Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

Conspiracy theories don’t sit well with me. I’m already paranoid. I don’t want more paranoia swimming around in my head. So when Kevin Trudeau released The Weight Loss Cure They Don’t Want You to Know About, he already had one strike against him in my book.

It seems that Diet Scam Watch is also skeptical of Kevin Trudeau’s conspiracy theories:

The book claims that “an absolute cure for obesity was discovered almost fifty years ago” but was “suppressed” by the AMA, the FDA, and “other medical establishments throughout the world.” He further claims that until now, “this miracle weight loss breakthrough has been hidden from the public so that drug companies can make billions of dollars selling their expensive drug treatments and surgical procedures for obesity.” Trudeau’s alleged cure consists of injections of human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) plus 50 to 60 required and recommended do’s and don’ts. HCG is a hormone found in the urine of pregnant women.

HCG has been touted as a weight loss aid for a while.

More than 50 years ago, Dr. Albert T. Simeons, a British-born physician, contended that HCG injections would enable dieters to subsist comfortably on a 500-calorie-a-day diet. He claimed that HCG would mobilize stored fat; suppress appetite; and redistribute fat from the waist, hips, and thighs. However, scientific studies demonstrated that the injections didn’t cause weight loss and regulatory actions by the FTC and FDA have curbed their use in the United States.

It seems that Trudeau didn’t get the memo from the FDA. Since 1975, they have required the following labeling on the product:

HCG has not been demonstrated to be effective adjunctive therapy in the treatment of obesity. There is no substantial evidence that it increases weight loss beyond that resulting from caloric restriction, that it causes a more attractive or “normal” distribution of fat, or that it decreases the hunger and discomfort associated with calorie-restricted diets.

Of course, if you’re truly paranoid, you believe that the FDA and all of those doctors behind the studies are in on the suppression of HCG.

Don’t let your paranoia get the best of you. The reason why everyone in Hollywood is thin is because they kick out the fat ones. They don’t have a secret cure to obesity, they just don’t put fat people on the screen. Injecting the urine of pregnant women into your body is not the answer.

Via: HCG Worthless as Weight-Loss Aid

This Nike Running commercial makes me want to go for a run in the rain… with my sister.

Even the computer geek cartoon noticed the study that said that your friends make you fat.

• The Joy of Tech comic… laughter is the best tech support.

I know it’s a scientific study and all, but I’m uncomfortable blaming other people for my food intake. If I were perfectly thin and fit, I would be pretty pissed if someone said, “The only reason you’re thin is because your friends are thin.”

Don’t blame other people for your weight. Look first to yourself.

The other day, I was running at the gym with Mike. I was using my Nike+, so my miles would be tracked for my challenges. I was wearing my heart rate monitor. I even added my weight into the treadmill so that their calculations would be accurate.

After I was finished, the Nike+ said I had burned 479 calories. The heart rate monitor said I had burned 502 calories and the treadmill said I had burned 345 calories. Which one do I believe?

Are your exercise gadgets getting in the way of your workout?

Do you find it simpler to just exercise with one gadget instead of more?

Is it easier to just go out and run or do our gadgets help?

There is a famous quotation:

“A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure.”

Segal’s Law

Sometimes I feel like that with all the methods I have to measure my exercise progress. The problem is, I don’t trust any of them enough to just believe it.

Polar is known for their heart rate monitors and cycling computers. Add to the mix an altimeter and wireless transfer of data to your computer and you have an intense piece of technology on the handlebars of your bike. That’s what the Polar CS600 Cycling Computer can do for you:

• Polar USA – Polar CS600 Cycling Computer

Unfortunately, if you want all that fancy stuff, you’ll end up paying almost $700 for it.

Is it really worth all that much when a Bell Spinfit will do most of that stuff for fifteen bucks? Sometimes these gadgets look like they will help us, but in the end, nothing will make you ride faster on your bike except riding your bike. Whether you have a $700 Polar or a $15 Bell on your handlebars won’t help if you don’t get your butt in the saddle.

Sometimes gadgets get us motivated and excited about exercising or eating healthy, but other times they are just excuses. I’ll stick with my Bell Spinfit and type the mileage and calories into my spreadsheet on the computer. It think that small amount of effort is worth that much money.

If you aren’t the sort of person who obsesses with Excel spreadsheets every time she tracks her food like I do, then you might be interested in this pretty and convenient book for tracking your food and exercise.

• Little Black Book ~ Daily Food Diary Dieting Weight Loss

These kinds of products can be cool or totally lame and that depends on two things: how good are the forms and can you get more forms when you’ve used up all you have. Fortunately, the Little Black Book works out pretty well on both accounts. Here is a photo of the form:

As you can see, they assume you’re counting calories, but you can use this form to track your Weight Watchers Points, your carbohydrates or protein. Whatever you are tracking, it looks like this form would be pretty versatile.

At the bottom of the form there is a spot to check off Dairy, Protein, Grains, Veggies, and Water intake. It also has a useful spot to check off whether you’ve taken your vitamins, supplements or whatever other medication you may need to track.

The back of the sheets are blank, you you can use them to track your emotions or anything else you may want to keep a record of in relation to your eating habits.

Now, can you get more forms when you use all the ones that come with your book? Yes, you can. The book itself costs $20 and will last you three months. A 3-Pack refill costs $20 and should last you almost a year. So, yes, as long as Little Black Book is still in business, you can get refills.

Does this book work for me? No. Right now, I’m keeping track of my points on a piece of paper that is folded up small. It’s discreet and I can put it into my wallet. I print these up myself using Excel. I realize, however, that not everyone can do that, so Little Black Book is great for those who don’t want to bother printing up their own forms.

The people at Little Black Book were nice enough to send me one to evaluate it, so I don’t know how efficient the ordering process is. If you have had experience with them, please leave a comment and tell us how you were treated.

Mindy asked the following question on this entry:

• Starling Fitness » Why I Don’t Trust Weight Watchers Points System

My question is this. Once you lose all the weight you want or need to lose….do you stay on the points system? I mean if you keep eating in your points wont you just keep losing?

Mindy

Mindy,

You’re right, if you continued to eat the same amount of points that you did while you were losing, you would keep losing weight. Once you get to goal, you need to adjust your points so that you’re not losing anymore, but not gaining as well. This is a highly individualized thing, so you really have to play with it for several weeks to get the correct number of points to maintain.

That’s why going to Weight Watchers is so helpful. Every week, you meet with the person at the scale and they help you through the maintenance as well as the losing. Since so many people quit Weight Watchers before they even get to goal, they don’t get that added support.

Great question, Mindy! Thanks for asking!
Laura

In answer to the Question of the Week, here is an entry from Jank at the Complete Running Network:

• Running on the Run » Complete Running Network

Jank has some great ideas about exercising when you’re traveling. He has a “P” filled list to remind you how to do it:

• Pack it in
• Plan ahead
• Prioritize
• Plunder
• Postpone
• Proxies
• Promenade

To find out what each of these list items entails, head on over to The Complete Running Network and read Jank’s entry.

Photo Credit: chasing my shadow by DocMultimedia on Flickr

I like to stay at hotels with gyms. Most of the time, I’m pleasantly surprised at how well-equipped they are. There is usually at least one treadmill in working order, so I am able to at least get my cardio in. Weights, however are a different story. I usually have no idea how their weights compare to my own unless they have free weights. The weight machines are all different.

How do you exercise when you’re traveling?

What should you bring to make sure you can exercise when you’re on vacation?

How do you convert your weight training routine from home to the one at the hotel gym?

How do you factor in any extra activity you do while you’re on your trip?

Since my normal life is mostly sitting in front of a computer, I usually find myself hiking, walking and moving more when I’m traveling. I’ve never really found a way to account for that. What do you do it?

Cranky Fitness has a great entry about how not to be a jerk at the gym:

• Cranky Fitness: First Time at the Gym? How Not To Make an Ass of Yourself

The entire article is worth a read, but this one is my favorite:

Don’t use the fact that you’ll be showering afterwards as an excuse to show up smelling totally nasty and funky. Fresh sweat doesn’t really smell–but old body odor and overripe gym clothes are supremely nauseating to be around.

Yeah, and don’t forget to wipe your gross sweat off the machines!

Via: Beginners: 10 Things You Shouldn’t Do at the Gym