RxTeach Health & Wellness through Exercise Science & Nutrition Scholarship

This scholarship is for currently enrolled undergraduate or graduate student(s) in the SIUE Department of Applied Health’s Exercise Science, Kinesiology or Nutrition programs who meet the following criteria.  (1) undergraduate or graduate student(s) in the SIUE Department of Applied Health’s Exercise Science, Kinesiology or Nutrition programs; (2) GPA => 3.5; (3) Review clinical scenario below and respond with an assessment of the patient’s overall health status in 500 words or less.  Assessment should include exercise and nutrition, recommendations that promote disease prevention.  Demonstration of disease management and nutritional recommendations is needed.

During a standard checkup, the following patient asks for advice on how to best prevent cardiovascular disease as she is worried about having a heart attack like her parents. She is new to exercise, but she is highly motivated to start. She has attempted to diet in the past with some success, but she always seems to gain back the weight she lost. Please provide a detailed summary of your recommendations regarding an exercise and nutrition plan that could be directly replicated/followed by this patient to optimize for longevity, assuming she has a college-level reading comprehension. Assume you have plenty of time to speak with the patient and that she will have access to you for follow-ups in the future.

Your patient is a 39 year old female with a family history of cardiovascular disease. Both of her parents died of heart attacks in their late 50s. She has no co-morbidities, and her BMI is 31.4 kg/m2 (height 5’3” and weight 177 lbs). She does not currently take any medications, and she doesn’t have any injuries. In the past, she tried elimination diets including vegetarian and keto, but she found them hard to stick with. She grew up playing softball and was on her varsity high school team. She used to do some light weight exercises including squats and deadlifts, but she quit because she was worried about “looking too bulky”. She was never a fan of cardio and hasn’t done any since high school.