Newsletter

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Name - Sean Bostick

Hometown - Tucson, Arizona

Major - Exercise Science

Which engagement track did you follow? Leadership

Comprehensive Fitness Plan

I did a Comprehensive Fitness Plan for my EDGE project. The plan was based off of information I have learned in different exercise science courses at SUU. The project was a hands on chance to use my knowledge to help an individual that is an older client who wants to reach their fitness goals and live a healthier and happier life. The plan included a baseline evaluation which included Body Fat % calculation, anthropometric measures, and assessments for muscular strength, endurance and flexibility. I also included a very basic dietary evaluation such as a 3 day diet report to estimate daily calorie intake and to make dietary recommendations if necessary for the essential nutrients carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. These evaluations were used to design a exercise plan for my client to improve on each area (except flexibility, which was not an issue).

I worked personally with the client to complete each workout session to facilitate their progress and ensure the clients safety and learned more about how to have variation in prescribed exercise intensity, frequency and volume for someone that is close to being part of the senior population (65yr). I will also be providing useful dietary and lifestyle choices to complement a workout regime designed for an individual who wishes to lose fat but gain lean mass and improve functional strength who is now 61.

Explain where the inspiration for your project came from.

My inspiration for my project wasn't profound or anything like that. I have begun to care more about health and longevity and after getting more invested in fitness several relatives had made inquiries. My mother had been asking if I could help her train to be as fit and healthy as she once was. This was an interesting proposition and I decided to help her and coach her to assist her on her journey of regaining some health and fitness.

Please discuss some of the challenges you encountered in completing your project.

Honestly I think the greatest challenge I faced was myself. Either from lack of knowledge and experience in training individuals but also a lack of confidence in myself because of my inexperience and subsequent lack of validation in my abilities. Several times throughout the program I thought " why am I having my client do these over something else or is it my poor coaching that is leading to my client not making progress on a technique". While overly negative, I learned these thoughts still have a place in training and that questioning our abilities and motives for doing something ultimately leads us either to discovering something that works better or is successful in providing us validation when our choices are meaningful. Patience was probably the most challenging component of the training program. I have a strong work ethic and usually my response to something not immediately working or not working well is that I somehow didn't do enough when in reality especially when working with others it is impossible to rush their performance and instead one must be diligent to correct things they notice but also patient enough to correct those same mistakes the very next day...over and over.

This was not something I was aware of before starting the exercise program but my client had what appeared to be sciatic pain which was being exacerbated by the poor technique she was using on barbell back squats. Because of this I had her switch to squats holding the load or weight in front of her to stay more vertical and to help train the torso to not lean forward during the squat movement. As a result of this change and coaching she no longer suffers any sciatic or lower back/leg pain from her current workouts.

Finally, in a paragraph of 5-7 sentences tell us how your project benefitted you.

I think this project benefitted me by both giving me some confidence working with others and with specifically older clients but it also helped me by enlightening me. After doing this with my trainee I realized that I didn't find it very rewarding to help someone achieve their goals. And on top of this it is more apparent than ever before how much I struggle with being patient with others.I feel I might need a change of direction and a less social career that does not require as much interaction directly with clients. I still hold fitness and strength as my main passions and interests but will need to evaluate how I plan to adapt to my difficulties working with people. There are several online coaches and coaching platforms that are successful and pursuing this outlet of training may be a more promising avenue than working in a commercial gym or directly with a sports team.

"Front squatting is way harder than back squats." - Sean Bostick

" Over head pressing is a whole new world compared to benchpress." - Sean Bostick

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