HEALTH PROMOTION: WEIGHT CONTROL AND EXERCISE

A. Weight Control
1. Appetite and digestion
  a. The digestive system
  b. The role of the brain
    (1) Hypothalamus
    (2) The role of hormones
2. Weight maintenance
  a. The simple formula: calories in vs. calories out
  b. The complexities
    (1) Types of food: fat, carbohydrates and proteins
    (2) Basal metabolism
  c. Homeostasis
3. Starvation and overeating
  a. Experimental studies
    (1) Keys’s and Sims’s studies
    (2) Psychological effects
    (3) The declining curve phenomenon
  b. Obesity and health
    (1) Measuring obesity: weight and body mass index
    (2) Changing rates of obesity
    (3) Obesity itself as a risk factor
    (4) Other risk factors: distribution, the “yo-yo” effect, thinness
  c. The setpoint model
    (1) The theory
    (2) What determines a person’s setpoint?
    (3) Evidence and arguments for and against
  d. Positive incentives
    (1) The theory
    (2) Multiple reinforcers
    (3) Variety
  e. Restraint
    (1) What is dietary restraint?
    (2) How may it contribute to overeating and obesity?
  f. Environmental influences
    (1) Eating out
    (2) Fast foods and snack foods
4. Losing weight
  a. Statistics
  b. Dieting
    (1) Method
    (2) Degree of restriction
  c. Behavior modification
  d. Exercise
  e. Drastic measures
  f. The relapse problem
5. Eating disorders
  a. Anorexia nervosa
    (1) Clinical characteristics
    (2) Risk factors
    (3) Treatment
  b. Bulimia nervosa
    (1) Clinical characteristics
    (2) Risk factors
    (3) Treatment

B. Exercise
1. Types of exercise
  a. Muscles
  b. Heart and lungs
2. Why exercise?
  a. Appearance
  b. Fitness
    (1) Strength and flexibility
    (2) Stamina
  c. Weight control
  (1) Burning calories
  (2) Increasing metabolism
  (3) Appetite reduction
3. The health benefits
  a. Physical
    (1) Cardiovascular
    (2) Cancer
    (3) Loss of bone density
    (4) Diabetes
    (5) Pain
  b. Psychological
    (1) Depression
    (2) Anxiety and stress
    (3) Self-esteem
4. Risks
  a. Exercise “addiction”
  b. Injuries
  c. Sudden death
5. What is a good exercise plan?
  a. Amount, type, frequency
  b. Initial implementation
  c. Adherence and non-adherence
    (1) Who drops out?
    (2) How can maintenance be enhanced?

Copyright ©1998 Beverly J. Volicer and Steven F. Tello, UMass Lowell.  You may freely edit these pages  for use in a non-profit, educational setting.  Please include this copyright notice on all pages.