HLTH 640
SAFE DIETS FOR A HEALTHY METABOLISM
Demographic information of your chosen
subject. Demographics include age, height,
weight, and any other variables that you
would like to add. Do not provide names or
identify the subjects.
Chosen subject is 33-year-old female, now
weighing 148lbs at 5’3”. Lifestyle is mostly
sedentary aside from 4 ½ to 5 mile walks each
day. Currently serving as a highway patrol
cop with a high-speed work schedule. She is
married with two girls aged five and 9.
Previous Weight 175
What diet has your subject gone on before
AND why did they choose that diet? Have
them explain why they chose that diet.
16/8 Intermittent fasting (IF) – She chose this
diet due to her busy work schedule and felt
that it would give her the quickest and best
weight loss results since it was easy to follow.
Have them describe the diet to you. Her IF diet consisted of only eating during a
certain window throughout the day. She fasted
for 16 hours and only had an 8-hour eating
window from 12-7 every day. During her 8-
hour eating window, she consumed foods that
she enjoyed which were mostly unhealthy and
high in fat or kilocalorie content since this
diet didn’t specify which foods she should
avoid.
How did things go on that weight loss diet?
Did they have success? How do they define
success?
She was only able to maintain 16/8 IF for two
weeks during her first month due to work
obligations. After that, things continued on a
downward spiral due to changes in her work
schedule that led to longer hours in the office
or court. This ultimately caused her to
become prediabetic and gain 27lbs from
continuous overconsumption of snacks, sodas,
and high energy dense foods.
Have they gone on any other weight loss
diets? If so, what were they? What were their
experience(s) like?
She has had recent success with the Dietary
Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH)
diet losing over 30 lbs and reversing
prediabetes by managing her portion sizes,
limiting sweets/added sugars beverages, and
consuming three meals a day that included
vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fat-free/low-
fat dairy products, fish, poultry, beans,
nuts/seeds, and vegetable oils.
What resources does the subject use to get
their nutrition information?
She currently obtains nutrition information
from the Internet or diet trends on various
social media platforms.
Page 1 of 5
HLTH 640
Did the diet recommend regular exercise?
Have them describe. If yes, do they still
exercise?
Regular exercise was recommended for both
IF and DASH diet.
During 16/8 IF, regular exercise was
recommended to help maintain weight loss
and build muscle, so she walked on 4 ½ to 5
miles a day on average since she doesn’t go to
the gym often.
During DASH, 30 minutes of physical
activity for five days was recommended to
reduce the risk of becoming obese or
developing diabetes, so she now walks 1 to 2
miles a day every morning before work.
Did the subject take vitamins or supplements?
Why or why not? If he/she took supplements,
how much did he/she spend a month?
She doesn’t take any vitamins or supplements
because she doesn’t like taking medication
often and prefers the holistic route.
If the subject were to learn more about
nutrition and weight loss, what specifically
would he/she like to learn about or what
would be helpful to him/her?
(You are not to address or provide answers to
their concerns at this time, simply identify
their questions and areas of interest.)
Currently, she is hoping to find which foods
and exercises are best to maintain her weight
loss with a busy lifestyle.
What concerns or questions does the subject
have about diet or health in general, if any?
(You are not to address or provide answers to
their concerns at this time, simply list their
concerns.)
She states that she concerns about
maintaining her weight loss as she is afraid
that she will begin overconsuming unhealthy
foods again when she is stressed or no longer
motivated to continue with regular exercise
due to work-life imbalances.
Feel free to ask any other questions you feel
will help you better understand your subject
on this matter.
N/A
Perceived Barriers
During the 16/8 Intermittent Fasting (IF), subject experienced a lot of acute behavioral
and physiological barriers that hindered her progress with this diet due to several factors such as
difficulty with managing hunger sensations1, mood, attention, fatigue, and work-life balance etc.,
Also, due to her lack of knowledge with nutrition and fitness, she often resulted to the Internet or
Page 2 of 5
HLTH 640
social media to learn about the latest diet trend which is how pursuing this diet came about. Not
validating nutritional sources from the Internet and social media is another barrier I saw that kept
hindered subject from obtaining her weight loss goal. Furthermore, subject wasn’t aware of the
dynamic changes our body goes through during a food-deprived/fasted state1 as our metabolism
slows down as protein is oxidized and broken down to produce energy2.
During the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, subject didn’t experience
quite as many barriers as she did with the 16/8 IF diet. In learning from her mistakes with the IF
diet, subject was able to successfully find what worked for her with the DASH diet and stay the
course. A barrier that I feel the subject may experience down the line with the DASH diet that
may reverse the successful results is emotional eating when stressed or finding the willpower to
stay active during a busy work week.
Health Approach
During 16/8 IF, subject didn’t choose a healthy approach as fasting can leave to negative
health effects when done for the wrong reasons such as developing an unhealthy relationship
with food, significant decreased metabolic rates, and lack of adherence due to prolonged periods
of hunger etc2. Although adherence to IF has been shown to effectively decrease energy intake
resulting in weightloss1, this approach isn’t sustainable in the long run as cutting back too
drastically with kilocalories often is to blame for continuous weight loss decline3.
Now on the other hand, subject did choose a healthy approach with the DASH diet as it is not
only beneficial to those with heart problems and hypertension but also individuals who are
prediabetic which subject was. This easy-to-follow diet included rich fruits, vegetables,
nuts/seeds, low-fat dairy products, fish, lean poultry2 and whole grains while limiting sodium,
Page 3 of 5
HLTH 640
saturated/trans fats, sweets, added sugars, total fat, and cholesterol2 which was much needed for
subject who struggled with overconsumption of high energy dense foods. Furthermore, the
DASH diet scored perfectly across all categories highlighting that it is not only easy to adhere to
but also a sustainable lifestyle as it offers various nutritional means, realistic weight loss, and
improved heart health. Subject and immediate family don’t possess the knowledge for science-
based behaviors around change and habits so that would my suggestion to subject with
navigating maintenance of weight loss.
Public Nutritionist Role
A public health nutritionist plays a significant role in working with the public to improve
healthy habits versus working individually with each person. This individual would be able to
provide my subject the tools and resources to not only help maintain her weight loss but also
refer her to a registered dietician/nutritionist should she need specific nutrition recommendations.
The public health nutritionist would also teach my subject areas of improvement when it comes
validating or fact-checking online sources as all advice is not good advice.
Page 4 of 5
HLTH 640
References
1. Dote-Montero M, Sanchez-Delgado G, Ravussin E. Effects of intermittent fasting on
cardiometabolic health: An energy metabolism perspective. Nutrients. 2022;14(3):489.
https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-
journals/effects-intermittent-fasting-on-cardiometabolic/docview/2627824470/se-2. doi:
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14030489.
2. Kebles CA, Hemric M. Omega-Z Diet for Weight Loss: Master Your Diet and Nutrition
Understanding; 2021.
3. Blake JS, Munoz KD, Volpe S. Nutrition: From Science to You. 4th ed. NY, NY. Pearson;
2019.
Page 5 of 5
Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)
