Hrm/531 Week 1 Assignment

Part One
To accomplish anything in life, there needs to be a planned path on how to get there. This especially applies to gaining muscle. The goal I set was to gain 0.20 pounds of muscle per week for a total of 0.40 pounds of muscle from March 11 through March 25, 2016. Focusing on this goal will enable me to do the following: drop body fat while reshaping my body composition; increase physical strength and endurance; and feel better mentally and emotionally.
A woman looking to gain muscle naturally can gain anywhere from 0.12-0.25 pounds of muscle per week. I am hoping to gain at the least 0.15 pounds of muscle per week. In order to have a baseline, I calculated my body fat, lean muscle mass, and fat mass using a body composition measurement system (Exercise Prescription, 2016). My baseline on March 11, 2016 was the following: Body fat of 19.73; lean muscle mass of 134.86; and Fat mass of 33.15.
Physically, emotionally, and mentally, I am ready for action in terms of achieving my goal. I have a healthy medical background and I am experienced in health and fitness. I have been a certified fitness professional for fifteen years and enjoy being active and challenging myself in fitness and other life arenas. Being an abled body, healthy woman, who has two children and has

been a gestational carrier three times motivates me stay healthy and strong. I feel privileged to have the body I do and I intend to treat it well throughout my life. On a scale from 0-10, 10 being the highest level of motivation and 0 being the lowest, right now I am at a 10.
In the past when setting fitness goals, it has been useful to engage in a friendly competition with another person, post motivational pictures of fitness models around the house, and keep a journal of my workouts and feelings during the process. My goals are based off personal strengths and the strengths and resources in my environment. For example, the gym is only ten minutes from my home and my children are old enough to stay home by themselves when it's time for my workouts. This environmental and social strength will make it more possible to achieve my goal.
At this point the only barrier that could side track me would be time. Getting workouts in while attending school, providing for my family, and working can be difficult. I have done a good job at developing my time management skills especially in the last couple of years, so I do not for see it preventing me from achieving my goal. I do not feel stressed about this potential barrier because I have been successful at fitting workouts into my schedule for the past 3 and half years while attending school.
In order to reach a goal, there needs to be objectives and tasks. A long term goal is usually only met when smaller goals have been put into place as a guide for accomplishing the bigger goal. The goal and objectives I chose are primarily related to me but involve social systems around me like family and school (Johnson & Yanca, 2013). Family and school play a huge role in the achievement of my goal, objectives, and tasks.
Objective one is as follows: I will get in five days of weight training at Planet Fitness, for the duration of 45 minutes each day, focusing on one to two different muscle groups in each session for a total of two weeks. The following tasks are designed to help me achieve this objective: I will research new muscle gaining exercises for the upper and lower body by March 7, 2016; I will look at my school and work schedule to see what times during the day will be available for workouts from March 11- 25, 2016; and I will develop a five day split weight lifting routine by March 10, 2016.
Objective two is as follows: To encourage muscle growth, I will follow a nutrition plan with a higher intake of protein and carbohydrates consisting of 2,600 calories on the five days of weight training. The following tasks are designed to help me achieve this objective: Calculate how many macronutrients (protein, carbs, and fat) I need to gain 0.20 pounds of muscle per week by March 7, 2016; design a nutrition plan with 50% carbohydrates, 35% protein, and 20% fat by March 9, 2016; and write a grocery list and go grocery shopping by March 9, 2016. These objectives and tasks will guide me down the path to achieving my goal of gaining 0.40 pounds of muscle in two weeks.
Part Two
The plan of action used to achieve my goal worked great. I accomplished my goal of gaining 0.40 pounds of muscle from March 11 to March 25, 2016. My end body composition results were as follows: Body fat of 19.33; lean muscle mass of 135.26; and Fat mass of 32.95. To achieve my goal I had a clear understanding from the start of what it was going to take to reach it.
One of the biggest factors of success in accomplishing my goal was my motivation to transform my physique through health and fitness. I enjoy challenging my body by pushing it past the comfort zone that is the only true way to make change. Other factors that helped in the achievement of my goal were the friendly two week competition I had with my fiancée, support from my family, and the daily updates my friends would ask me for. All these assisted in making it possible for the achievement of my goal.
The change process was not at all times easy but proved to be a positive experience. Pushing myself out of my comfort zone six days a week physically, emotionally, and mentally was hard at times. There were days all I could think about was school work and times where it would have been easier walking on the treadmill instead of follow my weight training program. Moving past these barriers was possible because during the planning process I had already determined how I would overcome them. For example, when I could not focus on my work out because of school assignments, I told myself that a healthier body and mind will produce better achievement in school. Planning ahead for barriers made over coming them possible and helped me in achieving my goal.
The objectives of a specific weight training program and nutrition plan were essential in reaching my goal and they provided structure in accomplishing my goal. They were challenging yet realistic and specified target dates to hold me accountable (Horejsi & Sheafor, 2003). The tasks guided me step by step in the right direction to accomplish the objectives. For example, knowing the amount of macros to eat allowed me to intake the correct nutrients to gain muscle. The objectives and tasks worked well because they addressed the where, when, what, and how gaining 0.40 pounds of muscle would happen. (Horejsi & Sheafor, 2003). I correlate goal setting to losing weight, being specific regular about calories equals dropping weight. Doing the same with planning your goals equals achieving them.
Conclusion
Overall, the goal setting experience was positive and insightful.

I set goals for myself all the time in many different aspects of my life. This experience was different because I don’t always take the time to write out goals. Taking this extra step allows you to plan for success despite barriers that may arise due to your environment or social systems. As a social worker I will be better equipped to empower others in goal setting and planning after going through the planning myself. Being aware of how social systems and the environment affect goal setting will allow me the ability to view client’s situations through an ecological lens, while empowering them in the goal setting and planning

process.