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View another Health Challenge Participant 
Don of West 3, Mackenzie King Village
4th year Honours Kinesiology student
Click photo to view Quicktime video
* To decrease my body fat
* To increase my energy
* My ultimate goal would be to have a six pack by the time the challenge is done!
* Staying motivated to eat well and staying active
* Realizing that results come slowly
* Overcoming my love for fatty foods and my poor snacking habits during study times
From the nutrition coach: Linda Barton
Well said, Mike! At our first meeting, we right away get the impression Mike knows his stuff, and knows himself. Since Mike’s been studying kinesiology for four years, he KNOWS tons of stuff about the body and exercise. Let’s not confuse knowledge with ACTION… Mike is struggling like everyone else trying to put what he knows into action in his daily life. Looks like you came to the right place, Mike….the Challenge will give you just the push you need!
From the trainer: Scott Mills
Mike has been a wonderful participant to work with during this challenge. From the beginning he had very specific and realistic goals, and has been steadily working toward them. Mike has a lot of personal knowledge regarding health and fitness, and has been able to exercise his own judgment during the process. Because of his busy schedule, and preference for facilities, Mike has gravitated to more emphasis on cardiovascular work, rather than resistance training during his progress. Keep up the great work Mike.
“Thurs morning Jackson, Laura and I did a 3.8km run.”
Mike jumps right into things! The morning right after our first meeting he is out running with the other Challengers! And, he feels good to be out there… a little winded maybe…but at least he got up and got out!
Something really neat Mike noticed this past week - his struggle with junk food cravings is easing somewhat. He reports the cravings that used hit while studying in the evening are much easier to deal with. And, he isn’t eating as much during the day. The activity is working!
Mike also met with Coach Scott – 7:30 AM in the gym. Together they set up a three-day-a-week weight training program. You’re going to feel those workouts, Mike.
For Mike, these few steps are key to building confidence. Like many of us, Mike struggled with feeling he SHOULD be able to eat well and stay active… then something happens to get him off track… and he finds himself eating that junk food at night again. Urrggghhhh!
But now, during this first week, something is different. His appetite is changing, and the junk food appeal is WAY down. He is hopeful that these new tools can become habits that can be maintained.
Let’s take it one step at a time, Mike. Keep up the good work, and we’ll meet next time for a closer look at exactly what you’re eating.
Add some healthy fats.
This week we take a look at what Mike is eating. First, his food diary:
Breakfast: oatmeal, bran buds, fat free yogurt, 1 cup orange juice
Snack: fat free yogurt
Lunch: tuna sandwich with light mayo on whole wheat bread
Snack: fat free yogurt
Supper: Salad with light Caesar dressing, bacon bits, parmesan cheese, _ baked chicken, 2 baked potatoes with fat free sour cream, broccoli, 1 cup skim milk
Before we look at any numbers, this is already looking good. Great meal pattern, Mike. Good to see those snacks between meals. And, there’s no junk food snack at night.
The nutrient analysis we did shows Mike took in 1961 calories. Much lower than the 2840 calories recommended for a guy his age (21 yrs) and height (6 ft) doing the kind of activity he now does. That’s quite a difference. We’ll come back to this point.
Nutrient balance results show:
12% fat, 30% protein, 58% carbs. Yikes!
Recommendations are: 20-25% fat, 15-25% protein, 50-55% carbs.
Mike only ate 27 g fat on this day. Compare to recommended intake of 50-60 g fat per day. Best to bump this up!
Surprised? Many are… but if you don’t eat enough fat you will feel hungry, and experience cravings. Avoiding cravings and junk food are goals of Mike’s.
Mike has room to add calories, as discovered above. A tablespoon of oil contains about 14 g fat. Canola, flax or olive are good choices. So is a handful or almonds or cashews. Just a handful, Mike!
“How many calories did I drink??!!”
Mike is doing very well with making changes to his food diary. He has increased his fat intake to the 40-50 gram range. Once all the fat-free yogurt he just bought is gone, he will buy low-fat instead…these little changes make a difference.
He is wondering about snack ideas. Snacks are a tough spot for students. Being away from your room all day at class means bringing snacks with you in your book bag. Or you might plan where to buy snacks. Using “1-2-3 Energy”, snack ideas for Mike include:
Peaches + cottage cheese + bran buds OR yogurt & fruit OR banana, peanut butter on bread OR carton of milk OR handful of almonds + fruit OR orange, crackers & cheese, OR can of tuna + fruit OR sliced meat or even leftover chicken breast + fruit …
Mike was curious about the number of calories in the drinks he had Friday night. Wow!!!! Was he surprised to find out about the calories in alcohol. Take a look at this:
Beer 355 ml light has 99 calories; 355 ml regular has ~150 calories
Wine glass white about 100 calories; glass red about 106 calories
Coolers 355 ml wine cooler has 177 calories
Rum 1.5 oz rum has as many as 220 calories
Coke 355 ml coke has 152 calories
Saturday night was no better with the beer, nachos and poutine. An eye-opener!
Nachos 1216 calories with 68 g fat
Poutine 755 calories with even more fat
Well, by the sound of it, Mike’s weekend party habits are about to change! Let’s just say he had more than one drink Friday night, and so the caloric intake was... well… up there.
Breakfast at Brubakers this morning!
Mike joined the other Health Challengers for the Breakfast @ Brubakers event. They served Power Shakes to other students at this special event. And met Tony the Tiger!
Mike emailed his report this week. Activity is still looking very good - in the gym Monday and Wednesday, he took his students swimming Wednesday evening. On Tuesday he ran 3.8k around ring road and then Thursday he and Laura jogged 8k around the Laurel Creek/ Columbia Lake trails. And did the 8k again today. Whew!
The new snacking plan looks great…with those new foods in your room you are doing a super job on snacking, Mike. Time to look at his nutrient analysis again…stay tuned for more about this at our next discussion.
You are making great choices, Mike. Enjoy the results!
“My sleep is 50% improved!”
Mike is living a lot of changes right now. His eating has MUCH improved! He has a new food list that he takes with him when out to buy groceries. He is far more aware of what is in the food he’s eating. In fact, he’s so keen on learning about this that he’s investigating the Food-Smart software we used to perform the nutrient analysis… there is a demo program at www.food-smart.com. Way to go, Mike!
Mike’s shopping list: oatmeal, bran buds, bananas, skim milk, protein powder, Gatorade powder (for his post-workout snack), low-fat yogurt, almonds, tortilla wraps, lettuce, extra-lean ground turkey, fat-free cheese, tomato, light Caesar dressing, salsa, chicken thighs, frozen mixed veggies, fruit salad, cottage cheese, rice cakes…
An awesome list!
Then, there’s the alcohol. Mike realized he just can’t drink as much or as often if he expects to lose weight. The calories just won’t add up…if he eats less to offset the added calories in alcohol then he feels lousy when his energy dips. And his goal is to feel great. Mike is focused on his goal…so he is changing the way he parties. Tough stuff.
He’s running 8 km now. WOW!! This from the guy who found it hard to begin any running at all. We’re proud of you, Mike!
Perhaps the most exciting change is in Mike’s sleep. He is no stranger to tossing and turning at night …. However, Mike reports a 50% improvement in the quality of his sleep. Anyone who struggles with sleepless nights knows just how amazing this feels!
Mike attributes better sleep to increased activity and healthier snacking at night. True, and your nutrition coach will tell you that drinking less also improves your sleep. Enjoy!
"Battling weekend eating.”
Mike’s food and activity are impressive… he is doing a spectacular job of eating well and staying active during the week. The weekend is another story….
Like most of us, Mike is happy to relax on the weekend. However, without the structure that works so well on week days…his weekend eating is all over the place. He sees this as the next change to tackle!
Using the nutrient analysis software, Mike has entered his food intake for five days. We take a look at the analysis. This is what it says:
On average Mike is eating 1438 calories, with a nutrient balance of 22% fat, 34 % protein and 43% carbs.
Of course, there is no alcohol figured into these numbers...it’s based on the Mon to Fri report. Now here’s the challenge…to eat CONSISTENTLY!!
The nutrition coach strongly urges Mike to boost up the eating through the week since 1438 calories are clearly way to low for a guy exercising this much. While we are aiming for weight loss it is very important not to get hungry. Hungry people get tired, even cranky, and they eventually EAT – more food, more and quickly than those who are do not allow themselves to get so hungry.
While Mike is tipping off balance a bit on a couple of days… the other days look great. He notices and appreciates his energetic approach to his day, and to activity.
And, he reports pulling his loose belt in a couple of notches tighter!
“My goal is to get a routine going again!”
Mike had a great holiday and reports moderate progress on his Health Challenge. He did not overeat at Christmas parties…choosing smaller balanced portions instead of the heaping scoops of stuff!
The weather made it too cold to run, which was the major barrier to achieving his Health Challenge goals. He battled the winter cold slow down. And it is always a challenge to battle the holiday ritual of over consumption.
Gratitude goes a long way when trying to get back on track. It is real tough to change your entire life every 4 months or so…just when Mike was getting a handle on his activity routine things changed. He is feeling a little worried about this set back. A good time to write a gratitude list!
Looking back, Mike is grateful for the progress made over the 3 months. He likes the coaching support from Linda and Scott, and the encouragement from the other Challengers. And he feels lucky to be a part of the Health Challenge project. He hopes his efforts will help motivate other students to make changes in their own lives.
Now that is powerful. And motivating. Mike is good to go… look out Challengers!
“What a powerful feeling to see and feel results!”
Mike is very pleased to report weight loss. He is in the Professional Fitness and Lifestyle Consultant course and had detailed weight, as well as other anthropometric measurements, taken in a recent lab.
He weighs 18 pounds less than he did at the start of the Challenge.
Wow!
At first it was discouraging, working so hard at the Challenge but not seeing any weight changes. Especially with so many people asking how things were going.
It’s coming together. Just like the coaches said it would. Learn new tools, practice the tools so they become habits, go for consistency in weekdays to weekends and the changes will come.
What a powerful feeling to see and feel results!
And Mike continues to improve. His grocery list is looking better and better. He is buying frozen boxed meats and veggies for quick meals in his room, putting together great tasting low carb snacks, and trying to keep things balanced.
Looks like you are doing a great job, Mike! And more good news, Mike has not been sick since he started the Challenge – which is quite a change for him. A welcome change.
“I’ve always desired the body I’m now getting.”
Mike is clearly enjoying his new lifestyle. He continues to workout hard, is drinking less and sleeping well. It all seems so easy for him right now.
And he truly enjoys the Professional Fitness and Lifestyle Consultant course he’s taking. As part of that course, he’s practicing the measurement of several fitness indicators. Feedback on weight, body fat, aerobic capacity, and strength, among other parameters, makes Mike ever more aware of just much he’s changing. It’s all good!
We had a serious talk about eating enough. The challenge for Mike is to learn what fueling strategy is best for his body…and then to eat just enough. Eating too little creates a few problems: comprised immune response which makes it hard to fend off colds, for example; low energy through the day; and hunger. The hunger from under eating is perhaps the most important to Mike’s long term success. Because hungry people WILL overeat… when you feel like you’re starving you eat more, more quickly, than you wanted to. Then you feel like crap because it’s physically uncomfortable, and pushing you away from your goals.
Sometimes our desire for results causes us to push hard in the eating department. There is no doubt that if you eat less and exercise lots you will initially lose weight faster. However, being hungry for too long sets us up to overeat…usually at night…and usually on treat snacks. Mike stills remembers when he was doing just that…in fact eating junk food was one of the reasons he came into this Challenge!
Mike easily accepts the wisdom of this talk. He understands his job is to notice how hungry, and how full, he feels before and after meals. Arriving at this level of fine-tuning of his fueling plan is a good sign. He was able to create and maintain a consistent eating pattern. Now the job is to figure out how much is enough, and when is he eating too much.
“I’m eating more, feel great and love that cardio!”
Mike sounds terrific! He in tackling the cardio like never before!
He’s done the work to create a schedule where he is able to regularly enjoy his workouts. Quite an accomplishment for a 4th year student!
And his efforts are paying off. Not only is he stronger, and energized, but his pants are nearly falling off! Yep…his body continues to change in response to these new habits.
He met with trainer Scott about his weight program. Since becoming a cardio maniac, his weight training has suffered a little. They worked out a balanced plan so both are in place.
Mike is also doing better with his eating. Over the weekend, he was able to choose, and enjoy, some treats when out with friends without going overboard or feeling guilty. Truthfully, this is the best news we’ve heard about his eating to date! To be confident enough about one's eating choices to enjoy a treat is a great sign.
With Mike’s flexible approach, keen interest in how the body works, and honest appraisal of his efforts, there’s no doubt he is meeting the goals of the Health Challenge in every way!
“This isn’t hard. I’ve made it all part
of my routine.”
Mike and I meet for our last individual coaching session today. As he says, “There isn’t all that much more to talk about…this isn’t hard. I’ve made it all a part of my everyday routine.”
The words a coach loves to hear!
He can do it on his own now - good job, Mike!
The past week 2 weeks have been interesting for Mike. With the launch of the UW Health Challenge on Feb 25 with these LARGE posters, students are asking Mike “Hey… aren’t you that guy in the poster?” It’s been kind of fun for Mike.
He’s seen concrete and specific results over the past 5 months, take a look at the table below...
Weight change 10 kgs (22 pounds)
Body fat % down 7 %
VO2 max from 38 to 52
Pant size smaller
Energy way up
Sleep way improved
Confidence Just ask him!
Comment “I have the body I always
wanted to have!”
Needless to say, the UW Food Services Health Challenge 2003-04 made a significant on Mike… a life changing experience. You will hear more on his impressions of the Challenge following our March 29 wrap-up meeting. Stay tuned!
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