Food Log Results

Keeping a food log provides objective data for your review. Based on my food intake log for the week I found out a number of things:

• It would be a good idea for me to drink more water
• Although I need to eat breakfast, it can be smaller and still be enough to fuel my workouts; if I need more food I can have something after my workout
• Salads are king!
• I couldn't live without my gas grill
• Candy and ice cream, in limited amounts, are ok
• Stay away from processed foods, chips, and/or high starch carbohydrates
• Alcohol disturbs my sleep

Although I don't have a "weight" issue, I don't want the calories I do consume to be low in nutrition, thus the decision to eliminate alcohol, maintain/increase my salad intake, and decrease my candy and ice cream. Other patterns have to do with socializing and increased eating. As long as I can control the eating environment (not eating out) I can maintain my nutrition. As soon as I go out to restaurants that control becomes diminished and the likelihood of overeating is higher. This doesn't mean I can't socialize but it means I have to plan ahead. The percentage breakdown between protein, carbohydrates, and fats is within standard ranges set by the American Dietetic Association but my fats tend to be from animal products (all my dairy except ice cream is non-fat, other fats are good fats from olive oil or nuts), so I need to be aware of how much I eat of those foods throughout the week. Based on my overall self-assessment, my workout routine for cardio and strength has been working, however, I need to shore up my flexibility and general physical activity. My diet is pretty clean but could benefit from a more precise nutritional review and there may be a need to identify more strategies to address eating as part of socializing. So, with some minor changes I can keep doing what I have been doing but what will keep me motivated?

Stick To It Tip #4

Join a fitness chat room, message board, or forum. These online interactive tools are full of encouragement from people who have achieved their goals and are developing or working toward new ones. Check out my fitness chat room on Monday evenings at 7:00 pm (EST) on the home page of my community website Fit In Fairlington. My goal is to provide a supportive environment for both newbies, those struggling with maintaining a fitness program, as well as veterans needing new incentives. See you there!

Logging Food Intake

In my previous post, I mentioned keeping a food diary. I tend to keep things "hands-on" and simple so I just use a small spiral memo pad that can fit in my pocket, gym bag, or brief case. Some of you "techies" may find it easier to use the numerous gadgets out there to keep track of you food intake. One such item is Calorie Count Mobile (Shape Magazine, February 2009). You use your text messaging service to log your foods and get a message with the calorie count and a link to more detailed nutritional breakdown. There are many other services similar to this so if you would rather use a device to keep track, you have no excuse!

You Are What You Eat

Now that I have a good amount of data about my activity level, I need to look at my eating and nutrition. Eventually, all of this information will be used to decide what goals I would like to set for the year but until then, I will not modify too much of my current lifestyle until the evaluation is complete. To get a good idea of my eating patterns I am going to keep a food diary. To make this as simple as possible, I am going to log in just the type of food I eat (rather than specifics) and how much of the plate they take up. I will also log the time, location, and my mood. These basics will give me an idea of the amount of each food category (meat, dairy, etc.) I eat and portions as well as how often and why I might eat. Although I don't have a weight problem, I may need to be conscientious about my nutritional needs as I get older to help avoid certain health issues. I need to keep the food diary for a minimum of 3 days (preferably 2 weekdays and a 1 weekend day) but I will try for a full week. In addition, I will use a number of questionnaires regarding my eating style to see if there may be potential issues in the future. I am not a registered dietitian nor a nutritionist, but I can make some decisions about my food intake without professional help by using a number of resources. I will check in periodically and provide a review of my efforts in my next Gabcast.

Sneaking in My Stretching

I have identified that I don't work stretching into my daily activities enough and need to find creative ways of doing this without adding lots of time. What I have decided to do this the following:

1. Add stretching to my resistance program by incorporating it as "passive recovery" time. I usually do supersets or modified circuits to save time but they also require more recovery time (up to 75 seconds). This would allow me to do one set of stretches in-between. I do enough cycles that I can do all major muscle groups.
2. While I do my stretches I can focus on my breathing, by inhaling (through my nose) for 5 seconds, hold breath for 5 seconds, and then exhale (through my mouth) for 10 seconds while releasing tension in the area I am stretching. If I take 5-6 breaths this way it will use up about 1 minute, a good time for a full stretch.
3. On my non-weight training days (I typically do core or ab work on those days), I can keep my stretching to a minimum by focusing on my "trouble" while doing my ab/core work.
4. After my afternoon walks, do so easy stretching and relaxing breathing; again, probably taking about 20 minutes.
5. Since I do computer work, I will stop every hour to do a 5 minute stretch.

This strategy will allow me to fit in the stretching I need without too much thought. The biggest challenge is stopping use of the computer to stretch. I decided the easiest thing for me was to set a timer, otherwise I won't remember to check the time. When you actually look at your day with a more discerning eye, you can find time to fit in your new healthy habits.