Diet and Weight Management, Assessment Example

Activity #1

Choose a fast food meal that costs approximately $5.00. Complete the table below to summarize the major nutritional data about this meal.

In the text, locate the formula to calculate your Estimated Energy Requirement (EER). Fill In the appropriate information in the fields below, and calculate your EER.

EER = 354 – (6.91*34) + 1.12 (9.36*86.18 + 726 * 1.62) = 2340 kcal

Your EER estimates the amount of calories you need during one day to maintain your current weight.

• The fast food meal supplies how many of your daily calories? 790
• How many calories are you able to consume the rest of the day without gaining weight? 1550

Assuming that the fast food meal cost $5.00, design a healthy meal alternative that you could make or purchase for the same amount of money or less. To complete this assignment, it may be necessary to visit a local supermarket to obtain the name and price of the items you select. If you select a food item that is sold only in multiportion packages, prorate the cost for the amount that you use; for example, a loaf of bread may cost $3.25, but contains many slices. Divide the cost of the loaf by the number of slices and include in the cost of your meal only the number of slices you use. You may purchase premade food or make your own, but you need to explain how it is nutritionally and economically superior to the fast food meal.

Complete the worksheet below to help you compare the fast food meal with a healthier alternative.

Along with changing your diet to achieve a healthier lifestyle, what are some ways to change your personal activity patterns? Some ways to change my personal activity patterns include taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking every day after work, walking to the water fountain to refill a smaller glass instead of carrying a large water bottle, and joining team/community sports.

Activity #2

Fred Smith is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs 230 lbs. He is an accountant and works a long, stressful schedule with peak seasons and deadlines. During the summer, he is on a baseball league, and he enjoys getting beer and pizza with friends every Friday night. He has also returned to school to get his college degree and has class one evening per week. He does not usually have time to get dinner so he will grab something from the snack machine on campus to tide him over until he gets home.

• What is Fred’s BMI? 33
• Does Fred need to gain weight, lose weight, or maintain present weight to maximize health and decrease chance of illness or disease? Explain your answer: Fred needs to lose weight, as his BMI indicates that he is obese.  Obesity is known to cause complications and increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, gall bladder issues, and certain types of cancer.

3)   What nutritional, energy balance, and weight control suggestions would you give Fred to maximize his health? Provide six suggestions and your reasoning for them.

Fred should reduce his carbohydrate intake to reduce the amount of excess sugar available in his system that may be converted to fat.  One way to do this is by substituting salad and diet Coke for pizza and beer on Friday nights.

Fred should drink water before every meal to decrease his hunger and reduce the amount of food he eats.  He should also consider substituting diet drinks for non-diet beverages and fruit juices, as they are usually high in carbohydrates.

Fred should consider baking and broiling his food as opposed to frying and sautéing it to decrease the amount of fat and cholesterol ingested. He should also consider patronizing take out restaurants that have a larger selection of healthier food choices.

Fred should stretch in the morning when he wakes up and before he goes to bed in the evening, encouraging his body to “wake up” and burn calories throughout the day.

Fred should drink at least 10 8 ounce glasses of water a day to flush his system of toxins, improve skin tone and digestion.

Fred should work to lose at least 50 pounds to decrease his BMI, and therefore, his risks of illness and/or disease.

What would you say to Fred to explain the relationship between energy balance and weight control? The higher Fred’s energy, the more fat and calories he will burn, and the easier weight control will be.

Fred overhears some coworkers talking about their weight loss efforts. One person is eliminating carbohydrates out of his diet, another person is on a low fat diet, and one is on a liquid diet. Fred decides to do some research regarding the different diets. Complete the table below to reflect analysis of those approaches.