Living Wellness Challenge Form

Name: Joshua Vega-Rodriguez

Course: Lifelong Wellness
Semester: Fall 2018

Module 1: Physical Wellness

Instructions: This first week we will focus on writing SMALL goals. Use the template below, pick one goal you
would like to work on and write it using the SMALL format in the Response column below. Implement your goal
for the week and be prepared to write a brief reflection in next week’s assignment.

Acronym Description Response

Self-selected. Your goals should
be your own. Choose goals that
fit into your life and only change
behaviors that you are willing to
negotiate. Be realistic.
What do you want to accomplish?
I want to build my cardio endurance.
Specifically, run 2 miles 1 or 2 days a week with
no set time limit.

Measurable. Develop a concrete How will you know when your goal has been
way to track your goal. met?

I will record the duration of my runs and

gradually decrease the time spent running 2
miles.

Action-oriented. Having an What steps are you going to take?

action plan allows you to
complete the steps needed to After each workout I will run 2 miles
make your goals a reality.

Life-linked. Goals are best
achieved if they work within your
lifestyle and match your
challenges and strengths.
How does this fit your everyday life?
At the moment I have a semi full schedule with
work and school but left with enough spare time
to workout outside of class and practice pushing
myself by completing 2 miles at the end of the
day.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Long-term. You want to be How will you maintain your goal long-term?
healthy for life so any changes
you consider should be I have struggled with losing fat since I’ve began
something you could see yourself working out but haven’t had much of an issue to
doing over the long term. gain muscle. Im concerned with the excess fat I
have on my body and finally decided to work on
cardio as an added effort to burn fat.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 2: Exercise
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge
Exercise 2 times this week. Indicate the exercise you completed, the length of time
you spent exercising, and the highest RPE you reached during your workout. (If you
forgot what RPE is, go to the Canvas page, “What to Expect With Exercise”) Also, If you
don’t normally exercise, then just start with something small and manageable.
This week I started with bench press with a weight of 35lb to start with. 3 sets
of 10 reps and then i moved to 45lb and lowered the amount of reps from 10 to 7.
In between reps I would do one set of push up. 1x5
I then moved to chin ups and pull ups and tried to at least do 2 sets of 5 of
each workout but by then my arms were tired.
My time at the gym was limited so i decided to work on my lower body and set
my eyes on the squat rack. I warmed up with some stretches and did some squats with
nothing but the bar. Then I started my workout. I did 3 sets of 7. For the first set I started
with 25lb and added 10lb after each set.
My weight lifiting workout was set so i moved to cardio and ran for about 10
minutes which was enough time for me to complete a mile but fell short of my goal for 2
miles after each workout. I believe my RPE was between a 5-7.
or Create Your Own Challenge
Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on exercise. This challenge should be something you’ll do on at
least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Physical Wellness challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?



I was certainly surprised about the intensity of the first week. I was lost at times
and didn’t feel as if I was doing the correct workout but in the end I did not give
up. I would make sure I payed attention to each of the moves that were being
taught and did my best to keep up with the tempo of the music. It was a challenge
to keep up because of the cardio based intensity and that is something I am not
used to. I have to say that I was glad to have someone push me to not give up and
break down any mental barriers that keep me from pushing myself further.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 3: Hydration
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Even though there are several ways to hydrate, let’s focus on drinking more water. For this
challenge, drink at least 8 oz more water than you normally drink for at least four days.
One way to do this would be to substitute out a sugary drink and instead have water. Or
you can consider carrying around a bottle of water that you can drink throughout the day.

I usually drink 4 cups of water a day throughout the week but I fall off on the weekends. My
challenge will be to cut out any sugary drinks completely and to at least double my water
intake each day.
or Create Your Own Challenge
Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on hydration. This challenge should be something you’ll do on
at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Sleep and Recovery challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?

By doing this challenge I was able to realize my

weaknesses in many areas. My Cardio is not the best
and it needs much improvement to get to my goal of 2
miles 2 or 3x a week. My stamina seems to be
gradually improving with each week but my diet holds
me back a boat load.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 4: Nutrition
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Keep track of the food you eat for a day and see what you can substitute out and what you
can substitute in. To help you with this, consider downloading a food tracking app like
MyFitnessPal. See this article for more suggestions.

Or

Pick at least three recipes from the Good and Cheap recipe book to make and eat.

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on nutrition. This challenge should be something you’ll do on at
least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Hydration challenge from last week. Consider answering
some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What behaviors do you
want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you need to overcome
to complete the challenge?


 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 5: Cardio-Respiratory Health
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Do two brisk walks on two separate days. Each walk should be at least 20 minutes. The
goal is to increase your heart rate so that you feel your heart beating a little faster, which
also means your breathing will be more labored.

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on cardio-respiratory health. This challenge should be
something you’ll do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Exercise challenge from last week. Consider answering some
or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What behaviors do you want
to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you need to overcome to
complete the challenge?


 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 6: Muscular Strength and Endurance
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

If you haven’t already done so, read over the article Top 25 At-Home Exercises and
choose at least three different exercises to do on two separate days. The exercises you
do on the second day should be different from the first day. Do 8-20 reps for each
exercise.
First day: Push ups, planks and squat jumps

Second day: p

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on muscular strength and endurance. This challenge should be
something you’ll do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Cardio-respiratory Health challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?



I learned that walking is not so bad when you have a partner to help you get
through the exercise. The activity did not take a toll on my body like other work
outs but I can tell that im not used to walks for a long period of time. Next time I
would like to add some jogging along with some running to just make it a bit more
interesting.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 7: Flexibility and Mobility
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Try three stretches from the videos included on the How to Improve Your Flexibility page.
Record which stretches you completed and how long you held the stretch. Try holding it so
that you feel a gentle stretch for at least 20-60 seconds.
1. Inner thigh stretch

2. Side stretch

3. Arm leg extension

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on flexibility and mobility. This challenge should be something
you’ll do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Muscular Strength and Endurance challenge from last week.
Consider answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ?
What behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles
did you need to overcome to complete the challenge?



I felt very sore. The workout really seemed to take a toll after an amount of
time. I learned how to enjoy some of the pain which has led me to push
myself. I would use interchange workouts just to work a different set of
muscles each time. I needed to force myself to actually do the workout
when I’ve felt the need to just stop but I managed to push through.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 8: Body Composition
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Using the BMI calculator on smartbmicalculator.com, calculate your BMI and indicate your
health risk.
My bmi is set at 26 which leaves me at moderate risk for my health.

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on body composition. This challenge should be something you’ll
do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Flexibility and Mobility challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?



The stretches were very intense definitely a challenge. But I have learned and
witnessed the benefits.I would like to alternate stretches to get a different feel
each time.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 9: NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis)
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Since the idea behind NEAT is to find more ways to incorporate movement throughout your
day, select one of the three suggested challenges to complete:
• Take the stairs instead of the elevator for at least three days, or
• Park in far-away parking spaces so that you walk more for at least three days, or
Use a step-counting app or device (like Fitbit) to count and increase your steps for at least
three days. You should track your regular steps for one day, then increase your steps by at
least 1000 steps for the next two days. (Check out this article about different apps to use.
You may want to specifically look into using Accupedo or Pedometer++.)

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on the NEAT principle. This challenge should be something
you’ll do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Body Composition challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?



I realized that my body is more overweight than I thought and I hope to use that
fact as a motivator. I want a different change that allows me to feel comfortable
and will work to achieve that goal.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 10: Sleep and Recovery
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Bedtime challenge: Track your sleep times and routines for three days and write what
changes you can make to improve your sleep quality and quantity. (For example, you may
want to not be on a computer or smartphone in the half-hour before you go to bed.)

Or

Recovery challenge: Use a foam roller (these are available in the LAC gym) or a tennis ball
to do myofascial release for at least two days.

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on sleep and recovery. This challenge should be something you’ll
do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

I decided to track my sleeping habits and realized that I do not get enough sleep. I
would probably average around 5-6 hours a night and maybe a little bit more on
the weekends. I am always on my phone before going to sleep or on my laptop and
rarely take a break before sleeping. This is one habit I must change as the blue
light from the screens seems to mess with my sleep throughout the night.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the NEAT challenge from last week. Consider answering some or
all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What behaviors do you want to
continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you need to overcome to
complete the challenge?



I decided to do 2 out of 3 challenges because I don’t own Fitbit (at least not yet).
Im guilty of trying to take the easy way and circle around for a closer parking
space. This time when I went on an errand I decided to go a bit farther than usual.
It may not seem like a big issue but many people would prefer to walk less so they
try to find the closest parking space. This makes me realize that it’s the little
things that could potentially go a long way.
I also usually take stairs and only sometimes take the elevator, depending on the
floor I will be going to.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 11: Stress Management
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Choose one of the 4A’s (avoid, alter, adapt, or accept) and apply it to a stressful situation
you’re currently experiencing. Using one of these four principles, write the small change
you plan to make to change the way you think about or respond to the situation and then
implement it on one day during the week. (See the “Healthy Ways to Manage Your Stress
page in Canvas if you forgot what the 4A’s are.)

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on stress management. This challenge should be something
you’ll do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

I will use “adapt” in order to avoid my, at times, quick anger that seems to arise in
different situations. I will adapt to the situation instead of immediately feeling
angry.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Nutrition challenge from last week. Consider answering some
or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What behaviors do you want
to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you need to overcome to
complete the challenge?



The sleeping challenge really seemed to help my groggy mornings that occur
almost everyday of the week. I decided to let go of electronics about 20-30
minutes before sleeping and I did notice a change when I would wake up every
morning. I also decided to not sleep so late and get at least one hour more every
night. It helped because I felt like I had more energy and it made me realize the
consequences of my bad habits.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 12: Body Weight and Obesity
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Write a reflection on how you can improve how you view your own and/or others’ body
weight. In other words, what do you need to take into consideration so that you are less
judgmental and more understanding of yourself and/or others?
I understand that this is my own body and before I would be unhappy with my physical
state up until these last few years. I’ve realized that there is nothing holding me back from
achieving a fit physique other than myself. Less judgment is not the route I took in order
to change my state of mind. I can love my body because it’s only mine but I that doesn’t
mean that I have to maintain an unhealthy weight. Its just fact that the heavier you are
the more health problems you have.

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on body weight. This challenge should be something you’ll do
on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Stress Management challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?



Applying these actions in my daily life for the last week was a great benefit to my
surprise. I realized that I did not have to get swayed by outside factors that are
out of my control. The biggest challenge would be stress related work. Simply
adapting to the situation with a smile was the best stress manager I’ve tried.
Whenever a challenge arrises I will tend not to react negatively.
 Living Wellness Challenge Form
Module 13: Preventing Chronic Disease
Instructions: First, complete the suggested challenge or create your own challenge. Next, fill out a reflection on the
assignment from last week.

Suggested Challenge

Ask a family member about your family’s history of diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

Or

Incorporate one prevention idea that was discussed in the module.

or Create Your Own Challenge

Write your own challenge for the week that focuses on preventing chronic disease. This challenge should be
something you’ll do on at least two separate days during the week. Be sure to be specific about what you will do.

I believe that the only health disease that runs in my family is diabetes because my
grandfather had it and my dad currently deals with it. I have been getting blood
work done regularly for the past 2 years and I have not been diagnosed with
anything as of yet. There may be the possibility that I am diagnosed later in life but
I would have to talk with medical professionals to get a definite answer.

Reflection from Last Week

In 3-5 sentences, write about your experience with the Body Weight and Obesity challenge from last week. Consider
answering some or all of the following questions: How did it feel? What did you learn about yourself ? What
behaviors do you want to continue? What would you change if you did the challenge again? What obstacles did you
need to overcome to complete the challenge?

Recently I’ve grown a sense of determination in losing overall fat from my body
with a good diet and frequent workouts throughout the week. I’ve formalized my
opinion on the basis that individual effort is the key to success when it comes to
physical fitness. Judgment is not necessarily a bad thing but to an extent. It seems
that overall wellness does not just require physical fortitude but mental as well.