Journey2Fitness

Nutritionists, Meal Planners, Weight Control Programs and Needing Help

I'm the type of person who hates to admit she ever needs help with anything. A legend in my own mind. Beholden to nothing and nobody.

Paradoxically, or perhaps as a result, I have a deep need for community - creating, participating, organizing and keeping them in touch. Business community, so I host free coworking and brownbag lunches in Firecat Studio every month. Save-the-world community, so I'm co-organizing a TEDx San Antonio event to bring big thinkers and big ideas together. And I've been a Weight Watchers member for more than 10 years, with mixed success.

Seeking Help Controlling and Organizing My Eating

It's not that I have no clue what foods I could or should be eating to improve my health, body-fat ratio, self-esteem and fitness. Weight Watchers, South Beach, Andrew Weil, Dr. Oz, Oprah - they all give good advice. More fresh fruits and vegetables. Cut out or drastically reduce white bread. Whole grains. Limit alcohol and sugar. And so on.

What I need help with is making a plan and sticking to it. Making myself DO the right thing. Teaching me to delay gratification, overcome temptation, and focus on the goal, rather than the tempting thing in front of me, whether it's a Bellini or a blini.

So I'm seeking help from a nutritionist who offices with my favorite Complementary Medicine doc. I'm going to lay out my difficulties on the table and see if she can help me. Topics I plan to cover:

• I tried going pescatarian (vegetarian + fish) but end up eating too much bread and cheese. Need meal ideas and an evaluation of how helpful/important this is from a nutrition standpoint. I may still opt to do it for sustainability/environmental reasons.
• Weight Watchers: Why I can't stick to it, the fact that I believe it's sound nutrition for the most part, especially the "Core Plan" or the "Simply Filling" Technique.
• Geneen Roth's emotional eating guidelines and the boomerang effect of deprivation and dieting. I believe Geneen, need help and some sensible boundaries.
• The need for meal planning and easy-and-quick-to-prepare foods, restaurant and takeout options and boundaries. Greg and Matt (husband and 12-yo-son) have to be factored in.
• Ideas for making any plan STICK and be sustainable.

Whatever helps me in this area will also help my career and personal lives, as I also need better plans and boundaries around time commitments. I say "yes" to way too many requests and opportunities, so book myself unreasonably tight.

I picked up the Food, Inc. DVD from the Leon Valley public library last night, and we're going to watch it tonight. Pursuing any way to fan the flames of sane, sustainable eating at this point.

I've been in that sweet, positive-feedback loop of exercise leading to better mood and centering, leading to sensible self-care, boundaries and nutrition, leading to higher energy, leading to --- repeat and synergize. I want back to that space, and I'm READY.

So - maybe what I need is therapy or counseling. I'm open to that. I'll report back findings, and thanks as always for your support and ideas. Keep 'em coming!

Wii Fit and Computer-aided Fitness

I read a very interesting post on James Cooley's Healthcare blog today (with thanks to the Statesman's Omar Gallegos for pointing it out in the Twitterverse :) that spurred me to capture some of my Wii Fit game ideas.

I design business websites and webapps. We web designers watch the gaming industry closely for emerging computer-human interaction trends, and we learn a lot from watching the emergence and adoption curves of new input devices like Wii, Wii Fit, DDR pads, Guitar Hero and so forth.

At our open coworking sessions at Firecat Studio in San Antonio, we've brought out various gaming devices (and beverages) and invited creatives to imagine new applications. Some ideas that are cooking in my mind:

• Walking/jogging trails with time travel unlockables. For example, earn enough points through time or effort to unlock fitness environments like Ancient Egypt/Saqqara, Ancient Rome, Louis XIV Versailles, Beijing's Imperial City, Canyon de Chelly or Aztlan in their respective heydays.

• Walking/jogging trails with lovely, immersive destinations like the Brazilian rainforest, Jamaica's beaches, the Himalayas (look, Ma, no oxygen!).

• Rowing, swimming, and other low-impact variants, taking a cue from Endless Ocean. Add the time travel to that -- start as Galley slave, but with enough pulls, you get to visit the Minoan palace at Knossos or ancient Babylon or Easter Island to see them chiseling stone faces.

• Wii Fit + Jazzercise (or DDR + Jazzercise). Unlock better and better music (please!). Different genres of dance and music, too. Compete with others online, get support and cheers from the community.

• Wii Fit + Weight Watchers. Include an online link to the weight tracking, journaling, recipes, and the already cohesive online WW community.
  

If any of you dear readers want to team up and design and build these things, let me know. If you are building such an app and need a tester or review, let me know -- drop me a line at susan(at)firecatstudio.com

Next item to purchase: a DDR pad and game. Any suggestions as to which I'd like best?

In Japan they Measure Waistlines Punitively!

Wow. SA Tech blogger L. A. Lorek reported in Twitter today this tidbit from the NYTimes about the Japanese government measuring people's waistlines and imposing fees on the fat due to elevated healthcare costs.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/world/asia/13fat.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

Depending on WHERE they measure the "waistline" - I might could pass the women's test, just barely. But if they put it down at hipline where the jeans meet, no way.

I wonder if we had such a thing here, would I finally rein in my overeating? If every biscuit or doughnut looked like an increase in fees... I don't know.

Any of you experimented with a fine-based structure, or a weight loss financial rewards structure? I've heard of parents sponsoring weight loss with cash and such. Does that work?

I'm having a Wii Fit

I saw San Antonio Express-News reporter Laura Lorek tweeting about the upcoming release of the Wii Fit. I bought a Wii for our studio, to explore the new interaction technologies, and have had great fun imagining the possibilities. So far, Guitar Hero III (Legends of Rock) is my favorite Wii game.

So I went and bought an $89 Wii Fit the day they came out. Despite lackluster U.S. reviews, I ended up being lucky to score one on opening day at our local GameStop.

Do you know about the Wii Fit? The Nintendo Wii is of course the game system that includes remotes with relative motion detection and a sensor bar to watch the user's movements. The Wii Fit is - basically a scale, a pretty, white, digital scale with no readout. But it does a whole lot more. If you haven't looked into this, check out Nintendo's videos on their site or on YouTube.

The "balance board" has four sections, so it can measure relative pressure from side to side and back to front. It infers things like your posture from the way you distribute your weight across it. I can't BELIEVE I'm buying a "game" with a scale!

Setup was a breeze, easy, flawless. My 10-year-old son was keenly interested in the thing too, and I was grateful to see that it was well designed enough to shield my shocking weight from him (hovering unfortunately above TNTMNBN). It let me password-protect the info as well.

I didn't enjoy being told I'm "obese," but it was no surprise. It gives me something to work for, and it's telling me the truth. I can handle the truth. It's mine. My weight, my body. My results. I think this thing is helping clear through some of my denial already.

I've been a Weight Watchers member off and on, mostly on, since 1998. That's 10 years. In that time, I have discovered that I like to eat more than I want to be thin, but attending meetings and periodically recommitting myself to the WW system helps me keep my weight from ballooning up. I've tried going off Weight Watchers a few times, my weight begins to creep up, and I go back. It stabilizes.

After 10 years of the weight-loss religion of "only weigh yourself weekly" - buying what amounts to a scale and weighing every day - seemed like a wicked thing to do, a dangerous thing. What if I begin to obsess about my weight?

But since I already enjoy Jazzercise, step aerobics, yoga and other activities the Wii Fit promised, I decided to give it a try.

Wii Fit Early Results

So far, I like it a lot. I like that I get a choice of trainers - a man and a woman. I like that they're generic and plainish - I can spend a lot of energy resenting a trainer if I'm given the least encouragement; these are nicely semihuman, so while I like them fine, I feel free to interrupt them when they're talking, like you would an android.

I think I can anticipate some of the complaints about Wii Fit. It doesn't move fast enough through the menus, it forces interaction with the trainer. I think I'm going to not look up reviews, but relax and give this a try.

Jazzercise Bag: Getting Credit for Commitment

I just had a disappointing experience in Jazzercise, and I'm going to try to make sense of it by writing about it.

Our little Jazzercise center here in San Antonio ran a promotion where they encouraged - nearly forced - us independent exercisers to team up with others in class to encourage one another to come more often. They offered a little cloth beach bag as a prize; as a team, we were to accrue 36 total classes. They awarded extra points for us getting together outside of class. Now, the center's staff did warn "supplies are limited" - but set expectations that lots of people would win bags.

Marketing Genius Idea

As a marketer, I loved the idea. Working toward a tangible, measurable goal is easier than working "to maintain health" or "lose weight." The goal itself begins to exert pull. I've used journaling in the past for this, set interim goals, awarded myself gold stars and so on. It really does help. Working toward better times in running, or swimming, or longer distances for biking, have proven their worth as tangible goals.

In this case, the trick worked, the team-wins-cloth-bags incentive got me going. The dynamic was turbocharged by my strong desire not to let my two team members down. Gwen and Raquel attended more regularly than I did, and I was determined to contribute to the team's success

Sharon has remarked before about the special magic of Curves tracking her frequency of visits. The mere fact that someone has a record, someone is paying attention - makes her want to up her number. We'd brainstormed about the perfect fitness center where you set a goal for attendance, and the club itself displays a welcome message and shows you where you are in relation to your own goals. That's definitely "be careful what you wish for" territory - would you stop coming if you're afraid to see what the message board will show you?

As an exercise in facing the simple truth about one's dedication to fitness goals, though - it rivals Weight Watchers accountability.

And here was an incentive idea that not only helped me track and note my own attendance, but harnessed peer pressure to move us all forward, making the Jazzercise place itself a center of positive change and reward. All good branding!

But Then It Falls Apart

The Jazzercise center staff have plenty to do without running ad hoc marketing events, I suppose. The organization on the contest left something to be desired, and it had the earmarks of what I call a PPO (poorly planned ordeal) - but I trusted them to come through if we did.

On Friday, I attended a class where somebody was awarded a bag. That renewed my resolve, and I made extra effort to step up my attendance, I had the pleasure of initialing our final "winning" class in the grid of 36 needed to win. The setup of the contest was so vague, there was no one to notify - but I figured we'd get our award next visit.

On Monday, I was pleased to report to Raquel that our grid was complete, and we should be getting our bags. During the course of the class, the instructor was tasked to tell us that they were out of bags, that promo was over - but to stay tuned for the NEXT promo contest where we could win a "matching" beach towel.

I was *so* disappointed! I felt baited and switched. Now I don't really need another cloth bag. And I can console myself with the benefits of reduced stress, increased fitness, and two new acquaintances. I'll bet I wasn't the only one who was chagrined.

Lessons Learned

That great idea turned into a very NEGATIVE branding experience. What I need to take away is, ntentions be damned, customers only judge you on the final result. No contest would have been better than this one. Execution is a VITAL part of a good branding experience.

What could they have done? Give us a pen, a star, shout out the team members who met the goal. Something. Anything. Recognition. Without that - the message is: Gotcha! You fell for it. We don't really care about you and your little buddies, how often you come, as long as you don't cut off the automatic debit.

And am I in a great headspace for hearing about their NEXT promotional contest? Don't think so.

Jazzercise

I rejoined Jazzercise in order to get my body moving. I got an immediate payoff in terms of stress reduction and mood elevation - so that's worth the effort and expense, right there. I hoped for a corresponding drop on the scale, but so far I'm holding steady just under TNTMNBN.

Here are some of the reasons Jazzercise works for me:

• I have always loved dancing, and Jazzercise is derivative of dance in a way that aerobics classes aren't.
• I enjoy learning the moves, and mastering them to the degree I'm able.
• As an extravert who offices at home, I enjoy the interaction with other people. It's like having 2 dozen exercise buddies who never let me down.
• There's a center very near my house, with a nice, broad section of classes. Logistically, the fact that they hold a 9 a.m. class 6 days a week works really well - I drop Matt off at school, go home and handle my morning email, then head over there.
• The music, enjoyed by more than just me. I have an iPod nano now, and can augment my walks with tunes - but I find I prefer the quiet, nature sounds if I'm outside. The iPod makes me feel like I'm shutting the world out, and on an outdoor walk, I'm there to let the natural world in, you know?
• The cheerleader, dance team, performance aspect of it. Is that a bad thing to admit? In my late 40s, I don't have many outlets for my performance side. There's only a select few willing to endure my karaoke.
• Distracting use of resistaBalls, hand weights, and other gadgets. The choreography and my focus on keeping up makes the time speed by, and using gadgets adds some variety.
• Happens indoors, rain or shine, sleet or ozone action day.
• Mix of aerobic dance and resistance training. Anybody else out there read those "Strong Women Stay Young" books explaining the need for women to have muscles and strength training? My mom gave me the book and some weights years ago - and I still believe.

Keys for keeping it going

The quality of the teachers/leaders is key, just as they are in Weight Watchers. I prefer a certain blend of snarky good humor and happy motivational chatter. Getting into a schedule or rhythm is also key for me, going at 9 a.m. every day. Having a goal of 3 times a week or more. I used to journal regularly (sigh) and gave myself a colorful star on my spiral's cover for each day I exercised - should wake that practice up again.

Another key is to pick something that's FUN.

What's your exercise of choice? Got tips for keeping up with it?

Inflatable Kayaks - First Seawater Trial

Over Easter weekend, we took the inflatable kayaks out to Port Aransas and puttered around in a protected area. They performed well!

My nephew brought his hardshell, and yes, I had to take a slightly envious turn in it. He has a much nicer paddle, and gave me pointers about paddling without undue fatigue (dominant hand doesn't move, less-dominant hand you twist the paddle slightly when grabbing water). His hard shell performed better than the inflatables - but not enough better to sway me into dealing with hardshell bulkiness, storage and transport requirements - or their cost.

We had a very stiff wind to contend with, but we were able to glide around happily and come in against the wind with no problems.

Inflating onsite with the rechargeable inflator was again, a snap. Highly recommend the Coleman inflator. I ended up having to buy a second one - we'd left ours in San Antonio on this trip. I gave the extra to my brother to inflate the dinghy for his sailboat.

I did find a few nits to pick with Coleman on their inflatable kayak designs:

• Our 2-seater already has a slow leak somewhere in its #8 chamber. I need to make time to figure out exactly where, and patch it. Has been leaking since our second outing, I believe. I think the leak is an unsealed interior seam, not a puncture.

• The 2-seater has paddle-gripping cleats that in theory hold both paddles while we launch, or when lazily drifting. But since transport entails lifting the kayak from the edge, and there's no hard shell bottom, the whole thing bows and pops the paddles right out of their cleats. I'll need to add velcro loops or rubber toggles or some other tether.

• As reported in the reviews I found online, the paddles are pretty crummy. They're a puzzle to assemble and I never feel they're sturdy enough. I'd like them to have a drip ring so they don't dribble water on me. They are light, though - a plus - and haven't failed on us.

If you're considering the purchase of an inflatable kayak, here are some more details for you:

• I bought two - the Coleman 2-seater sit-on-top (SOT) and an older sit-inside 1-person kayak. We paid around $100 for the 2-seater and $39 for the one-person.

• We like the 2-seater SOT model better, it's less work to paddle even by one person, it drains water away from you better, and handles better, stays on top of the water better. The smaller, older one doesn't have a grab handle, so even though it's very light, is slightly more difficult to haul to or out of the water. Go with the sit-on-top model, I say.

• They come with the double-sided paddles, which are somewhat flimsy, but adequate. The 2-person came with 2 paddles.

• They have stretchy cargo nets so you can take some gear, and some tie-off points to attach essentials (like the truck keys) that you can't afford to drop into Davy Jones' locker.

• The Coleman inflatable kayaks have numbered chambers with nozzle just like the ones in an air mattress, but larger and sturdier. The 2-person SOT model has 8 chambers, and the 1-person has 4. It's quicker to inflate/deflate than you'd think, maybe 5 minutes to do both of ours.

• Do buy their rechargable inflator ($19.95). It comes with a nozzle adaptor so you can use it with smaller inflatables as well. You use it to deflate as well, really easy.

• Might as well get the patch kit while you're at it.

• I recommend buying or making sturdy mesh bags with good handles to carry the kayak in. A large, plaid, plastic mesh bag my sister-in-law bought in Mexico is absolutely perfect, and I want a second one for the other kayak and the inflator.

We bought ours from Walmart.com - they were on sale, were delivered quickly, and the boxes they come in are relatively small. I feel like we've already gotten our money's worth of fun out of them, and we've only had them a month.

Toodling around in them isn't a lot of work unless there's a strong wind or rough water. It's the perfect balance - you can get going pretty fast and get some exercise, or you can lean back and drift like you're on a very comfortable air mattress. Sweet!

We get tons of inquiries whenever we're out in them. Their utility and fun factor is obvious. I predict we'll all be seeing more of these things in the water soon.