Food Logs for Weight Loss

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I'm trying to get back to fighting weight. No, I don't think I'm "too fat" or anything like that, but I could definitely use some more muscle and could do without a few pounds. I've started a fitness routine (7:30 a.m. gym trips three days a week, some other physical activity on the weekend.)

When it comes to diet, I like to think I make good choices when I eat--I love fruits and vegetables, I don't eat meat, and I'm conscious of my portion sizes. (My awesome lunch box helps.) I do have a problem with sweets, though--if they're in the house I tend to nibble on them all day.

The tool I used for my previous weight loss is called Calorie Count, and I've started using it again. Calorie Count is a Web site from about.com that lets you record all the foods you eat, log the exercise you do, and keep track of your weight loss. Their database has pretty much every food you can think of. You'd be amazed at what's in what you're eating.

It's also full of tools like message boards, recipes and a blog with entries from doctors, nutritionists and fellow dieters. I like this article about putting your diet back on track when you slip up. And when they feature real people's stories it's really motivating.

If you're not a fan of Calorie Count, Lifehacker has a list of five other online weight loss tools you may want to check out.

Keeping a food log helps me to be conscious of what I eat--because now I write everything down. No more pinches of cookie dough from the fridge (and if I do, well, it goes in my log.)

What about everyone else? Have you ever tried to lose weight? What tools did you use to keep your diet in check? (Twitter, maybe?)

Lunch Box Love Affair

Lunch. My favorite meal of the day! Actually, I like all meals, but lunch is awesome because it always comes when I'm hungriest.

This weekend my parents drove up to visit me from Orlando and brought my grandparents with them. The family drove up to celebrate my birthday a little early--my grandparents are from Missouri and wanted to celebrate with me on their vacation. Here is the awesome birthday gift I got:


It's called a Laptop Lunch Box, and I totally love it. It lets me pack nice little portions of food, is small and easy to wash, and it's good for the environment! (No more little plastic sandwich bags.) Plus it is so easy to use, comes in a ton of cute color combinations, and fits easily in a bag or backpack.

Modeled after Japanese Bento boxes, the lunch box contains five smaller removable compartments that fit securely. There's even a spot for utensils that nestle nicely together--they "spoon," if you will. The first day I used it I got a ton of compliments on it from people in my class.

If you eat lunch away from home often I highly suggest you get one of these, or some other reusable lunch sack. It'll save you money in the long run and it's good for the planet! Also, you don't have to worry about finding a healthy choice or an appropriate portion size, like you do when dining out. Check out this article on how to save money and make packing your lunch fun!

Fitness DVD Review: Element Pilates Weight Loss for Beginners

A couple things drew me to the Element Pilates Weight Loss for Beginners DVD: 1. I had always wanted to try Pilates but didn't have time to make it to a class at the gym; 2. The words "beginner" and "weight loss" were both in the title, and 3. It was super cheap on Amazon.com, with new and used copies starting at just over $7.

What's cool about Pilates is that it combines the flexibility of yoga with resistance moves using your own body weight. For a good workout all you need is a mat and some room to stretch.

Brooke Siler, the DVD's instructor, is very clear with directions. She keeps things serious, and when you see her on screen she's actually not talking to you. Instructions are given in her voice-over instead, which I really like. (I always wondered how those fitness instructors can explain so much while contorting their bodies into crazy stances.) The music is a nice compliment to the exercises, conspicuous but not distracting. And the scenery is absolutely beautiful--she's outdoors overlooking the water.

The 50-minute workout consists of two parts: the cardio section (about 15 minutes) and the mat workout (about 35 minutes.) The DVD gives you the option of playing either part separately or playing it all the way through. This is a nice feature for when you're pressed for time.

The label "cardio" for the first section is a little misleading. This isn't kickboxing, you won't break a heavy sweat, but it definitely gets the blood pumping and is a great warmup for the rest of the routine. It's a lot of lunges, bends, squats and something called "sweeps," which gave me a great lower-back stretch. I've done just this beginning part when I'm incredibly strapped for time and just need a quick pick-me-up in the morning.

The mat workout segment is what it's really all about. There are plenty of core exercises that give your abs a real burn. As the workout progresses it gets more difficult, but that's good and it gives you something to work toward so you don't get bored with the moves.

Overall I'm very pleased with this DVD. The workout is simple enough for an absolute beginner, but fun and challenging enough with the possibility of tweaking the moves for extra work. I would definitely recommend this video to anyone who wants a Pilates workout from the comfort of their own home.

Before and After

Me, at the British Museum in London, June 2009. The "after." Sorry, no before--I'm not sharing that much...

In the past few years I've gone through a ton of fitness phases. There were my less-than-stellar high school years (one big stint on the couch), and freshman year of college (the occasional gym trip... VERY occasional.) I was not a fit person. Not at all.

I don't tend to get super-personal on this blog, but this story is relevant so here I go.

I was always a chubby kid-- nothing too bad, though. I've been taller than everyone my age since...well, since I was born, so a few extra pounds weren't awful. But by my junior year of high school I was carrying 225lbs on my 5'11" frame. I wasn't obese, but I was definitely overweight and definitely unhappy with myself.

Senior year of high school I flirted with diet and exercise and dropped about thirty pounds, but gained half of it back when I stopped and slipped into my old habits.

Then the spring of my freshman year of college, something changed. I don't know what snapped inside of me, but when I try to put it into words it goes like this: "I am unhappy with my body. I can either a) learn to live with it, or b) change it."

So I changed it.

I stopped thinking about eating as something to do when I was bored and started thinking about it as a way to fuel myself to do better, think clearer, be healthier. I ate slowly, learned how to distinguish between "satisfied" and "too full," learned when I was actually hungry, all of those things some people are born knowing. I learned about my body and about myself. I realized that I control what goes in my mouth and how it makes me move, how it makes me feel.

And those things are essential.

From the spring of freshman year (2008) to the winter of sophomore year I lost 50lbs. Fifty. Five-zero. In the summer I hit the gym five times a week, and by the time school rolled around I was going for at least three days.

And not that I put a lot of my self-worth into my jeans size, but finding extra-tall size 14 pants is tricky business. So when I found myself no longer in 14's but rather in size 6's I could hardly believe it.

But I was so proud. And I still am. I see photos of myself from younger years and can hardly remember how it felt. The figure I have now feels like the one I've had all along--I'm so comfortable with myself. And being just shy of six feet tall means that when I tell people I used to be on the not-so-slim end of the spectrum they say, "Wow. You just look like one of those people who was born tall and lanky."

My whole life is different. I'm a card-carrying vegetarian, I love the gym, I do yoga and pilates when I can, I love to cook, I never drink soda and hardly touch coffee. (I do, however, still love ice cream.)

I know that when people are in their 20's they feel like they'll be young and fit forever. I know that I'm not always going to look the same, but I feel like making those changes so early on will make it that much easier to lead a long, healthy life.

I'm not writing this to brag. Maybe to pat myself on the back, sure, but not to brag. Because I don't believe that becoming the person you were meant to be requires boasting. You just... are. You exist in a world that seems like it's always been there. You see the same person in the mirror that you see in your head.

It's a beautiful feeling.

What about you, readers in the blogosphere? Have you ever had a life-changing series of events with your health or weight? Tell me about them.

Truth in Magazines

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I've been a long-time reader of all kinds of magazines.

As a little kid, I read Highlights. As an elementary schooler, it was American Girl magazine. My middle- and high school years brought Seventeen, Teen Vogue and the now-deceased but much-loved Jane.

College (i.e. now) equals Time, Self, Glamour, Shape, the odd design magazine from Borders, things I borrow from friends and whatever my mom has lying around on my weekends at home. I love magazines and I attribute my long-standing interest in writing, journalism and design to these publications.

So it was a thrill when the Men's Health fitness director and author of the Big Book of Exercises, Adam Campbell, video-chatted with my Health and Fitness writing class yesterday.

Campbell was a well-spoken, well-informed writer and editor, and he brought up some interesting points. Namely that there is a LOT of bad health writing out there.

Whether misleading, misrepresented or just incorrect, poor science journalism can be hazardous to the public health (no pun intended.) It's our job as journalists to go back to the original scientific studies, learn and understand the material well and present it in a form that readers will comprehend.

I personally read voraciously, and a lot of what I read health- and fitness-wise sticks with me. It alarms me a bit to think that all of the health tidbits I've stashed in my brain over the years may not be as accurate as I want to believe.

But Campbell said something that really rang true: when asked what health ideas he subscribes to, Campbell answered that he used common sense and moderation in all things. Sugar and fat aren't bad for you if you consume them in small doses and balance them with other health choices.

It's nice to know that one of the brains behind a leading fitness magazine really has his priorities in place--producing strong, accurate journalism rooted in science. Definitely something to look up to.

Tiny Packages of Nothing

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Alright. That's it. I am throwing in the towel. The hundred-calorie craze has gotten out of hand.

I read today that Coke is debuting their 90-calorie "mini can" this winter. Yes, you heard right: Coke is jumping on the snack-sized bandwagon. The 7.5-oz cans will get a limited debut in December before spreading to the rest of the country by March 2010. They also plan to expand the new size to their other soft drinks--Sprite, Fanta Orange, Cherry Coca-Cola and Barq's Root Beer.

You'd think that decreasing your portion sizes would be the perfect way to lose weight. And, in essence, you'd be right. It's a no-nonsense (rather, common sense) way to drop pounds: eat less, move more. Can I say it? Duh.

So how are successful junkfood retailers supposed to keep up with America's insane need to diet? They package the same not-so-great in smaller packages so you can "diet" while still eating their product.

While I applaud Coke (and their marketing team) for giving consumers another form of purchase, I cannot get behind the hundred-calorie craze. Hundred-calorie packs are nice in theory. They're tiny packages of goodies that force you to control your portion sizes so you don't over-indulge.

But honestly, who always stops at one? I can tell you that those little bags never fill me up the way a real cookie can. Or the way a piece of fruit can! Also, I gave up soda as my new years resolution in 2007 as a kick-start to weight loss. I don't miss it at all and not drinking it saves me a ton of money.

The biggest problem I have with these snack packs is that they're eaten in place of other hundred-calorie foods: namely, fresh fruits and veg, a handful of nuts, a small yogurt. Yes, I understand that these snacks are convenient, but if you're going to waste money buying tiny packages of things you probably can spend the money on a fresh food and a plastic container instead to make your own.

(Plus, have you ever had the hundred-calorie packs of Oreos? Three words come to mind: tiny chocolate cardboard.)

The way I see it, 90 calories of sugar water is still just sugar water. Healthy foods always win over junk.

Motivation

For when you need a little boost.

P.S. He does it so much better than Kurt Russell did.

Can you play "Chopsticks" on it?

I do have to say, this would make taking the stairs SO much more appealing. And it looks so fun!

*Results Not Typical

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I know whenever I see a diet or fitness ad on TV to look for the fine print--those ten lines in five-point font that say, "Results not typical. Patients lost an average of 5 lbs over three months with diet and exercise."

But that's how those diet and fitness ads work--they show a beautiful, fit man or woman who had outrageous success with the product and present them as the norm, while the fine print tells us otherwise.

Well, those ads are about to become a thing of the past.

According to the new Federal Trade Commission guidelines:

"...advertisements that feature a consumer and convey his or her experience with a product or service as typical when that is not the case will be required to clearly disclose the results that consumers can generally expect. In contrast to the 1980 version of the Guides – which allowed advertisers to describe unusual results in a testimonial as long as they included a disclaimer such as “results not typical” – the revised Guides no longer contain this safe harbor." [words in bold by me.]

Basically, no more tanned-and-toned beauties touting products that made them "lose four dress sizes in four weeks," or whatever. Companies will now have to include what are "typical" results that consumers may see when using a product; hopefully this will lead to more realistic weight loss goals.

The new guidelines also state that celebrities and bloggers will be required to reveal any compensation they may be receiving for making a product endorsement.

The celebrity thing was probably a long time coming, since it's hard to turn on the TV and not see a glamorous celeb endorsing some new fitness craze, but the situation with blogger endorsements is relatively new.

Bloggers who run their own product review sites or fitness sites have been receiving samples, freebies, even money to give a good review. It can turn into a pretty sticky situation, since a lot of these blogs are in a friendly, word-of-mouth style and are easy to trust. Both professional and non-professional bloggers will face fines if they don't reveal any freebies or kickbacks they may be receiving.

For anyone who is interested, I read a really good/funny beauty blog called Apocalypstick Now and the blogger makes it clear that she only reviews stuff she buys herself.

Hopefully this new FTC regulation will make the whole advertising industry more transparent which, in the case of the health and fitness industry, is totally vital. I look forward to seeing this plan put into action (it starts Dec. 1) and I'm eager to see what will come of it.

Climbing my Way to Fitness

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This weekend was exciting. I've been waiting to go to rock climbing at the Gainesville Rock Gym for, oh, EVER, and no one could ever go with me. Well, Saturday, no one could go with me, either, but I went on my own for a cool workout that definitely left me sore.

Because I didn't have a partner (which is required in typical rock climbing), I tried bouldering, a low-height, freestyle type of rock climbing without a harness/rope that requires strength, flexibility and a lot of mental work. You slip on your super-stylish rock climbing shoes and follow a trail of grips marked with different colored tape. The courses never go more than seven feet or so off the ground; the challenge is finding the best way to move your body from start to finish.

Rock climbing is a great workout; it works your strength, endurance and flexibility.

At GRG, they number the courses from level 0 on upward. I started with a level 0.. and couldn't even finish. It was HARD. I could swing from one grip to the next, but after a few feet I would lose my footing or fall down. The challenge was part of the fun, though; after half an hour of practicing I could get about halfway up one of the taller ones.

One problem I did have, though, was with my hands; they were really raw after the climb and I had a couple blisters. I should have taped my fingers and used chalk while I climbed.

It was a great workout! My arms felt crazy sore after I was done. (I stopped climbing after an hour or so; it was tiring!) It was really fun and I plan on going again soon with a partner so I can try vertical climbing.

What's the coolest thing you've tried for fitness lately?