Dance Section 36

Week 6

Questions for Week 6

What have been some major barriers so far in your activity plan?

First is the heavy schoolwork, midterms and essays are taking a lot of my time, and they also affect my sleeping time, which makes me feel tired during the day. Also, since I am living in an apartment, there is limiting space for me to exercise, I don’t have equipment, either.

How have you adapted your plan to overcome these barriers?

I came up with a plan that most exercises are performed on a yoga mat, and the plan needs almost no equipment, the weight can be replaced by dictionary or water bottles filled with water. I also keep my plan short so that I have time to follow my plan on most of days. Besides, I try to keep my room clean, in case I need more space.

What solutions have you found?

I found that since each part of my plan is short, it doesn’t take much time and energy, while I can keep exercising. As for the space, if possible, I might go to a friend’s house with enough space and equipment.

Have you noticed any energy level changes now that you exercise every week for the past 6 weeks?

Yes, I become more energetic and I also eat more while my weight doesn’t change. I can now have five classes a day without feeling too tired (I have five class on Thursday). I even feel happier and more energetic after doing workouts.

Have you started working out more than once a week? If so, when and what?

Yes, after setting the S.M.A.R.T. goal I started working out more than once a week. On weekdays I do sit-ups, plank, side plank, Russian twists or overhead triceps extension, chair dips and diamond push-ups. If when I am filming the workout, there are some repetition in exercises, I may change to other exercises that have the same purpose.

Week 5

Questions for Week 5

How many servings of vegetables should you eat each day?

Canada’s Food Guide recommend the girl at my age to have 7 servings of vegetables and fruit each day. So I should have about 3 to 4 servings of vegetables each day and have the rest servings as fruit.

Are you getting enough vegetables?

No, I currently have about 2 to 3 servings of vegetables every day.

If not, how could you ensure that you do?

I will make a food plan and communicate with my guardian and my friends, so that my guardian will buy vegetables and my friends can remind me.

What are your three favorite vegetables?

My favorite vegetables are Chinese cabbage, spinach and laver.

Find a recipe that includes your favorite vegetable.

Chinese cabbage is used in the filling of numerous Chinese dumplings recipes. Here, Chinese cabbage is paired with ground pork, green onion, and Asian seasonings in this recipe for dumplings. You can have the dumplings on their own or with a dipping sauce, usually vinegar.

Week 4

Questions for Week 4

How does your exercise program fit into your weekly schedule?

For muscular conditioning, it only takes me 10 ~ 20 minutes every day. If considering the least frequency, which is three times a week, I have one day left to rest. Thursday is decided to be the day for rest since I have five classes this day, and dancing can be a cardiovascular exercise. So though my schedule at school is busy, I still have time to exercise on most of days. I also walk a lot every day for cardiovascular endurance after school, so it does not seem to take a lot of time.

Comment on how easy or hard it is to find the time to exercise.

It is not hard to find the time for exercise, 20 minutes a day is not very long for weekdays, and it is easy to find time during weekends for a workout that takes longer. I believe we all have time to exercise, but sometimes we are too tired after a whole day at school or at working.

What are your stress levels before and after exercise?

Before exercise, I am usually at a high stress level since I am worried about the upcoming tests (four tests next week). After the exercise, I feel much more relaxed and less stressed, I also feel happier after exercising.

What was your nutritional habit change that you chose last week to do for this week?

I had more fruit and vegetables this week compare to last week.

Did you follow it consistently?

Yes, I had fruit and vegetables every day, and my diet is well-balanced: containing dairy products, meat, grains, oil, fruit and vegetables.

What will be your next nutritional goal for the following 2 weeks?

Since currently I am having a great diet, I think I will keep the same diet. However, my goal is to eat on time and have less snacks.

Week 3

Questions for Week 3

On a scale of 1-10, what effort did you give the workout this week? I would give 9.

List three specific examples of what would motivate you to participate in and stick to a
regular exercise routine? I set up a goal for myself, which is to have firm abs before turning 18, and there are only a few months left. Also I’m not satisfied with my body shape and the shape of my legs, so I will work on them. Another example would be that I eat a lot most of the time, if I exercise more, I can have some snacks occasionally without feeling too guilty.

List three specific barriers or excuses which would prevent you from doing so? Having too many assignments, too much pressure at school will be one of the main barriers. An excuse would be sometimes I feel like I have exercised enough during the day if I walk a lot or have gym class. Also, “I’m too tired and I’m doing it tomorrow” is another excuse I would use.

What type of workouts and physical activities do you like? I like workouts that focus on abs and the workouts that help build a nice body shape. I love swimming, dancing and yoga for physical activities.

Do you prefer going to the studio/gym or working out at home? I prefer going to the gym or studio, since I do not enough space at home and there are no equipments.

What could you see yourself doing as exercise for the remainder of your life? I will do swimming, dancing and yoga since they are my favorites. I will also do fast walking since it is easy to practice.

How was your nutrition over the course of this week? Overall my nutrition over this week was great, my diet was well-balanced with grains, meat, fruit and vegetables.

What would you like to change in your nutrition for the following week? I would like to have more fruit and vegetables. Because usually in one day, I only eat one kind of fruit or vegetable, which I do not think it is enough. I also need to add dairy products to my diet because currently I am not taking it every day.

Workout link: https://youtu.be/6sHn1Kz2uS0

Week 2

Questions for Week 2

What are your specific goals for the upcoming Fitness appraisal? (12-minutes run, pushups, sit-ups, wall-squat, side-hops, plank) My goal for 12-minutes run is to run for 10 laps, and do 10 pushups, 36 sit-ups, 90 seconds for wall-squat, 50 side-hops and 100 seconds for plank.

What’s the point of doing a warm up? A warm up is to let the body prepare for the following exercises and prevent us from injury by getting the body warm for the exercise that could be vigorous.

What constitutes a successful warm up? A successful warm up should be dynamic stretching, which means we should move our bodies and not stay in the same position. The warm up should also take into account of where the workout focuses on. For example, if we are working on our shoulders and legs, it is not enough to only do warm up for legs, we should also move our shoulders and get them ready. You should warm up for about 5 minutes and untill you are a little sweating, you should notice that your body can move easily and your heart rate increases moderately.

What’s the point of doing a cool down? A cool down is to help us decrease the heart rate and breathing rate to normal, at the same time, it cools our body temperature and prevent us from fainting due to the sudden stop. If we stop immediately after doing vigorous exercises, the blood may not have time to reach our brain, which could cause fainting and dizziness.

When is the best time to stretch and why? The best time to exercise is after doing exercise. After the exercise, we are more flexible, and the streching let our muscles relax after the workout.

Why is stretching important? Stretching makes our muscles flexible, it can make our muscles move in a range and prevent us from hurting ourselves due to stiffness. It can also help with joint pains and strains.

Workout link: https://youtu.be/qKnKJwBAI_U