Healthy Behavioral Change

The Transtheoretical Model of Change has become popular over the past few decades in explaining health behaviors like substance and alcohol abuse, dieting, and smoking cessation. It has four parts to it, the first being the stages of change. The Stages of Change Model gives explanations for different points on the path to intentional behavioral change (Vilela, Jungerman, Laranjeira, & Callaghan, 2009). Intentional behavioral changes are changes in the habitual patterns of behavior that are related to issues such as substance or alcohol abuse. There are six steps in the Stages of Change Model: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance, and

The majority of people will decide to change their health behavior throughout their lifetime. The reasons for the change might be quite different from individual to individual. Some may be motivated to take action after experiencing a life threatening illness, while others are proactive and change their health behavior to decrease the risks of developing a potential disease. However, even if the reasons for the change are valid and well understood, there is a great possibility that one will not follow set goals long term. Stacy Carter, an assistant of professor and an author of the Social Validity Manual, expresses her opinion about people implementing a scientifically proven health behavior change treatment in their routine, “if it's something that is going to cause them a lot of effort, or is difficult to implement, then they probably are not going to use it for long” (Cranford, 2011). Use number superscript 1

Recently I have been motivated by my friend Adrian’s life changing decision of putting behind his desire of just letting go and being determined to live a healthy life. I have always had an active life and enjoy playing sports but figured that it wouldn’t be enough and I am currently on a diet which has cut down on my calorie and sugar level intake. Nowadays I take the time to read nutrition labels and measure portion sizes which make a great difference. Every now and then I have a break and consume foods that are not healthy but I now I am doing better now. It is a constant struggle to not get tempted into a delicious looking pizza or some perfectly rounded donuts but I stay motivated to achieve my

Ever since I have been in school I was always the “bigger girl” of all my friends. I constantly wished I could look like them, and fit into the same clothing that they wore. I know that sounds silly and when I look back at it now it was absurd, I was young and did not know any better. I struggled through middle school, and then high school took effect. I pushed myself so hard to lose weight, to reach my goals, to finally be happy with myself. I ended up losing twenty pounds. Back then that still was not satisfying enough for me; I was obsessive about the number I would see when I stepped onto that scale. I wanted more! That was then and this is now. Being twenty years old, I wish I could go back to that weight I was in high school, but not having that negative unhealthy attitude towards myself. A negative mind is never going to give you a positive life. As a college student I am always busy and on the go, I sometimes lose track of what food I am putting into my body, and how I am putting that food into my body. This book put a different perspective into my mind, and made me realize that I needed to change something in order for me to be happy with myself again. One specific part of the book really caught my attention. It is titled,

The transtheoretical model helps explain the patient’s behavior change related to the health aspects. As per this change agent, the patient’s purposeful behavior change consists of the cognitive and the performance-based elements. The five stages of the model are precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action and the maintenance stage (Virginia Tech Continuing & Professional Education, n.d.).

Some findings from this study included “change-experimental and change-behavioral processes that contributed to the transition from pre-contemplation stage to contemplation stage, factors that contributed to the change from the contemplation stage to the preparation stage were change-behavioral processes and decisional balance-cons; and self-efficacy played a part in the transition from the preparation to action stage” (Jeon, Kim, and Heo, 2014). In general, it is important to exercise routinely, but especially in college students because they are living on their own and no longer have the security of their parents to rely on and must fend for themselves; this can lead to unhealthy food choices and lack of activity which can result in gained weight or obesity. Family Nurse Practitioners assist patients with health promotion and this study shows different ways that TTM can aid the college generation with increasing their exercise. Jeon et al., (2014) showed in university students that “when exercise behavior change is low, strategies such as giving one-to-one training, having the subjects read relevant books, and providing information are needed; and when exercise behavior change is high, it is necessary to heighten self-efficacy by having subjects select and freely conduct appropriate kinds of

The next stage I moved onto was Preparation/Determination which taking steps and getting ready to change. I realized I needed to work out a budget for buying healthier foods. I researched grocery stores in my area and determined I could afford to buy most of my groceries at Trader Joe’s. In addition, I completed two work sheets in class: Change Plan Worksheet and Goal Attainment Scale Template. (See below). Working on these two activities allowed to me realize the changes I wanted to make and compose a list of SMART Goals. Some of my SMART Goals I created were: Eat Healthier, Drink More Water, Reduce Portions, Cut Back on Soda Intake, Reduce Alcohol Consumption and Eat Less Carbs. After all of my ideas were written down and on paper I was ready for the next step, Action/Willpower.

Ever since volleyball season of my senior year in high school ended, I have not made time to incorporate the desired levels of exercise into my daily routine. Instead, I would occupy myself with static activity such as browsing on the internet for an excessive amount of time. I noticed that I do not have the same energy and excitement for activity as I used to. The lack of exercise contributed to my laziness and my inability to carry out desired tasks immediately. As a result of my lack of exercise, my mood is not as good as it used to be and my body feels more sluggish. In order to get more energy, happiness, and physical fitness, I would like change my exercise

Growing evidence suggests that programs focused toward individual health behaviors require a multi-layered approach to helping people accept, change, and maintain healthy behavior. Maintaining a specific behavior over time might require different strategies than will create that behavior in the first place. Models of behavior change have been developed to guide strategies to promote healthy behaviors and enable effective version to and coping with illness. The models are useful concepts for thinking about behavioral change. Each model has its own focus on specific behavioral traits and its own set of limitations. Health is sometimes negatively explained as the lack of disease and injury. Even sometimes as a normative judgment referring to the

The Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change (TTM) was created by Prochaska and DiClemente. It is based on “(1) the stages of change, (2) the decisional balance scale, (3) the strong and weak principle, (4) self-efficacy, and (5) the processes of change” (Kelly, 2008, p. 149). A person’s progression through the stages depends on their perception of the advantages of adopting a healthy lifestyle (Kelly, 2008).

Over the course of this semester, I have participated in a variety of activities that benefited my well being. For example, I made the choice to change how much water I was drinking. At the beginning of the semester I rarely drank any but, through the behavior change process (Transtheoretical model) I now drink 32 ounces or more of water daily. I started by making a goal to drink 64 ounces a day but, I found that to be unmanageable, so I changed it to 32 ounces and have been successful ever since. By drinking water, I have benefited in several ways, including, healthier skin, fewer headaches, and I have also increased my Physical Wellness. I also worked on my Physical Wellness by attending physical therapy and going to doctor appointments. Over the summer I had hip surgery and was on crutches for 3 months, so I attended physical therapy to gain muscle endurance in my leg and to also build muscle around my hip to reduce re-injuring. I also decided to take on exercising on my own time, by creating a fitness plan. In this plan,

The age range for this particular study was from 18 to 65. After the individuals were selected they were randomly placed in either the NP group or the TYL group. The NP program specifically focused on emphasizing healthy relationships with food, body, and weight. The TYL program focused mostly on emphasizing healthy habits and unhealthy habit disruption, motivation, and also changes in an individual's environment. Both groups met once a week for 90 minutes for 12 weeks and they were responsible for tracking energy expenditure, reporting daily calories, and keeping track of physical activity. The dependent variables for this study were weight loss, energy intake and expenditure, and psychosocial outcomes. The independent variables were the programs, which were the New Perspectives (NP) and the Transforming Your Life (TYL). This study was to demonstrate how to lose weight but each group used a different approach. The approach which worked the best after the study had been complete was the TYL program. Individuals who participated in the TYL program continued to lose weight during the 6 months after the study, while the NP participants regained weight. There was also a greater dropout rate in the NP study compared to the TYL. Though both studies used similar factors the TYL program helped individuals to develop habits and disrupt unhealthy habits, while the NP program may have failed to help individuals form healthy

Another change I implemented was forming a support system with my friends and family. Previously, I had issues avoiding sweets when I would go to dinner with a friend or while attending a game night with my family. I would find myself in a position where I was tempted with sweets and it was difficult for me to decline. Thus, I decided it would be best for me to inform my family and friends that I was trying to change my unhealthy behavior of consuming lots of sugar. This was the most effective strategy in helping me kick my unhealthy habit. When I was offered some delicious peanut butter fudge by a friend, I simply said, “no thanks, I am trying to cut out sugar.” To my surprise, saying something like this often inspired someone to do the same. Many of

The behavior I selected was to create a habit of drinking at least one gallon of water every day. I chose this behavior because after talking to my academic advisor and evaluating my life, I felt that, as an athlete, the consumption of the right fluids each day would have the greatest effect on my body. The dimension of health affected by this behavior change is obviously my physical health. The drinks you consume on a daily basis affect your body greatly. Overall they affect the body day-by-day and in the long run. Day-by-day changes to the body include energy and food cravings. Yet also, in the long run, the body’s intake of fluids can lead to or prevent disease, chronic illness, and overall appearance. Though physical health

I had always been overweight growing up, and I never felt comfortable in my own skin. I had been on several diets, all of which ended either gaining, or losing half a pound. It would depress me because I never thought I could do it. But, somewhere in the month of February, my mother started an extreme diet and got me onboard. We were using her diabetic diet that her doctors gave her for her gestational diabetes. The diet helped balance blood sugar to give you energy all day. The UCFC Medical Center states “modify your diet to help keep your blood sugar level in the normal range.” After some time, I didn’t feel so exhausted all of the time, and I had so much energy I would say, “I could climb a mountain right now!” By my birthday, which is in April, I had lost twelve pounds and I felt great! By the end of spring, I had lost twenty-six pounds. I learned so much about myself during that time. I learned how well my body did under a routine, eating every two to three hours, and walking to