A calorie burned is a calorie earned

Or something like that.

Today I figured out that our daily walk to school and back only burns somewhere between 33 (Garmin estimate) and 44 (Fitday estimate) calories.

At that rate I'll have to walk to school and back between 80 and 106 times in order to burn a pound's worth of calories. That's ten weeks of walks to school and back.

Guess I'll have to crank up the old exercise routine a bit more than that this week, eh?

3500 Calories

Burn it off this week in exercise: enough Calories to lose a pound. That's our Biggest Loser challenge this week.

My Garmin gives me generous caloric expenditure estimates (since it incorporates body weight, I believe), so that's what I'll use. Let's check some recent estimates:

Last Sunday, run 10.24 miles, burn 1287 Calories. That's 125.6 Calories/mile, or it would take me 27.8 miles running to burn off a pound. I think that's a reasonable estimate. Right now I do that approximately every two weeks.

Today, bike 33.03 miles, burn 2254 Calories. That's 68.2 Calories per mile, or it would take me 51.3 miles cycling to burn off a pound.

3 hours 25 minutes easy-pace cycling (15 mph) versus 5 hours 33 minutes easy-pace running (12 min/mile)? Heck, I'll take the cycling any old day. Bring it on. (Except I don't really think that estimate is accurate for cycling, but who am I to argue with the Garmin experts!???)

Hmm, we get more points if we burn 7000 calories. 102.6 miles in a week? I could do that, except it's been a while since I've actually done it, but it's much easier to double (or even triple, with my low cycling mileage lately) your cycling distance in a week than double your running distance.

We'll see. First I have to get serious about getting rid of my nasty hacking cough.

Body composition work

I'm starting 2008 1.0 pounds heavier and 0.9 body fat percentage points fatter than I started 2007. (On January 1, 2007 I was 19.0 pounds less than my highest weight of January 2006).

Actually, the January 2007 and January 2008 readings are well within my normal day-to-day variation - I basically maintained the same body weight throughout 2007. But I'd prefer to be moving in the negative direction instead of the positive direction, of course.

In the first 4.5 months of 2008 I'd like I plan to drop that body fat percentage by about 8.0 points, in order to carry much less weight around the hills on the Columbia Triathlon course in mid-May. That should get my BMI down to the "normal" range of 25.4 or less.

How will I accomplish that? I've got about 19 weeks to do it. A 500 calorie deficit per day should just about meet my goal - and that's not such an extreme calorie restriction that I will start feeling hungry and deprived (and consequently, have rebound eating from excessive hunger). It's eating at maintenance on days I run 10 kilometers. More exercise equals more food for me! NO it's not a diet - it's sensible HEALTH monitoring and very gradual change.

The hard parts are a) doing it consistently day after day, and b) tracking every calorie in and out.

But the results will be OH SO WORTH IT!! FREE SPEED!!

Let the Games begin!

Eat what you want

We all know what healthy eating is and its positive effects, right?

Wrong.

I love this blog:
http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2007/10/junkfood-science-exclusive-big-one.html
or
http://tinyurl.com/ypf4qa

Defy the Food Nazis.
Eat what you want.
Life is short.

International No Diet Day

Today is International No Diet Day!

Celebrate!

More info here on one of my favorite blogs in the universe.

Dieting is usually harmful

My long-held belief in the damaging effects of dieting has been confirmed by a meta-analysis of thirty weight-loss studies.

"Pooling the results of the various studies clearly showed that while people do lose weight initially, most quickly put all the pounds back on. In fact, most people end up weighing more than they did to begin with."

"Research has shown the repeated rapid weight gain and loss associated with dieting can double the risk of death from heart disease, including heart attacks, and the risk of premature death in general."

But there's good news for my fellow triathletes: "Exercise may well be the key factor leading to sustained weight loss. Studies consistently find that people who report the most exercise also have the most weight loss."

Let's stop thinking in terms of quick fixes. Let's focus on slow, steady, small long-term changes that we can live with every day for the rest of our lives.

I'm in the majority

According to the CDC,

". . . approximately 32.6 percent of the U.S. adult population surveyed consumed fruit two or more times per day, and 27.2 percent ate vegetables three or more times per day . . . the newest guidelines advise that adults eat three to five servings of fruit and four to eight servings of vegetables every day."

Seven to thirteen servings of fruits and vegetables every single day? Like, over 4 servings every single meal? Not including potatoes or carrots?

I. don't. think. so.

Or even "two cups of fruit and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables per day", from the 2005 USDA guidelines?? That comes to 1.5 cups of fruit or vegetable every single meal.

I've been finding that for me, it's pretty darned difficult to maintain that level of intake unless I pay strict attention to it every single day, and take a trip to the grocery store to buy fresh produce nearly every day.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to my dear readers! And even to a few of those not-so-dear readers!!!

This is what Elisabeth is bringing to school tomorrow (if there isn't a snow day) along with some chocolate-peanut butter treats for all the kids and teachers in her class. They're not too bad - I had one today, and duly logged the 200 calories. Catherine ate a couple and loved them. I figured Valentine's cards were kind of superfluous, since they can't read yet anyway.

We're combatting the Food Nazis in the trenches of the public school system, day by day. We shall overcome.

Ack! I just realized - peanut butter in the candies! Some people go berserk about peanut products because of allergic kids. I'd better warn the teacher. Sigh. Oh well, at least they're individually wrapped and labeled.

Being fit or looking fit?

Small rant here.

I just received an email for the Discovery Health National Body Challenge with the subject header, "Will This Spring Find You "Fit To Be Eyed"? There's Still Time!" filled with urgent statements like, "The time to get fit is now!"

1) Is there a rush? A deadline? Doesn't this simply encourage people to crash diet, over-exercise, and make short-term changes that they'll never be able to live with?

2) Is this all about what someone looks like? Or is it about health? There's a big difference.

Still, everyone has to start somewhere. But fix-it-quick strategies are not generally conducive to long-term healthy lifestyle changes.