Personal Health Assessment According to the Holistic Wellness Questionnaire - Essay Example

Personal Health Assessment I. Family Structure, Work, Goals I am a 36 year old male. I am the second youngest out of four children, and come from a very close knit family structure. I work as an educational assistant, as well as a volleyball coach, at an elementary school. I have a wide variety of passions and interests. I am very active physically, and often partake in playing tennis and soccer, in addition to my time playing and coaching volleyball. I attempt to keep a gym routine where I am actively involved in strength training activities. I also stay physically active in my daily life through random means, such as walking, swimming, and finding ways to involve more physical activity in my daily routine – walking stairs, etc. In addition to these physical activities, I have a great interest in music. I have an interest in piano and play on occasion. I also DJ when opportunities become available. I have a series of goals. I would like to first complete my Bachelor of Science Degree. I would then like to become an elementary school teacher, and ultimately ensure that I am physically, emotionally, and mentally healthy. II. Miscellaneous Self Care My score for the self-care and safety category is an 82. This was not surprising as I make the best effort to avoid alcohol and am completely drug free. I also feel that self-care and safety are aspects that are integrated into one’s daily life choices, including physical activity, risk taking activities, and even hygiene. I ultimately realize that even as I pay considerable attention to this aspect of my life, there are some aspects of it that I could still improve, such as ensuring that I receive adequate sleep, exercise, and always maintain a proper diet. Environmental Wellness My environmental wellness score of 62 constitutes my lowest score out of the wellness categories. I recognize that I have much room for improvement in this category, and plan on making a more conscientious effort to improve my conduct in this category. I realize that I can improve by recycling more, and just making a better general effort to observe my interaction with my environmental surroundings. Social Awareness My social awareness score is 74. While I believe I have adequate social wellness, I recognize that there are areas of my life that I could improve upon in this category. In these regards I must make a more concerted effort to balance my social life with my work and educational responsibilities. I also need to work on developing better boundaries in my personal relationships. Emotional Awareness and Sexuality; Emotional Management My emotional awareness and sexuality score is 92. I understand this as a high and healthy score and see this reflected in my daily life. I believe I am a happy person and while I feel sadness or depression occasionally, it is within healthy doses and I am able to competently manage these emotions. Similarly, my emotional management score of 88 is reflected in these concerns and I believe my life is sound and strong in these categories. If I could make any improvement it would be in developing more empathy with people around me. Intellectual Wellness My intellectual wellness score is 70. I recognize that I could improve in this category and have taken steps to do so by pursuing by Bachelor of Science Degree. I also recognize that I need to adopt a lifestyle in which I am more open to learning new things and pursuing different ideas. While I have never been an avid reader, I am increasingly becoming more active and willing to pursue intellectual interests and believe that this will balance my wellness in this category. Occupational Wellness My occupational wellness score is 86. I see this as a high score and also recognize that it is reflected in my daily life. As an educational assistant I feel fulfilled in my knowledge that I have found the environment in which I am passionate about my work activities. While I believe I have a ways to go before I am able to completely realize my career aspirations, I am content in my pursuit of these aspirations; in these regards, I am pursuing my Bachelor of Science degree to ultimately fulfill my goal of becoming an elementary school teacher. Spirituality and Values My spirituality and values score is 76. While I feel that this is a relatively sound score, I also recognize that there aspects of this category that I can improve upon. Sometimes I allow selfish interests, or become too focused on my material desires, and neglect my spirituality and values. In these regards, I recognize that I need to make more of a conscious effort to center myself in my daily life and consider what is truly important. III. Diet a. While my daily diet varies from day to day, the following constitutes a general summary of my daily eating habits. For breakfast I consumed a cup of unsweetened frozen blueberries, combined with one slice of French toast that was prepared with 2% low fat milk. For lunch I consumed 1.25 cups of salad containing lettuce, tomatoes, and carrots, with one tablespoon Italian salad dressing. A cup of pasta with meat sauce was also consumed. For dinner I consumed half a cup of long grain white rice and 3 ounces of grilled chicken breast. For random snacks I consumed a roast beef sandwich with cheese; one and three quarters a cup of watermelon; one cup of low fat fruit yogurt; and one nutra shake: high calorie, high protein supplement. Throughout the day I consumed four glass of water. b. / c. My vegetable and fruit intake was exactly on par with the Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide’s recommendation for my age bracket, as I consumed 8 servings. I was slightly below the Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide of grains, 8, as I consumed 6 servings of grains. My milk and alternatives consumption was on par with the recommended guidelines of 2, as I consumed a glass of milk in French toast and a nutra shake supplement. Finally, I met the suggested guidelines for meat – 2 – as I consumed roast beef and grilled chicken. d. My diet meets all the nutrient requirements for fat soluble vitamins, however I noted some deficiencies in water-soluble vitamins. My thiamin intake is deficient; I could change this requirement by consuming more whole grains and legumes. My magnesium intake may also be slightly below the recommended intake. Similarly, my copper and chromium intake may be under the recommended intake levels. e. My nutrition score from the health and wellness assessment was a 78. I recognize that there are a few weaknesses that I can work towards developing a more complete diet. As recognized there are some slight areas of nutrient deficiencies that could be improved upon. These include my thiamin intake, as well as my magnesium and chromium intake. Consider the question from a broader perspective, in terms of the Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide my grains intake were below the recommended intake guidelines. By eating more whole grains I will be able to both meet the recommended grains guidelines, and ensure that I am adequately meeting my recommended vitamin intake, of which I am currently deficient in nutrients that are found in whole grains. Outside of these deficiencies, I have a well balanced diet and meet both the nutrient requirements and the Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide requirements for every category in my prescribed age group. IV. Weight and Shape a. My calculated Body Mass Index (BMI) is 32.2. It was reached by calculating the following: (205 (lbs) X 66.9291 X 66.9291 (height in inches)) X 706 = 32.2 b. Height=170cm, weight = 205lb; BMI=?; waist circumference= 34inches; Waist to hip ratio=wc/hip circumference = 34inches/ 39inch= 0.87’m c. According to accepted standards my Body Mass Index was within the obese range. Considering my waist circumference of 34 inches, the accepted standards say I am within the recommended guidelines for normal body functioning. Considering my waist to hip ratio of .87, I am within the accepted standards for healthy and strong living. V. Aspects of Active Living a. Considering my daily activities, perhaps the most distinguishing important factor in my life is my occupation of which all activities revolve around. As an educational assistant I travel throughout the school, constituting a small portion of activity. Three days a week I coach volleyball where I am highly active and involved in the instruction process; this constitutes significant aerobic exercise. One to two times per week I attempt to engage in strength training activities at the local gym. While I vary these activities, they generally constitute circuit training on resistance machines. The machines allow me to exercise every muscle group – both upper and lower body – in a relatively efficient period of time; the weight varies from machine to machine. During the summer, when my job is on break, my physical activities vary significantly from the regular year. During this period I increase my strength training routine through the diverse use of free weights. These activities are balanced every other day between a moderate cardiovascular routine. I oftentimes vary these activities with recreational games of tennis, volleyball, and biking. In addition, I attempt to fill my day with random activities that will increase my fitness level. These activities including taking the stairs instead of an elevator whenever possible, parking towards the end of the parking lot instead of searching for a spot close so I can walk the extra distance and receive the increased aerobic exercise, and generally attempting to live a physically active life. b. Considering my physical activity in regards to Canada’s Physical Activity Guide for Healthy Living I meet the requirements for strength training, as my two days a week meets the recommended guidelines. I also generally meet the recommended time allotments of sixty minutes a day of physical activity. I do recognize that on certain days I do not receive the entire recommended amount of physical activity and realize that I need to make more of an effort to work the entire sixty minutes of activity into my life even on days where I don’t have outside activities planned. I also meet the activity requirements for endurance activities, as my weekly volleyball coaching and circuit training meet these activity needs. I recognize that I need to make more of an effort to incorporate stretching activities into my physical activities as well as work routine. I plan on incorporating more stretching activities throughout my day and before and after my exercise activities. I also plan on attempting to work in more activity recommendations into my work routine, such as meeting with colleagues by walking around the school instead of sitting. VI. Overall Health Status Overall I believe that my current health status is normal. Even as I am satisfied with my health status I recognize that there are a number areas in which I could improve. Beginning with my nutrition, overall I follow what the text terms as ‘normal eating patterns’ (Satter as cited in Hales and Lauzon, pg. 62). While for the most part my eating patterns meet the recommended guidelines, I realize that I need to continue to challenge myself to maintain this balanced diet, even when faced with time constraints from work and educational commitments. In addition I recognize that at times I do not meet the recommended guidelines for grain consumption, and that I need to work towards fulfilling this requirement. Similarly, I have to ensure that I meet the nutrient requirements of thiamin and magnesium that I may be neglecting. Considering my physical activity levels, I am confident that my activity level is at the suggested levels of fitness. My personal interests lean towards physical activity, so it is no surprise to me that I am strong in this category. One element that was enlightening to me as far as physical activity is concerned is the recommended 60 minutes of activity per day. I recognize that while I average this a week, it would perhaps be a sound goal to attempt to ensure that this is achieved on a daily basis. Finally, when considering the various determinants of wellness from the Holistic Wellness Questionnaire, I have gained a much better understanding of various elements in my life and how wellness is an element of a well-balanced lifestyle. While for the most part my scores were in the excellent category, I realized that there are some elements of my holistic wellness that I can improve upon. Most noticeable was my very low score of 62 in the environmental wellness category. It opened my eyes to my need to pay more attention to recycling and to live in better harmony with the environment. References Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide (2007) Hales, Dianne; Lauzon, Lara. An invitation to Health 1st Canadian edition. 2007 Neilson Education Inc. Canada’s Physical Activity Guide to Healthy Living (2007) Read More