Introduction

Healthy eating is a significant issue that affects the prevalence of obesity. There is a need to focus on meaningful ways of improving eating habits to fulfill healthy lifestyle. This discussion aims at providing an in-depth evaluation of eating habits that are related to obesity and how changes in eating behaviors will improve the health of a person. Specifically, the discussion includes the relevance of the eating behavior concerning PERMA assessment, specific goals and implementation plan, interpretation of behavior change, and self-reflection. The particular eating behavior for this case is late night eating and consumption of junk foods.

The relevance of Eating Behavior

Eating junk foods is a significant problem affecting many people. The types and amount of food to be consumed has critical importance when dealing with various health issues. Junk foods, consumed in between main meals, have been relevant in producing lots of energy when burnt down through respiration. However, the body converts most of the junk foods into fats and then store them. Excessive storage of fats leads to obesity and also increased risks of various diseases such as heart attacks and failures. Therefore, consumption of junk foods is a significant health problem. Also, the increase in these foods into body systems may increase the chances of having obesity.

Apart from junk foods, there is also a concern about the issues related to consuming late night meals. Eating foods after taking supper is a habit associated mainly by sedentary individuals, as they engage in taking snacks after meals, especially when they get entertained in various practices such as watching movies or sports. One important aspect to note is that the body is at rest or is about to rest when a person goes to sleep. The consumption of such foods, therefore, means that an individual adds weight. Part of the meals can be broken down into energy just for the basic metabolic rate since there are no other activities that require energy. On such occasions, most people that consume foods at night tend to have problems related to obesity and other related medical issues.

While addressing these two dietary problems, an individual has to take an interest in the poor eating behaviors and how to mitigate these problems. However, changing dietary habits may seem a challenge due to getting used to these characters. Therefore, an individual has to take proper timing to ensure that he or she makes changes in a series of small steps.

The motivation for the Behavior: PERMA Assessment

In planning to stop engaging in unhealthy behaviors, a person taking late night snacks and other junk foods have to focus on making small changes that will improve healthy habits. However, there are specific concepts that should be taken into consideration to motivate the individual to continue the path of reducing excessive consumption of foods. These motivational steps can be achieved through flourishing aspects – or PERMA – as described in the following arguments.

The first critical concept is a positive emotion, which majorly deals with an individual pursuing a change of particular habit to gain pleasure. When it comes to stopping the habit of taking junk foods and eating late at night, one has to develop the desire and reason for doing so. The concept of pleasure can be achieved by establishing clear ways that will motivate the individual to have a feeling of overcoming the challenges. The reality is that without owning up the decision to change this habit, then the individual will continue losing focus on what exactly ought to be done. In this case, the individual – set to have a 7-week plan to stop excessive consumption of junks – has to get the pleasure of continuing with the program to complete the period of transformation. Specifically, motivation can be related to focus on shedding off excessive weight or fats gained.

Another concept is engagement, or being absorbed with the process of reducing consumption of junks. Engagement process can only be achieved when the person has the motivation to not only continue with the activities that lead to change in behavior but also be directly involved in the process. For instance, in terms of engagement, one has to accept to make small achievements no matter the cost but fight till the end. Changing eating habits is never easy, although there is a need to consider aspects that will motivate to stop eating junk foods. In this situation, the late night snacks consumed are about 200 calories. However, an individual can focus on just reducing the number of calories from junk foods by 40 calories per week.

The third aspect is on relationships, mainly the interactions between the individual and other close associates such as relatives, neighbors and also work networks. These individuals are highly relevant when it comes to a person’s engagements. With proper discussion with a few close friends and relatives, one can overcome the consumption of excessive junk foods.

Another aspect is on meaning, which reflects on engaging in activities or goals that are bigger than a personal objective. Humans have the capacity to engaging in impossible actions when they think about the bigger picture. For instance, in this case, the aim may be staying healthy through the reduction of fats, but other aspects should be put into consideration. Specifically, the individual has to focus on other health risks associated with excessive snacks, such as cancer, diabetes and heart diseases. This aspect should motivate the individual to appreciate the need for changing the behavior.

The last aspect of flourishing is the issue of accomplishments, which concentrate on the performance of the individual. The individual has to focus on being at his or her best in ensuring that there is motivation to reach the limits. For instance, an individual may engage in reducing late night consumption of junks by feeling that he or she will have substantial gains when engaging in this change. This change will increase the concentration to achieve higher levels of performance.

Specific Goals and Plan

The particular goal of the project is to lose 30 pounds before graduation. Losing 30 pounds is not a joke, and therefore I have to focus on establishing ways of making small steps towards achieving the bigger goal. I plan to lose 30 pounds within seven weeks. In typical cases, I eat an average of 310 calories of junk foods – both during the day and late at night – and I am therefore focused on reducing this to 100 calories.

Implementation of Plan

I target to achieve a loss of 30 pounds by periodical reduction of junk foods and also late night bites. However, due to my sedentary lifestyle, I am also planning to do some exercises. The expected period of the project is seven weeks.

During the first week, I will reduce the consumption of junk foods by 30 calories. This point means I eat almost 70 percent of what I usually eat. Some of the normal junks I take include pizza, pasta, candy, and cereals. Therefore, I would minimize consumption by about 30 percent. The same case applies to the second, the third up to the 7^th week. This aspect is in terms of consuming 30 calories less as compared to the previous week. In total, I will stop consuming 210 calories of the total 310 calories daily. Besides, I will also reduce the late night eating by engaging in reading novels and journals. Apart from that, I will also run for 2 hours a week – spread across the week – for the seven weeks to shed weight.

Interpretation and Analysis of Results

From the implementation process, it is relevant to focus on the results. I expect that I will lose 30 calories for the seven weeks, meaning I should lose at least 4.3 pounds per week. This is a big target considering the type of foods I have to stop eating weekly. Shedding 30 pounds, therefore, requires small wins, and this can be achieved by increasing exercises especially aerobics and also reducing the late night eateries. The reduction of high consumption of sugary foods helps in shedding more calories, hence losing the target number of pounds.

Self-reflection on the behavior change

In reflecting on the behavior and behavior change processes, it is evident that medical practices should be encouraged for those struggling with obesity and diabetes. I have learned that cutting down vast chunks of pounds cannot be done within a single day or through one huge step. There is a need to make a series of small wins to ensure that there is progressive shedding of weight. In weight reduction, self-image is an important aspect, albeit one should also concentrate on the bigger image of improving health. Behavior modification can, therefore, be successful when a person utilizes the flourishing concepts in

Connection to Flourishing

The targets and plans are connected to flourishing through the establishment of PERMA concept. First, on positive emotion, I already have a great feeling of losing weight not to live healthily but also gain the desired body shape. Based on engagement, I am focused on reducing at least 4 pounds a week by also engaging in exercises, an aspect that I did not initially think about. For relationships, I plan to reduce the number of times I go to restaurants or shops where junk foods are sold. For meaning, I not only look forward to a great shape but also believe that I avoid diseases such as diabetes. Finally, accomplishments will revolve around struggling to be at my best both physically and emotionally by cutting weight.

Future Plans

My target is not just about shedding 30 pounds within the specified period. Other aspects should be considered. For instance, dropping off 30 pounds and going back to my sedentary lifestyle would mean I continue adding weight. Therefore, my focus is first to lose 30 pounds and then deal with the slow gaining of momentum in maintaining exercises. Probably a 20 minutes exercise would do each day and also focus on eating fewer junks. This long term goal is to keep the body shape and even live a healthy life away from risks such as diabetes and obesity.

Conclusion

From the assessments, shedding weight is an important goal when focusing on healthy living. However, the process of losing weight requires motivation for stopping a particular eating behavior. In this case, I targeted the reduction of eating junk foods and also late night eateries. With such a plan, there is a need to set realistic targets and also utilize the flourishing concepts to make small gains with regards to reducing late night eating and even junk foods. This is a well-thought plan, and there is a probability that I will manage the whole 7-week process.

References

Greenway, F. L. (2015). Physiological adaptations to weight loss and factors favoring weight regain. International journal of obesity, 39(8), 1188

Sanchez, C., Killgore, W., Gehrels, J., Alfonso-Miller, P., & Grandner, M. (2018). 0127 Nighttime Snacking: Prevalence And Associations With Poor Sleep, Health, Obesity, And Diabetes. Sleep, 41, A49.