<p>If you are willing to be absolutely honest, studies have shown that keeping a food diary is one of the most helpful ways to lose weight when combined with moderate exercise. Fitday is one of a number of free websites that do the work for you. You can set nutritional goals, keep your food diary, activity log, and even a journal. When you are set up it is easy to log your food as it keeps a list of your most recent foods. There are many serving choices to choose from so you don’t have to weigh anything. You can even see how you do nutritionally (not just carbs, fat, protein, but your vitamins and minerals) on not only a daily basis but over a period of a week or longer. But remember, every morsel counts so you have to be honest or it will be a waste of your time!</p>
<p>Any favorite apps that you have for anything diet/nutrition/exercise related? </p>
<p>I downloaded one yesterday that I read about somewhere recently…Nutrition Menu - I was looking for something that would give me carb counts - that’s where I try to reduce right off the bat…haven’t fooled too much with the app yet though…</p>
<p>But those of us who live in the SF Bay Area don’t get to cross country ski out the door. Or play outdoor hockey. Or sled. Or skate outdoors. Or have fall. I love California, but also miss the East Coast where I grew up.</p>
<p>jtennis- I agree about the food diary. I tried it a few years ago and lost some weight, but sadly didn’t stick with it. It made me aware of snacking and of how much junk, especially sweets I eat. I tried to check out fitday, but was disappointed that it wants me to set up an account as I would like to review the site first to see if it would work for me.</p>
<p>I just set up an account on FitDay and find it pretty interesting. I have been keeping a log on my computer of what I eat but have never tracked calories or carbs. It takes a little bit of time to input everything but very interesting to see the results. I’m assuming it will get quicker to input in the future since my breakfast and lunches involve a lot of repeat foods.</p>
<p>You guys are of no help. </p>
<p>My regular bike partner is visiting his D. My leg hurts from digging up shrubs yesterday. Had a big breakfast with DW and a couple hours later a big lunch w IC at Mom’s. </p>
<p>Weather is practically balmy today in mid Oregon. </p>
<p>I didn’t ride.</p>
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Today might be an example of why we live here - today I did a 7 mile walk/run with my dog in our 79 degree weather. It was just unbelievably nice out.</p>
<p>Fitday does become easier as you eat repeat foods. You can also add custom foods by putting in the nutrition info off the label. I used it for 6 months a couple of years ago after my son had a freshman seminar called something like “The Human Lab Rat”. I was using it because of cholesterol, so I could prove what I had eaten! (We have the herditary problem in the family!) I’m back on it again for hopefully longer than a new year’s resolution! In his class, the professor, a former competitive cyclist, was trying to lose weight, get back in shape, and improve his bloodwork and the students were in charge of his diet and exercise program. Everything he ate was logged so they could keep track of his nutrients along with the work-outs. They did the research through-out the semester to determine what he needed to eat and how his work-outs should progress. I highly recommend it–I felt great when I was using it, probably because I was trying to meet the RDA for my vitamins and minerals from only my food (no supplements). That was much harder than I imagined!</p>
<p>Okay I’ve really been looking and finding some exercise opportunities in my community. </p>
<p>Can anyone please describe what an “80-degree swimming pool” feels like upon first entry? Our schools advertise that to the community. I might go if it doesn’t feel like I remember my own h.s. swimming pool (icicles).</p>
<p>I suppose it feels like a degree warmer than San Diego, minus the doggie. But before I go out in 20 degree weather here (upstate NY) I want to know I’ll be shaping up through swimming, not teeth-chattering. Obviously I haven’t swum in a long time :D</p>
<p>I’ve recommended this website before on CC, it works for me and provides good info on how many calories you can have, how many you have eaten for the day (when you input food), and nutritional breakdown. For instance, after breakfast is entered, I can see what % of my daily allowance of calories, carbs, sodium, protein etc. has been eaten and what % is left as I add each food item I’ve eaten.</p>
<p>Also like it cause you can put in exactly how much you’ve eaten of a portion. For instance, if I put in “oatmeal” and “1 cup oatmeal” comes up, but I’ve only eaten 1/2 cup, I can enter only .5 of a portion. </p>
<p>[Calorie</a> Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate](<a href=“http://www.thedailyplate.com/]Calorie”>http://www.thedailyplate.com/)</p>
<p>Competitive swimmers like a pool at 78-82 degrees. A pool at 80 is a little bit cool for splashing around, but perfect for swimming laps.</p>
<p>I used to be a swimmer. I could tell the water temperature to within a degree, and so could the other swimmers. If the pool was hotter than 82 degrees, it was horrible and we hated it.</p>
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<p>Because the east coast is so much more interesting and intellectual. The west coast has nothing but weather… l</p>
<p>We don’t have weather. We have climate. An East Coast friend who lived out here for a few years said it was like living in a shopping mall.</p>
<p>It was warm here today - dry wind, though, and I didn’t like it too much. I went to the gym today and watched the Colts playing the Bills in the snow - brrrr!</p>
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<p>I suppose we’re just ready for our shallow years in this sun. I was overdressed in a light sweater today and the restaurant we had lunch at still had heirloom summer tomatoes on the vine! So we sat on the ocean and eat summer tomatoes giggling because it is January. We are CA natives, so we do buy the E Coast had a lot to offer us for many years, but we are so ready for this!!</p>
<p>jtennis, the custom foods is helpful. Recipes have a lot of different ingredients and it’s hard to judge how much of each ingredient I have consumed in a single portion (plus a pain to input all those ingredients). Luckily recipes these days come with full nutrition labels or you can input the ingredients and create a nutrition label for a new recipe, so I just input the recipe as a customized “food.” </p>
<p>Most of the recipes I use are printed from the WW site. I print them out and put them into a loose leaf binder, so have a cookbook consisting of just what I actually cook–every recipe is a keeper or I just rip it out and throw it away. </p>
<p>My dad had Type II diabetes (as do a bunch of other relatives) so I try to eat as if I have it already, short of testing my blood sugar directly. For other people with diabetes (or at risk), I like that show DLife that comes on at 7:00 pm on Sunday night in our area on MSNBC. They have some good recipe ideas, but I mostly like it as a weekly reminder of how important it is to take my health seriously.</p>
<p>I’m looking forward to paying attention to the nutrition info in depth. I have never been willing to take supplements.</p>
<p>For me it’s been a combination of things.
MOTIVATION: a couple of months ago on a business trip my hotel was upgraded to one of those fancy rooms where the bathroom is bigger than my kitchen at home and every surface is covered in mirrors. Stepping out of the shower I caught a glimpse of my backside–probably the first good look in a decade or more. Oh the horror!
IMPLEMENTATION: Have adopted a few common-sense (and for me, sustainable) changes. Try to cook every meal from scratch. Use olive oil rather than butter whenever I can. Start with small portion sizes and eat slowly (I almost never really want that second helping). Ban snack foods from the house but keep nuts, fruit, etc. handy. Drink lots of H2O and unsweetened tea. I’m not an athlete and like others here have never been able to sustain any kind of “fitness regime.” But I do walk our dogs for 45 mins or so every day, (well, every day that the temperature is above 25 degrees) and this time has the secondary benefit of invariably inducing a more relaxed and positive frame of mind.
ACCOUNTABILITY: I use the LoseIt! App on my iPhone. Easy and fun, same principles as other web-based programs cited here, basically allows you to track your daily intake/exercise against your goals. First time in my life I’ve paid attention to this and it is eye-opening, to be sure. A note of caution: obsessive types might want to skip this as I can see how easy it would be to lose sight of the larger purposes of food in our lives–to bring pleasure and a sense of connection to others–and just get caught up in the numbers game.</p>
<p>Results have been good–I’ve lost about 10 lbs in 6 weeks, and it hasn’t been difficult. Still not ready to hit the beach in a bikini any time soon but I think I’m close to a good size for someone my height and age. Glad to find this thread with lots of good ideas and support to keep going.</p>
<p>I just downloaded “Lose It!” - looks like a great app for me to use and always have with me!</p>
<p>It’s a free app too for all you Iphone/Itouch users…check it out.</p>
<p>CardinalFang- I swam on a competitive team (Masters), too. We complained if the water was over 82 (in Dallas in summer we had to run sprinklers in the pool to cool it down) but if it was 78, especially on cooler days, we acted like we were doing the Polar Bear Plunge! I was a wimp about cold water, which is one reason I don’t swim much anymore.</p>
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Looks good! The operative word here is free.</p>