February 22nd Healthy Lifestyle

February 22nd Healthy Lifestyle Presentations 

By Omor Khan and Andrew Nikitkov Public Speaking Period 9

Zhixing Chen

Zhixing Chen’s presentation on sleeping showed the class the best way to sleep in order to aid digestion.

In the human body, the stomach is on the left side, so when sleeping on your left side, you are naturally

in the correct position for your stomach. When on the right side, your stomach fluids are more likely to

move and cause heartburn. Sleeping on the left side also lowers rates of sleep apnea, and snoring. Also,

getting a good night's sleep is very important to prepare you for a speech and the rest of your day.

Visual aid link-

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1wwLVqTUJL4fGjm_d087pYiB2r93unNwkxsfw6ijJWy0/edit?usp=sharing

More Info link-

Agargun, Mehmet Yücel, Murat Boysan, and Lutfu Hanoglu.

"Sleeping position, dream emotions, and subjective sleep quality." Sleep and Hypnosis 6 (2004): 8-13.

(http://www.sleepandhypnosis.org/ing/Pdf/9cf6fb582430425193687f6ac8889038.pdf)

(From Zhixing Chen’s slides)

Ethan Tsvayg

Ethan Tsvayg’s presentation explained how exercise, especially regular exercise, is healthy both mentally and physically. Exercise can help people lose weight, and improve their self-esteem and confidence. Exercise will help you build confidence for presenting in front of people. Another aspect of health Ethan focused on was breathing, and using breathing techniques. This is similar to taking deep breaths before a speech to calm yourself before a speech. By controlling your breathing, you are able to control your heart rate and stress. Utilizing both exercise and breathing techniques will lead to a healthier lifestyle.

More Info link-

Morris, Tony, and Stefan Koehn. "Self-confidence in sport and exercise." (2004).

(https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2004-20916-024)

 (From Ethan Tsvayg’s visual aid)

Michelle Sun

Michelle Sun’s presentation on the use of electronics and bad posture targets many students. In the

modern age of technology, almost everyone strains both their eyes and back with their lifestyle. Using

electronic devices, especially when very close to the eyes, can irritate the eyes. Bad posture is a common

problem that can cause issues in the future. You also need proper posture while giving speeches to give

off a sense of confidence. Due to the reality that most people work sitting in front of a desk, posture can

deteriorate when one isn’t focusing on it. Being prolonged in these conditions can permanently affect thespine. In order to avoid this, try to create an ergonomic environment, and not sit for too long. 

 

Visual aid link-

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1vNEhLfiJFfGaQPOxr6H7gxXN4Q8b13fW2UFMxc71L88/edit?usp=sharing

 

More Info link-

Bridger, Robert. Introduction to ergonomics. Crc Press, 2008.

(https://books.google.com/bookshl=en&lr=&id=Jr4FIRQnVqQC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=ergonomicsots=

Qpy99jvd1X&sig=wsjNcjrv2sdiWbtbKO7YITDImrw#v=onepage&q=ergonomics&f=false)

(From Michelle Sun’s slides)

Vicky Chen

Vicky Chen’s presentation on procrastination. Procrastination is delaying something that needs to be done

and doing something else instead. 95% of students procrastinate occasionally and a study from South

Korea shows that about 60% of the variations in the final grade were due to procrastinating. People who

procrastinate are shown to be more stressed and take more trips to the doctor than non-procrastinating

students. Procrastinating is the worse enemy for anyone who wants to publicly speak. The fundaments of

speech are built upon the practice you put in rehearsing your speech. Without that practice, you're destined

to fail in giving your speech without putting the proper time in for practice. You can use the temporal

motivation theory to fight off the urge to procrastinate. It states you should work for time increments, and

increase hours gradually. You can separate difficult things into easier tasks to make the workload more

manageable.

 

Visual aid link-

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1vNEhLfiJFfGaQPOxr6H7gxXN4Q8b13fW2UFMxc71L88/edit?usp=sharing

 

More Info link-

Tice, Dianne M., and Roy F. Baumeister. "Longitudinal study of procrastination, performance, stress, and

health: The costs and benefits of dawdling." Psychological science 8.6 (1997): 454-458.

(https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-9280.1997.tb00460.x)

 (From Vicky Chen’s slides)

Reflections

Omor Khan- 

February 22nd was the first day we had to present our speeches to call for a change to a healthier lifestyle.

Zhixing Chen was the first to present on what sleep position is best for you. I learned that sleeping on

your left side has the most benefits ranging from reduced snoring and sleep apnea. That’s because it’s

more anatomically correct to sleep on the side where your stomach is located. Ethan Tsvayg’s talked

about how exercise is influential for improving your mental health. It can help increase self-esteem,

cognitive function, reduce anxiety and help deal with depression. I connect to what he’s saying because

exercising was an outlet I can always rely on during the quarantine. Michelle Sun’s speech was a call to

action for the ergonomics of your work area. As the quarantine increased all of our screen times,

following an ergonomic environment will help deal with the eye strain of sitting in front of a screen all

day. Lastly, Vicky Chen’s presentation was on procrastination and how it can affect student’s academic

and health. She suggested the temporal motivation theory that I can use to deal with my procrastination

tendencies. I can work in time increments and separate demanding assignments into smaller ones. I can

gradually increase the time the more I progress with this method. The speeches each have their unique

idea but follow the common cause of helping us get healthier. 

Andrew Nikitkov-

Each presentation showed the audience a different way to make a change for a better lifestyle. The first presentation, by Zhixing Chen, discussed the best position to sleep in. While it might be comfortable sleeping on your back or stomach, the best way to sleep is on your left side. This is because anatomically, your stomach and its fluids will be contained and can reduce snoring. Sleeping on your left side is proven to be beneficial in comparison to other sleeping positions. A change for a healthier lifestyle that can be implemented is to confidently speak in public. When speaking, it is important to be loud enough to hear and give off confidence. When nervous before a speech, it is important to take deep breaths and focus on the task. The second presentation was done by Ethan Tsvayg, who discussed the importance and benefits of exercise. Exercise has a wide range of benefits, from confidence and self esteem to physical health. Exercise can have a positive effect by reducing anxiety, and stress. Apart from mental benefits, exercise keeps the body in shape and keeps the heart-healthy. The third presentation by Michelle Sun discussed the ergonomics of the work area. Ergonomics in any area is important, but within the house and workspace, ergonomics can have a strong impact long term. Michelle explained the use of a standing desk, and how it can reduce strain on the eyes and stress on the back. While a standing desk is a major change, making the change early could mean a more efficient and healthy workspace. Finally, Vicky Chen presented procrastination and the many negative effects. Procrastination can cause problems such as assignments building up, and decreased motivation to finish them. Different techniques such as taking mediated breaks and separating assignments can lessen workloads. These techniques can be used to make work less daunting and lower procrastination. Each of these presentations gave a great insight on how to change daily habits for the better.