MTA Concentration 04
Public Health, Nutrition and Exercise Science
Learning Modules
Why I Built This Concentration
Diplomas
Final Project
Module 4.1
Global Health and Systems Thinking
Systems thinking was always an integral focus of this Masters portfolio and one of the most relatable ways I found of understanding it was to apply it to the subject of public health in a global context… COVID-19 and the unified global response to it is a perfect example of systems thinking in action.
Systems thinking often involves moving from observing events or data, to identifying patterns of behavior overtime, to surfacing the underlying structures that drive those events and patterns. By understanding and changing structures that are not serving us well (including our mental models and perceptions), we can expand the choices available to us and create more satisfying, long-term solutions to chronic problems.
Michael Goodman, thesystemsthinker.com
15 Courses
Courses
Global Health: An Interdisciplinary Overview Platform: Coursera Institution: University of Geneva Started: 06/03/2019 Finished: 11/03/2019
Global Health and Humanitarianism Platform: Coursera Institution: The University of Manchester Started: 08/09/2017 Finished: 11/03/2019
A History of Public Health in Post-War Britain Platform: Coursera Institution: London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Started: 09/07/2018 Finished: 10/07/2018
One Health: Connecting Humans, Animals and the Environment Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Basel Started: 18/05/2017 Finished: 11/03/2019
The Impact of Climate Change on Health Platform: FutureLean Institution: European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Started: 11/03/2019 Finished: 12/03/2019
Plagues, Pestilence and Pandemics: Are You Ready? Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Griffith University Started: 07/08/2018 Finished: 08/08/2018
COVID-19: Tackling the Novel Coronavirus Platform: FutureLearn Institutions: London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and UK Public Health Rapid Support Team Started: 22/04/2020 Finished: 23/04/2020
COVID-19: Diagnostics and Testing Platform: FutureLearn Institutions: London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine , FIND and African Society for Laboratory Medicine Started: 28/04/2020 Finished: 12/05/2020
COVID-19: Pandemics, Modelling, and Policy Platform: FutureLearn Institutions: The Open University Started: 28/04/2020 Finished: 12/05/2020
COVID-19 Critical Care: Understanding and Application Platform: FutureLearn Institutions: University of Edinburgh Started: Finished:
Managing COVID-19 in General Practice Platform: FutureLearn Institutions: St. George’s University Started: Finished:
Healthcare Research Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Coventry University Started: 13/02/2018 Finished: 21/02/2018
The Science of Medicines Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Monash University Started: 23/08/2018 Finished: 01/09/2018
Medical Humanity: Engaging Patients and Communities in Healthcare Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Taipei Medical University Started: 15/06/2018 Finished: 23/06/2018
Systems Thinking In Public Health Platform: Coursera Institution: Johns Hopkins University Started: 28/02/2019 Finished: 11/03/2019
1 Book
Book
Systems Thinking for Social Change: A Practical Guide to Solving Complex Problems, Avoiding Unintended Consequences, and Achieving Lasting Results Author: David Peter Stroh Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Published: 2015 Started: 05/02/2019 Finished: 19/03/2019
Module 4.2
Strengthening Healthcare Systems
Inspired by the New York Times Bestseller, The Survivors Club, I assembled this module to explore the secrets and science that can save your life in a variety of different contexts and to provide me with a toolkit of skills that I can call upon if a crisis arises.
7 Courses
Courses
Understanding and Strengthening Health Systems Platform: Coursera Institution: John Hopkins Univeristy Started: 11/03/2019 Finished: 11/04/2019
Future-proofing the Health Workforce Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Griffith University Started: Finished:
Artificial Intelligence for Healthcare: Opportunities and Challenges Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Tapei Medical University Started: Finished:
Healthy Futures: How Can We Create the Most Effective Healthcare System? Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Murdoch University Started: 01/06/2018 Finished: 08/06/2018
A Guide to Healthcare Innovation: Principles and Practice Platform: Coursera Institution: Imperial College London Started: Finished:
Healthcare Entrepreneurship: Taking Ideas to Market Platform: Coursera Institution: Imperial College London Started: Finished:
Healthcare Innovation: What Does Success Look Like and How to Achieve It? Platform: Coursera Institution: Imperial College London Started: Finished:
Module 4.3
Survival Intelligence: Prevention, First Aid and Longevity
Inspired by the New York Times Bestseller, The Survivors Club, I assembled this module to explore the secrets and science that can save your life in a variety of different contexts and to provide me with a toolkit of skills that I can call upon if a crisis arises.
5 Courses
Courses
Be Ready: Staying Safe During Disasters Platform: FutureLearn Institution: International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Started: 04/05/2019 Finished: 04/05/2019
Emergency Management: Risk, Incidents and Leadership Platform: Coursera Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Coventry University Started: 08/06/2018 Finished: 10/06/2018
First Aid for Adults Platform: Coursera Platform: FutureLearn Institution: International Federation of the Red Cross Started: 12/10/2017 Finished: 25/10/2017
First Aid for Babies and Children Platform: Coursera Platform: FutureLearn Institution: International Federation of the Red Cross Started: 31/08/2018 Finished: 31/08/2018
First Aid at Work Platform: Coursera Institution: St John Ambulance Started: 19/02/2014 Finished: 21/02/2014 Renewed: 26/05/2017
2 Books
Book
The Survivors Club: The Secrets and Science That Could Save Your Life Author: Ben Sherwood Publisher: Penguin Books Published: 2010 Started: 04/05/2019 Finished: 27/06/2019
First Aid Manual: The Authorised Manual of St John Ambulance, St Andrew's First Aid and the British Red Cross
Module 4.4
Psychology
Do you know yourself? Do you know how other peoples’ brains work? Are you sure about that? Okay. I didn’t and certainly not as much as I would have liked to. An understanding in psychology is an understanding in how to achieve full and flourishing self-actualisation; not just for yourself, but for the people and communities around you.
A view of human nature that ignores the power of emotions is sadly shortsighted. The very name Homo sapiens, the thinking species, is misleading in light of the new appreciation and vision of the place of emotions in our lives that science now offers. As we all know from experience, when it comes to shaping our decisions and our actions, feeling counts every bit as much - and often more - than thought. We have gone too far n emphasizing the value and import of the purely rational - of what IQ measures - in human life. Intelligence can come to nothing when the emotions hold sway.
Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence, p. 4
9 Courses
Courses
Introduction to Psychology Platform: Coursera Institution: Unviersity of Toronto Started: 10/10/2015 Finished: 09/12/2015
Foundations of Psychology Platform: Open2Study Institution: RMIT University Started: 05/01/2015 Finished: 03/02/2015
Understanding the Brain: The Neurobiology of Everyday Life Platform: Coursera Institution: University of Chicago Started: 23/02/2015 Finished: 11/03/2019
Good Brain, Bad Brain: Basics Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Birmingham Started: 27/01/2014 Finished: 13/02/2014
What is a Mind? Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Cape Town Started: 11/09/2015 Finished: 07/07/2016
Social Psychology Platform: Coursera Institution: Wesleyan University Started: 05/06/2015 Finished: 06/07/2016
The Science of Everyday Thinking Platform: edX Institution: The University of Queensland Started: 22/06/2016 Finished: 11/03/2019
Psychology and Mental Health: Beyond Nature and Nurture Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Liverpool Started: 29/03/2018 Finished: 11/05/2018
Literature and Mental Health: Reading for Wellbeing Platform: FutureLearn Institution: The University of Warwick Started: 13/05/2018 Finished: 01/09/2018
6 Books
Book
Freudian Slips: All the Psychology You Need to Know Author: Joel Levy Publisher: Michael O’Mara Books Limited Published: 2013 Started: 31/10/2013 Finished: 03/11/2013
Subliminal: The New Unconscious and What it Teaches Us Author: Leonard Mlodinow Publisher: Penguin Published: 2014 Started: 21/05/2014 Finished: 22/08/2014
The Female Brain Author: Louann Brizendine Publisher: Bantam Books Published: 2007 Started: 31/07/2015 Finished: 21/09/2015
The Male Brain Author: Louann Brizendine Publisher: Harmony Published: 2010 Started: 21/07/2019 Finished: 21/07/2019
Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything Author: Joshua Foer Publisher: Penguin Published: 2012 Started: 11/06/2018 Finished: 13/11/2018
Born Liars: Why We Can't Live Without Deceit Author: Ian Leslie Publisher: Quercus Published: 2012 Started: 15/12/2013 Finished: 11/03/2014
Module 4.5
Human Biology and Biomechanics
Understanding how you function as a living organism from the microscopic level up to your everyday movements makes you respect the intricacies and abilities of your physical frame and how you can go about maintaining and enhancing the full functionality of your body.
Does it then, need to be told how the body must be carried? Most certainly. It might be asked, Does a person not naturally carry his body as comfortably as he can? And the answer is that a person very seldom does. It may appear that this is being done, but the fact is not so. Some people naturally develop a habit of proper carriage, but they form a decided minority. Without guidance the chances are that a child will grow up into bad habits of holding himself together. His spine will be left to do things it was never intended to do. He will sit, stand and walk without proper reliance on muscles that were intended to make all his movements easier. He will collapse while sitting, rest on his heels, perhaps, while standing, and breath so perversely that any unusual exertion reveals the fact that only a limited series of muscles are brought into play, while the lungs are but half developed.
Edwin Checkley, A Natural Method of Physical Training, 1896:17-8
3 Courses
Courses
Chemistry: Building Blocks of the World Platform: Open2Study Institution: Swinburne University of Technology Started: 22/03/2018 Finished: 11/03/2019
The Human Body as a Machine Platform: Open2Study Institution: Flinders University Started: 23/03/2015 Finished: 10/10/2017
The Musculoskeletal System: The Science of Staying Active into Old Age Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Sheffield, University of Liverpool & Newcastle University Started: 21/09/2017 Finished: 11/10/2017
8 Books
Book
Anatomy and Physiology
The Body: A Guide for Occupants Author: Bill Bryson Publisher: Doubleday Books Published: 2019 Started: 14/05/2020 Finished: 31/05/2020
A Natural Method of Physical Training: Making Muscle and Reducing Flesh Without Dieting or Apparatus Author: Edwin Checkley Publisher: Forgotten Books Published: 2019 Started: 02/10/2019 Finished: 07/10/2019
The Natural Method: Georges Hébert's Practical Guide to Physical Education Author: Georges Hébert, Ed Thomas (Editor) & Philippe Til (Translator) Publisher: Kindle Published: 2014 Started: 02/10/2019 Finished: 02/10/2019
The Natural Method: Fundamental Exercises: Georges Hébert's Practical Guide to Physical Education (The Natural Method Book 2) Author: Georges Hébert & Philippe Til Publisher: Kindle Published: 2015 Started: 03/10/2019 Finished: 12/11/2019
The Natural Method: Functional Exercises: Georges Hébert's Practical Guide to Physical Education Author: Georges Hébert & Philippe Til Publisher: Kindle Published: 2015 Started: 12/11/2019 Finished: 15/11/2019
The Natural Method: Self-Defense Techniques Author: Georges Hébert & Philippe Til Publisher: Kindle Published: 2015 Started: 16/11/2019 Finished: 20/11/2019
The Natural Method Swimming Techniques Author: Georges Hébert & Philippe Til Publisher: Kindle Published: 2015 Started: 26/11/2019 Finished: 14/12/2019
Women's Physical Education: Shaping Muscle & Beauty (The Natural Method) Author: Georges Hébert & Philippe Til Publisher: Kindle Published: 2016 Started: 14/12/2019 Finished: 13/05/2020
Module 4.6
Holistic Wellbeing: Health, Nutrition and Subjective Flourishing
The state of being comfortable, healthy, or happy requires dealing with or treating the whole of something or someone and not just a part. Again, this is the systematic thinking of this Masters portfolio as a transdisciplinary whole, but it is also the approach I utilise in maintaining and enhancing my personal wellbeing and individual conception of happiness a.k.a. my subjective flourishing.
The man who is lazy and a glutton, who eats large meals and rolls in sleep, this fool is reborn to a life of death.
The Dhammapada, 2015:40
14 Courses
Courses
The Informed Health Consumer: Making Sense of Health Evidence Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Cardiff University Started: 30/06/2016 Finished: 04/07/2016
Exercise Prescription for the Prevention and Treatment of Disease Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Trinity College Dublin Started: 21/03/2018 Finished: 21/03/2018
eHealth: Combining Psychology, Technology and Health Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Twente Started: 26/10/2017 Finished: 20/08/2019
Food, Nutrition and Your Health Platform: Open2Study Institution: Open2Study Started: 03/01/2014 Finished: 06/02/2014
The Science of Nutrition Platform: FutureLearn Institution: The Open University Started: 09/01/2018 Finished: 11/01/2018
Nutrition and Wellbeing Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Aberdeen Started: 11/01/2018 Finished: 20/08/2019
Social Wellbeing Platform: FutureLearn Institution: The University of Edinburgh Started: 25/10/2017 Finished: 26/10/2017
Exploring Play: The Importance of Play in Everyday Life Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Sheffield Started: 29/09/2014 Finished: 12/01/2016
Medicine and the Arts: Humanising Healthcare Platform: FutureLearn Institution: University of Cape Town Started: 28/08/2017 Finished: 08/09/2017
The Science and Pratice of Yoga Platform: edX Institution: University of Texas Arlington Started: 25/10/2017 Finished: 20/08/2019
Yoga Reconsidered Platform: Embodied Philosophy Institution: Embodied Philosophy Started: 16/02/2018 Finished: 20/02/2018
Mindfulness for Wellbeing and Peak Performance Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Monash University Started: 15/09/2015 Finished: 22/06/2016
International Travel Preparation, Safety and Wellness Platform: Coursera Institution: John Hopkins Univeristy Started: 21/09/2018 Finished: 20/08/2019
COVID-19: Psychological Impact, Wellbeing and Mental Health Platform: FutureLearn Institution: Maudsley Learning & The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust Started: 09/06/2020 Finished: 25/07/2020
13 Books
Book
Get Some Headspace Author: Andy Puddicombe Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Published: 2011 Started: 12/01/2015 Finished: 17/02/2015
The Fast Diet: The Simple Secret of Intermittant Fasting Authors: Michael Mosley and Mimi Spencer Publisher: Short Books Ltd Published: 2013 Started: 07/02/2013 Finished: 09/02/2013
Fast Exercise: The Simple Secret of High Intensity Training Authors: Michael Mosley and Peta Bee Publisher: Short Books Ltd Published: 2013 Started: 07/09/2014 Finished: 13/09/2014
Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams Authors: Matthew Walker Publisher: Penguin Audio Published: 2017 Started: 22/01/2019 Finished: 24/02/2020
The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World's Healthiest People Authors: Dan Buettner Publisher: National Geographic Published: 2014 Started: 14/09/2019 Finished: 14/09/2019
The All-Day Energy Diet: Double Your Energy in 7 Days Author: Yuri Elkaim Publisher: Hay House Published: 2014 Started: 02/02/2015 Finished: 11/03/2015
The Every Other Day Diet Author: Krista Varady & Bill Gottlieb Publisher: Yellow Kite Published: 2014 Started: 02/10/2019 Finished: 13/10/2019
Eat the Yolks: Disocver Paleo, Fight Food Lines and Reclaim Your Health Author: Liz Wolfe Publisher: Victory Belt Publishing Published: 2014 Started: 22/11/2014 Finished: 01/08/2015
The Clever Guts Diet: How to Revolutionise Your Body from the Inside Out Author: Michael Mosley Publisher: Short Books Ltd Published: 2017 Started: 23/05/2017 Finished: 09/06/2017
The 8-week Blood Sugar Diet: Lose Weight Fast and Reprogramme your Body Author: Michael Mosley Publisher: Short Books Ltd Published: 2015 Started: 15/05/2017 Finished: 23/05/2017
In Praise of Walking: The new science of how we walk and why it’s good for us Author: Shane O’Mara Publisher: Bodley Head Published: 2019 Started: 10/09/2019 Finished: 14/10/2019
The Fast 800: How to Combine Rapid Weight Loss and Intermittent Fasting for Long-Term Health Author: Michael Mosley Publisher: Short Books Ltd Published: 2018 Started: 16/07/2018 Finished: 21/07/2018
How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease Author: Michael Greger Publisher: Flatiron Books Published: 2015 Started: 17/07/2018 Finished: 16/09/2019
Module 4.7
Biohacking Your Personal Training
The ability to take charge of your personal fitness and develop yourself accordingly is one of the most crucial ways in which you can ensure that you stay in good health. Furthermore, biohacking your health, a.k.a. using science-based tools and shortcuts for optimising your own biological potential, enables you to achieve a further optimised level of health.
Biohacking is just a fancy word for using science-based tools and shortcuts for optimising your own biological potential. This can enable you to maximise longevity and life span; optimise memory and cognitive function using little-known nootropic supplements and drugs; Optimise your own neurochemistry and underlying physiological health; prevent ad repair premature cellular ageing.
James Lee, The Biohacking Manifesto, 2014:1
3 Courses
Courses
Biohacking Your Brain's Health Platform: Coursera Institution: Emory University Started: 05/03/2019 Finished: 06/03/2019
Science of Exercise Platform: Coursera Institution: University of Colorado Border Started: 17/03/2018 Finished:
Managing Your Health: The Role of Physical Therapy and Exercise Platform: Coursera Institution: University of Toronto Started: 15/03/2019 Finished: 20/08/2019
13 Books
Book
The Biohacking Manifesto: The Scientific Blueprint for a Long, Healthy and Happy Life using Cutting Edge Anti-Aging and Neuroscience Based Hacks Author: James Lee Publisher: Stem Cell Media Published: 2015 Started: 04/10/2017 Finished: 04/01/2019
The First 20 Minutes: Exercise Better, Train Smarter and Live Longer Author: Gretchen Reynolds Publisher: Hudson Street Press Published: 2012 Started: 27/06/2016 Finished: 02/09/2016
Running with the Pack: Thoughts from the Road on Meaning and Mortality Author: Mark Rowlands Publisher: Granta Books Published: 2014 Started: 31/11/2018 Finished: 09/01/2019
Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen Author: Christopher McDougall Publisher: Knopf Published: 2009 Started: 20/07/2019 Finished: 19/07/2019
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running Author: Haruki Murakami Publisher: Vintage Published: 2009 Started: 09/08/2019 Finished: 09/08/2019
Footnotes: How Running Makes Us Human Author: Vybarr Cregan-Reid Publisher: Audible Studios on Brilliance Audio Published: 2016 Started: 08/09/2019 Finished: 09/09/2019
Natural Born Heroes: How a Daring Band of Misfits Mastered the Lost Secrets of Strength and Endurance Author: Christopher McDougall Publisher: Random House Audio Published: 2015 Started: 15/08/2019 Finished: 30/09/2019
Running with the Kenyans: Passion, Adventure, and the Secrets of the Fastest People on Earth Author: Adharanand Finn Publisher: Random House Audio Published: 2012 Started: 14/10/2019 Finished: 23/10/2019
Running with Sherman: The Donkey with the Heart of a Hero Author: Christopher McDougall Publisher: Random House Audio Published: 2019 Started: 14/11/2019 Finished: 22/11/2019
What Doesn't Kill Us: How Freezing Water, Extreme Altitude and Environmental Conditioning Will Renew Our Lost Evolutionary Strength Author: Scott Carney Publisher: Foxtopus, Inc Published: 2017 Started: 04/10/2019 Finished: 05/10/2019
Instinctive Fitness - A re-evolutionary approach to diet and exercise Author: Oliver Selway & Charlie Packer Publisher: Columbus Publishing Services Ltd Published: 2013 Started: 14/10/2019 Finished: 05/11/2019
Wild Strength Author: Ken Best Publisher: Kindle Published: 2013 Started: 06/11/2019 Finished: 03/12/2019
Bigger Leaner Stronger: Building the Ultimate Male Body Author: Michael Matthews Publisher: Oculus Publishers Published: 2015 Started: 16/06/2017 Finished: 20/06/2017
I could not afford not to
Health is the greatest wealth
Your health is the foundation on which everything else in your life flourishes or diminishes.
If your body or brain are not working properly, how can you live your life the way you want to live it?
Poor health is an obstacle and the poorer your health, the bigger the obstacles you will have to surmount. It makes absolutely no sense to neglect your health.
Poor health is just a waste of life.
This was the conclusion I came to in my late adolescence. After losing a considerable amount of weight and having been the most downtrodden I have ever felt – due to a bout of shingles followed swiftly by a nasty dental abscess – I made the decision to take charge of my health and to enhance my overall quality of living, both in the short-and long-term.
I eventually adopted my focus on health into this Masters portfolio and created this Public Health, Nutrition and Exercise concentration because the application of what I was learning in my health education was proving to be an ongoing and expansive process that was occupying a considerable amount of my time.
Additionally, I was becoming increasingly interested in the larger global concerns of public health.
This concentration and its final project is the summation of a 10-year process of biohacking my health.
And, you know what?
I’ve never felt better!
A Plan, A Journal and a 1-Year Challenge
Biohacking My Personal Fitness
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