Fitness - The Key to Survival
"We've made great strides in the last decade, but America still falls seriously behind other nations in Fitness."
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Teacher Notes
"It's easier to maintain good health than it is to regain it once it's lost."
Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper - the "Father of Aerobics"
Introduction
If we are such a fitness conscious country, why are we also the fattest country in the world? Since the majority of the money makers in this world sit in front of computers most of the day, how are they going to stay healthy long enough to live a productive life at home and away from the office? What can we do to insure that people in our country, and around the world, have some knowledge as to what they can do to keep themselves in better physical condition? These questions will have the opportunity to be answered during your crusade for better health...FitQuest!!!
"Many of America's youngsters between the ages of 5 and 8 already
show at least one heart-disease risk factor:
obesity, elevated cholesterol or high blood
pressure. This is America's secret tragedy."
Arnold Schwarzenegger
I find myself frequently wondering why so many people seem to ignore their personal fitness and the benefits good personal fitness can bring to their lives. We have the opportunity, everyday, to take care of our bodies and prolong our life. Why don't we take advantage of it? Are we too lazy, intimidated, scared, tired, angry, busy, or all of the above? There has to be a way for people to gain knowledge about their bodies that will allow them to plan a workout program that will help keep them healthy. I think that a person who feels confident enough to design his or her own workout plan will take more responsibility in following through with the plan, to see the results. If someone takes ownership of a problem, the problem is more likely to be solved. FitQuest is designed to give people some basic principles of training that will allow them to build their own program to begin a more "fit" life.
Getting in shape doesn't just happen, we all wish it would (and I mean all of us!). Taking on the challenge of getting in shape is a commitment and it cannot be entered into lightly. Unlike marriage, you cannot divorce your body, it is with you for your entire time on earth, so if you want it to look good, and feel good, you've got to get it done. Getting in shape takes time and desire, but it's not all weights and running, there are other parts to fitness as well. Are you tired of feeling like you should be doing more for your body? Then...
Task
Many people struggle with being their "ideal weight" or having their "dream body". When looking at our country today, we have more people on diets than ever before, we also have more people as members of fitness clubs than ever before. What many people need to realize is that fitness is a life changing decision. Fitness has to become a habit, it is not something you can do for a few weeks and then take 2 months off and expect to look the same and have the same benefits. Living an active life is a habit. If one doesn't make time for their personal fitness they will be so far away from their fitness goals, they will feel too overwhelmed to try to get back into shape. Many people don't know where to start, that is where the Personal Fitness Team (you students!) can help.
There are three types of people described below. The job of the Personal Fitness Team is to design a fitness program to help the person you choose begin an effective fitness life style. You will need to develop a workout plan, a diet, and find a lifelong recreation activity that will fit your client and their personal goals and interests. Your task for this project is to develop a fitness program for one of the 3 clients below. You will be filling one of 3 roles in a Personal Fitness Team. These roles are explained on the process page. Each member of the team will become an expert in their area. The focus of the team is to design a program to get their client in shape. My hope is, that while researching and designing a program for the client you have selected, you will also learn valuable information that you can apply to your own life and your own workout plan.
Jimmy - Jimmy is a young man who is tired of being so scrawny. Jimmy weighed 135 pounds when he graduated high school. He is interested in having the physique that he sees in his favorite magazine, Muscle and Fitness. Jimmy wants to put on 20 pounds of muscle in order to look better and gain muscle strength and size. Jimmy's favorite activities include sleeping, fishing, video games and competitive sports. Jimmy works for the animal control office as a part time employee and he is also going to junior college. Jimmy is interested in finding a workout plan that will allow him to reach his goals and maintain a healthy lifestyle for years to come.
Angela - Angela is a junior in high school. She is a nice looking young lady who is in good physical shape. Angela knows that as she moves on in her life it will be harder to maintain her "in shape" look. She is interested in starting a program right now that will help her to maintain the way she looks and feels during the rest of her life. Angela would like to maintain lean muscle mass, increase her muscle strength and maintain or increase her cardio-vascular endurance. Angela's interests include the snow, the beach, and the occasional jog around the track. Angela is not a very independent person, she enjoys activities with others and is more likely to be active when other people are involved.
Randy - Randy has the same problem that many people face in our society, he is about 25 pounds overweight. Randy would like to trim down his figure to become more of "the man he wants to be". Randy is 22 years old and he feels that now is the time in his life to change his lifestyle. He would like to focus more on activity and begin to build a new body. Randy works about 10 hours a day and feels awfully tired when he gets home. He needs some advice on how to start his workout plan and become consistent at it. In Randy's spare time he likes to hang out with his friends, throw the frisbee around, eat, watch football, and relax in his recliner.
Answer the following questions on your own before meeting with the rest of your Personal Fitness Team:
1. How do you determine your target heart rate?
2. What does your percent body fat (body composition) mean?
3. How much water should a person drink per day?
4. What is aerobic activity?
5. How does stress affect health?
6. Go find 3 sites on each of the following: diet, exercise/training, and recreation.
Copy and paste these questions into a word document and answer them carefully. Print out the answers and turn them in or e-mail the answers, as an attachment, to your teacher. Use the information on this page, the sites that you find, and the resources on the next page to help you complete your FitQuest!!!
Resources
Look through the following resources, as well as your own, in order to find the needed information for your Personal Fitness Team...You will need to navigate through links thoroughly. If you find a site that you feel is especially valuable, let me know so I can add it to the list of resources.
General Health and Fitness:
http://www.cooperaerobics.com/tips.htm
http://www.ivillage.com/topics/fitness/
http://www.fitnessonline.com/index.asp
http://thriveonline.oxygen.com/fitness/
http://www.masterfulworks.com/masterfulfitness.html
http://www.bodycorner.com/
http://www.exude.com/bodytypes.htm
http://health.netscape.com/health/fitness/main.tmpl
http://www.schwarzenegger.com/English/public/home.asp
Weight Lifting:
http://www.strengthcoach.com/
http://www.workout.com/
http://bodybuilding.about.com/recreation/bodybuilding/?once=true&
http://www.musclegaintips.com/
http://www.muscle-fitness.com/
http://www.cs.yale.edu/homes/ling/_/topics/workout.htm
http://www.ironmaster.com/training.htm#strength
http://www.fitnesscomplete.co.uk/chapters/wt/wt.htm
http://www.fitnessonline.com/fitnessonline/folCategoryTemplates/subCategory.asp?Catid=48&SuperCID=4&CID=12&SubCID=48
Catid=48&SuperCID=4&CID=12&SubCID=48
http://dinkyneill.hypermart.net/exercises/weights.htm
Diet / Nutrition:
http://www.nutrition.about.com/health/nutrition/
http://www.cyberdiet.com/
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/etext/fnic.html
http://www.atkinscenter.com/diet101.asp
http://www.foodfit.com/
http://www.sfu.ca/~jfremont/
http://e-cuisines.com/nutwizard/nutwizard.asp
http://www.nutrition.org/
http://www.eatright.org/sitemap.html
Recreation:
http://home.about.com/recreation/index.htm
I know there is only one link here, but it takes you to a wealth of other links and information that will help you immensely with your program!
Process
Choose one of the following roles, keeping in mind the fitness client you chose, in order to complete the fitness quest.
Fitness - The Key to Survival
"We've made great strides in the last decade, but America still falls seriously behind other nations in Fitness."
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Teacher Notes
"It's easier to maintain good health than it is to regain it once it's lost."
Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper - the "Father of Aerobics"
Introduction
If we are such a fitness conscious country, why are we also the fattest country in the world? Since the majority of the money makers in this world sit in front of computers most of the day, how are they going to stay healthy long enough to live a productive life at home and away from the office? What can we do to insure that people in our country, and around the world, have some knowledge as to what they can do to keep themselves in better physical condition? These questions will have the opportunity to be answered during your crusade for better health...FitQuest!!!
"Many of America's youngsters between the ages of 5 and 8 already
show at least one heart-disease risk factor:
obesity, elevated cholesterol or high blood
pressure. This is America's secret tragedy."
Arnold Schwarzenegger
I find myself frequently wondering why so many people seem to ignore their personal fitness and the benefits good personal fitness can bring to their lives. We have the opportunity, everyday, to take care of our bodies and prolong our life. Why don't we take advantage of it? Are we too lazy, intimidated, scared, tired, angry, busy, or all of the above? There has to be a way for people to gain knowledge about their bodies that will allow them to plan a workout program that will help keep them healthy. I think that a person who feels confident enough to design his or her own workout plan will take more responsibility in following through with the plan, to see the results. If someone takes ownership of a problem, the problem is more likely to be solved. FitQuest is designed to give people some basic principles of training that will allow them to build their own program to begin a more "fit" life.
Getting in shape doesn't just happen, we all wish it would (and I mean all of us!). Taking on the challenge of getting in shape is a commitment and it cannot be entered into lightly. Unlike marriage, you cannot divorce your body, it is with you for your entire time on earth, so if you want it to look good, and feel good, you've got to get it done. Getting in shape takes time and desire, but it's not all weights and running, there are other parts to fitness as well. Are you tired of feeling like you should be doing more for your body? Then...
Task
Many people struggle with being their "ideal weight" or having their "dream body". When looking at our country today, we have more people on diets than ever before, we also have more people as members of fitness clubs than ever before. What many people need to realize is that fitness is a life changing decision. Fitness has to become a habit, it is not something you can do for a few weeks and then take 2 months off and expect to look the same and have the same benefits. Living an active life is a habit. If one doesn't make time for their personal fitness they will be so far away from their fitness goals, they will feel too overwhelmed to try to get back into shape. Many people don't know where to start, that is where the Personal Fitness Team (you students!) can help.
There are three types of people described below. The job of the Personal Fitness Team is to design a fitness program to help the person you choose begin an effective fitness life style. You will need to develop a workout plan, a diet, and find a lifelong recreation activity that will fit your client and their personal goals and interests. Your task for this project is to develop a fitness program for one of the 3 clients below. You will be filling one of 3 roles in a Personal Fitness Team. These roles are explained on the process page. Each member of the team will become an expert in their area. The focus of the team is to design a program to get their client in shape. My hope is, that while researching and designing a program for the client you have selected, you will also learn valuable information that you can apply to your own life and your own workout plan.
Jimmy - Jimmy is a young man who is tired of being so scrawny. Jimmy weighed 135 pounds when he graduated high school. He is interested in having the physique that he sees in his favorite magazine, Muscle and Fitness. Jimmy wants to put on 20 pounds of muscle in order to look better and gain muscle strength and size. Jimmy's favorite activities include sleeping, fishing, video games and competitive sports. Jimmy works for the animal control office as a part time employee and he is also going to junior college. Jimmy is interested in finding a workout plan that will allow him to reach his goals and maintain a healthy lifestyle for years to come.
Angela - Angela is a junior in high school. She is a nice looking young lady who is in good physical shape. Angela knows that as she moves on in her life it will be harder to maintain her "in shape" look. She is interested in starting a program right now that will help her to maintain the way she looks and feels during the rest of her life. Angela would like to maintain lean muscle mass, increase her muscle strength and maintain or increase her cardio-vascular endurance. Angela's interests include the snow, the beach, and the occasional jog around the track. Angela is not a very independent person, she enjoys activities with others and is more likely to be active when other people are involved.
Randy - Randy has the same problem that many people face in our society, he is about 25 pounds overweight. Randy would like to trim down his figure to become more of "the man he wants to be". Randy is 22 years old and he feels that now is the time in his life to change his lifestyle. He would like to focus more on activity and begin to build a new body. Randy works about 10 hours a day and feels awfully tired when he gets home. He needs some advice on how to start his workout plan and become consistent at it. In Randy's spare time he likes to hang out with his friends, throw the frisbee around, eat, watch football, and relax in his recliner.
Answer the following questions on your own before meeting with the rest of your Personal Fitness Team:
1. How do you determine your target heart rate?
2. What does your percent body fat (body composition) mean?
3. How much water should a person drink per day?
4. What is aerobic activity?
5. How does stress affect health?
6. Go find 3 sites on each of the following: diet, exercise/training, and recreation.
Copy and paste these questions into a word document and answer them carefully. Print out the answers and turn them in or e-mail the answers, as an attachment, to your teacher. Use the information on this page, the sites that you find, and the resources on the next page to help you complete your FitQuest!!!
Resources
Look through the following resources, as well as your own, in order to find the needed information for your Personal Fitness Team...You will need to navigate through links thoroughly. If you find a site that you feel is especially valuable, let me know so I can add it to the list of resources.
General Health and Fitness:
http://www.cooperaerobics.com/tips.htm
http://www.ivillage.com/topics/fitness/
http://www.fitnessonline.com/index.asp
http://thriveonline.oxygen.com/fitness/
http://www.masterfulworks.com/masterfulfitness.html
http://www.bodycorner.com/
http://www.exude.com/bodytypes.htm
http://health.netscape.com/health/fitness/main.tmpl
http://www.schwarzenegger.com/English/public/home.asp
Weight Lifting:
http://www.strengthcoach.com/
http://www.workout.com/
http://bodybuilding.about.com/recreation/bodybuilding/?once=true&
http://www.musclegaintips.com/
http://www.muscle-fitness.com/
http://www.cs.yale.edu/homes/ling/_/topics/workout.htm
http://www.ironmaster.com/training.htm#strength
http://www.fitnesscomplete.co.uk/chapters/wt/wt.htm
http://www.fitnessonline.com/fitnessonline/folCategoryTemplates/subCategory.asp?Catid=48&SuperCID=4&CID=12&SubCID=48
Catid=48&SuperCID=4&CID=12&SubCID=48
http://dinkyneill.hypermart.net/exercises/weights.htm
Diet / Nutrition:
http://www.nutrition.about.com/health/nutrition/
http://www.cyberdiet.com/
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/etext/fnic.html
http://www.atkinscenter.com/diet101.asp
http://www.foodfit.com/
http://www.sfu.ca/~jfremont/
http://e-cuisines.com/nutwizard/nutwizard.asp
http://www.nutrition.org/
http://www.eatright.org/sitemap.html
Recreation:
http://home.about.com/recreation/index.htm
I know there is only one link here, but it takes you to a wealth of other links and information that will help you immensely with your program!
Process
Choose one of the following roles, keeping in mind the fitness client you chose, in order to complete the fitness quest.
Evaluation
You will be graded on three parts of the fitness quest You will receive a grade for your answers to the questions on the task page, a grade for the role you fill on the Personal Fitness Team., and a grade for the conclusion paper.
Task Questions and Answers:
You will be graded on the following -
Complete sentences - 10%
Grammar and Spelling - 10%
Web Sites Found - 13%
Personal Fitness Team Roles:
You will be graded on the following -
Complete description of the web quest
Two page Conclusion Paper on what you have learned and how you will apply your new knowledge in your life
Each of these grades will be figured equally toward your final grade for the project.
Conclusion
You have learned, throughout this process, about the importance of personal fitness to a healthy and productive lifestyle. The question is, have you learned enough to see the importance to you in your life? I hope the answer is "yes." While there are many alternative paths to take in life, few offer the true personal rewards that personal fitness can. Activity helps you to deal better with stress and enjoy better health during your lifetime. Physical fitness also allows you to continually set new goals and push yourself to reach them. Nothing is more satisfying than proving something to yourself, that you weren't sure you could achieve.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Conclusion Paper:
Your last assignment for this project is to write a two page paper about what you have learned about fitness while working on this project. I would like you to reflect on three things you learned about fitness and whether you are ready to take on the challenge of improving your personal fitness. The paper should be MLA formatted.
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Through developing your own fitness program you can also help to influence those around you to take a serious look at their health and their activity levels. Don't stop at yourself...use your knowledge and inspiration to help care for those around you who are important to you. Make each day count, life is too short. Live - enjoy - be healthy!