn and made me not eat for good amount of hours. I want to know more about what I'm consuming and information on the companies that make the food I eat.
            Having a healthy lifestyle can be difficult; especially when dealing with pricing. I think its outrageous how expensive healthy foods are. Another thing that makes me upset is how in the film its okay to hurt people just to make money. Our food industry obviously doesn't care. My grandparents ate all natural food. Back in the day they ate healthier than we do now a days because it was genetically adapted. 
            For food labeling I think all foods should have labels on them. Do I think this will change people, I don't think so but maybe some people will read them and change how they way they eat. We consumers need to know what we're putting in our bodies so these labels need to let people know what they're eating. 

Monday, September 9, 2013

Super Size Me Blog

People are less physically active because they have no motivation and the biggest thing is technology. Technology has made everything much easier. Video games and cell phones have taken over. Children now a days would rather play video games than go outside and play. I do think television, computers, and video games have contributed to weight gain because your not doing any movement with your body. Basically your just sitting there with your eyes on the screen. Some people might use television, computers, and video games for exercising such as insanity or zumba but that rarely happens. I asked my parents how physical activity has changed over the years and they said it wasn't as strict. Back then the gym class was forgotten once it was over. Kids weren't taught to take the long view of lifetime fitness. What I would do about this is show kids all of the activities you can do outside and hopefully they will enjoy them. I'd also tell them to go outside and enjoy the nature because it's relaxing and besides, being inside for a long period of time is not good.
Yes, I agree that physical education is a place out there that's offering a solution but it's not the ONLY place. I think school education also offers a solution because if you study and do your work you will have a solution at the end, which is getting a good grade. Therefore, I do agree with Mr. Lawler statements and I feel school education should be included.
The income and social exclusion can affect how healthy someone eats because its more expensive to buy healthy foods than it is junk foods. Their physically active will more likely be insufficient because people are going to buy the junk foods instead of healthy foods because they don't want to spend the money. Therefore, you have a lose to lose situation. Working long hours or shift-work impacts eating and physical activity because your not consuming much food. Basically the reason to this is you don't have time to eat and while working long hours your body is excising while your losing the food you ate that day. This situation happened to a friend of mine over the summer. She told me working long hours benefited herself with the weight she had lost. She feels and looks greats and she said "I'm a new me."