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My Experience with 30 Day Shred-Level 2
Some of these classes are available on Comcast On Demand. I watched a couple of them earlier and today I decided to try one out just for fun. Up front, I am not a big fan of workout classes. Since most of them are designed by, and for, women, I don't find the movements particularly enjoyable. I am not that flexible and…
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My day at the Fitness Expo
Every year there are several major conventions aimed at health club owners and the industry in general. The one held in Chicago is called Club Industry and was held last week. In addition to 3 days of workshops and seminars, there is also a large exhibit hall where equipment and services vendors exhibit their newest…
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Finally broke the 200 barrier!
Today was the day--and a surprise at that. 199.8! I had actually planned on getting to 190 by my birthday (Monday), but I suffered some setbacks in August that slowed my progress way down. First, I fell outside while running and injured my hip which led to a hamstring injury that curtailed my running (and which persists to…
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Always check the label first <hitting myself on the head>
Of all people, I should know better, but I fell for it again. The old "it SEEMS healthy, therefore it must be" assumption. And you know what they say about when you ASSUME..... Took a trip to visit my stepson at college. It's a 400 mile drive, 1/3 on 2 lane roads and lots of construction, so it's a 7-hr trip. Last time we…
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Rebuttal to TIME anti-exercise article (from real expert)
This is a brief rebuttal, (it is on the ACE website, after all) but it is from a long-time, well-established fitness experts and it does have some references, which is always nice. Cedric Bryant PhD was I believe one of the founders of Stairmaster (I know he ran the company for a long time when it was a separate entity)…
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Interesting reaction to compliments
My wife and I belong to a wine tasting group on our neighborhood. We meet once a month from September through June--we take off July and August because so many people are traveling, etc. So last night was our first tasting after our summer "vacation". I received a lot of compliments over my new appearance, among them being…
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More HRM/Calorie data
This is another in a series of my intermittent observations about the accuracy of HRM calorie counts. One of these days, I would like to put together a more substantial review article, but for now I am still collecting my own personal data and am just posting random bits of information that I find interesting. Again, my…
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Limitations of HRM Calorie Counts
If you have paid any attention to my posts, I fully admit that I have a certain amount of skepticism about the calorie readings you get from a HRM. It's not that I don't think they are valuable tools (I have often stated that I never work out w/out one and have done so for many years), or that the Polar owncal feature is…
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Cardio intervals--a great way to improve your fitness
I am sure many people know this already, but it never hurts to repeat. We all know that, with exercise training, the body does what we ask it to do--if you do the same thing all the time, your body will establish a "balance" at that level. To continue improving, you need to challenge yourself on a regular periodic basis.…
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Review of Body Fat/Activity Assessment Tools
I came across this review when I was researching some other topics and I thought some people might find it useful. It reviews different methods for assessing body fat and calorie expenditure during activity. As you will see, it's hard to say there is one "gold standard" that is both universally accurate and readily…
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Do you have any workout "motivation" clothes?
The heck with science for today--it's the start of a holiday weekend. Let's talk fashion. Do you have any particular workout clothes that you save for "serious" efforts? For extra motivation? For days when you have your "game face" on? Many (many, many) years ago, during my more serious days, I used to have a particular…
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Need a new wardrobe!!
Like many people who are overweight, for the last few years I have hated shopping for clothes. Nothing looked good and everything reminded me of how I had let myself go. I fell into the whole trap: Voluminous shirts untucked, slip on shoes, "hidden" elastic waist band pants. What was worse is that I was in sales in a…
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Facts about aerobic exercise and calories
I just saw another infomercial this morning about how you can "burn up to 800 calories in 30 minutes" (unlikely, unless you set yourself on fire), and felt compelled to post some actual facts concerning calories and exercise. Many of you may already know this, but it never hurts to restate the basics. I am going to address…
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3 Month Report: 38 pounds lost
I started on 3/18/09 at 256 pounds, having just been diagnosed w/Type II diabetes, on blood pressure and high cholesterol meds and having hit a new all-time weight high after being out of work for 2 months. Well, I am still out of work, but that DR visit finally motivated me to take (back) charge of my life. I took over…
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Are you getting support from your MD? Spouse and family?
I had an incident last week that got me thinking about this. First of all, let me say that my wife and to some extent my stepkids have been incredibly supportive of my efforts. When I was diagnosed w/type II diabetes, meal preparation changed drastically. They have gone along or, when they didn't like what I cooked, have…
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Wow--did I fall off the wagon!!
I started this journey last march when I went to the doctor and lab results came back positive for type 2 diabetes. It wasn't a big surprise, since I knew my lifestyle had sucked for the past 8 years and I had gained a good 60 lbs and was getting to the age when those things start to creep up on you. In addition, I had…
