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Action Research Report

EDUC 526
My Quest for Fitness
Mary McInnes

Azusa Pacific University

Abstract

One of my goals has always been to be physically fit and healthy. Due to the

demands of my schedule as a student in the Masters and Credentialing program, this

has been difficult to achieve. My exercise has only been done as I have time and

never on a regular basis. As a result, I have chosen frequency of workout routines

each week as my action research project. This project will focus on my goal to

perform cardiovascular exercise a minimum of four times a week and weight circuit

training twice a week. My goal is to increase my energy level, strength, and

endurance. This project will be done over a four-week period and the repetitions,
level, and number of sets will be tracked each week during this time. Exercise is

beneficial in many ways. It strengthens the heart muscle , increases lung capacity,
improves the circulatory system, and helps prevent obesity.

Introduction

Exercise is one of those things that is a necessary evil. Many hate to do it , but

it has so many benefits that all adults should perform some type of consistent

exercise each week. Physical activity lowers risk of obesity, osteoarthritis, diabetes
and heart disease. (Web MD article) All of my life, I have liked to exercise in some
form or another. I enjoyed Physical Education classes while I grew up and swam
frequently during the Spring and Summer months at home. As a teenager, I took

many tennis lessons and later played in tournaments with the United States Tennis
Association. I still enjoy tennis, but do not play as often as I would like to.

Energy, good health and disease prevention are priorities in my life due to

my family health history. My maternal grandfather passed away from a heart attack
when I was very young and I do not want to have the same malady happen to me.
Also, my mother passed away from cancer when I was a teenager so I want to be

proactive to prevent disease as much as possible. Recently, I have not had the time
or energy to work out often enough due to the demands of this Masters program.

Exercising on a regular basis at least four times per week along with weight bearing
exercises is a good solution in order to accomplish this goal and this is why I chose
this topic for my action research project. My goal is to exercise doing some type of
cardio workout at least four times per week along with weight bearing exercises
two times per week.

Implementation

I began this project by exercising and using the weight training area at my

gym at least four times per week. Thankfully, there are several types of machines to
choose from to prevent boredom of my routine. There is one type of elliptical

machine where you do not use your arms and another that you move handles

forward and backward motion as you pedal. Also, there are stationary bikes to use
for a good cardiovascular workout. For the cardiovascular exercise, I chose to use
either an elliptical machine or the stationary bike where I would workout for a

minimum of thirty minutes per session. In addition to the cardio routines, I did

weight bearing exercises twice a week. There are arm and leg weight machines to
target specific muscle groups. Over a four-week period, I tracked repetitions,

number of sets, and amount of weight used each week for each of these exercises.

My desire is to continue this routine after this project is completed to improve my

health long term.

Results

For the first week of exercise I started out slow as I only performed two

cardiovasular exercise sessions rather than four during that week. I did meet the

goal I had of two times per week performing weight circuit training during the first

week. The reason why I did not complete the goal for cardiovascular exercises

during this week because of a busy schedule filled with many errands and family
demands.

During week two of my exercise routine, I had fewer distractions and finally

met my goal for exercising four times per week doing cardiovascular exercise. I also

met my goal for doing weight circuit training two times per week. I found that I had
more time to perform my routine at the gym this week. I was surprised how easy it

was to implement when this was part of a planned project for my class. It helped to

have a planned schedule, and goals to meet, and the accountability of presenting my
goals to the class.

In week three, I was feeling stronger and noticed an increase in my energy

level. Therefore, I increased the pounds of weights I was exercising with in the

weight training circuit for three of the machines I was using. I still maintained my

frequency goal of two times per week for the weight training circuit. Also this week,
my husband joined me at the gym and we worked out together, and I exceeded my
goal of four times per week of cardiovascular exercise. In fact, I increased the
number of cardiovascular workouts to five this week. I found that it really helps

working out with him and I enjoy my time at the gym a lot more than doing this
alone. This increased my motivation to workout more as well.

During week four, I again exceeded my goal of four times per week of

cardiovascular exercise to five times this week. I also maintained my original goal of

two times per week of the weight circuit training. I continued to feel a higher energy
level overall, my body feels more tone, I have more muscle strength, I lost some

weight, and I notice that I like to eat healthier foods such as fruits and vegetables

while I am working out. My husband was also able to work out with me again this
week, which helped me exceed my goals. I noticed a significant difference when he is

with me as I am having more fun, and it feels a lot less like a chore or task I need to
complete.

I have always been aware of the benefits of exercise so I am not completely

surprised on some of the positive results I have received from this project. I was
surprised at what I learned about myself. I did not expect to have the amount of
energy that I had, and I realize that I need to schedule exercise more purposefully in

my regular routine each week. I did expect that I would lose some weight with the
increased amount of calories that I am burning off through exercise.

Below are two graphs I created to summarize the exercise data I gathered

over the four-week period. The first graph shows the number of times per week that

I exercised for cardiovascular and weight circuit training. The vertical axis
represents the number of times per week that I exercised. The horizontal axis shows
each week of my exercise project. The blue bar in the graph represents the
cardiovascular exercise performed each week, and the red bar represents the
weight circuit training.

The second graph gives more detail about the individual machines I used in

the weight training circuit. The vertical axis represents the weight in pounds that I
used for each machine. The horizontal axis represents each week of the four-week

training period. Each colored bar in the graph represents a different machine used,
and they are layered in order from the front to the back in a row. The sequence of
the machines in the colored bars corresponds to the colored key, which lists the
machines on the right side of the graph.

Exercise Frequency Graph

Times per Week

6
5
4
3

Cardio
Weights

2
1
0

Week1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Weight Lifting Graph

50
Weight / lbs

45

40

Bicep Curls

35

Tricep Curls

30

Lat Pulls

25

Shoulder Press

20

Leg Press

15

Leg Extension

10

Leg Curls
Chest Press
Week1

Week2

Week3

Week4

Conclusion

This has been a very valuable and successful research project for many

reasons. I met and exceeded some of my goals for exercise during this period. I

increased my energy level, my muscular strength, and discovered that working out
with my husband has given me more motivation to work out on a consistent basis.

Having a goal set and a mindset of being purposeful in scheduling my exercise every
week is vital to keeping up a consistent routine and exercising enough each week to
improve my health.

This project has inspired me to continue this routine now that my research is

completed. Doing this research project, I have realized and experience first hand the
several benefits that a regular exercise routine can give. I have enjoyed the

increased energy level, and need this as I apply for my credential and begin to work
as a teacher. Because of the demands of a teaching job, and the stress that can be

caused by having a large class of students every day, exercise can help me relieve

the stress and have a better attitude. It will also help me be more energetic and able
to give more of myself in the classroom. Exercise can also help prevent diseases
such as cardiovascular disease or cancer. It is worth the time invested to push

myself to exercise more frequently for my health and future career. Another aspect
that I have enjoyed with this project is applying the data into a graph as I have not

had a lot of experience doing this before this project. It is nice to see a clear concise
summary of all of the data, and being able to see the graph that reflects progress
that I have made throughout this project.