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

With all the gushing I’ve done about the Nike+iPod, you might think I am in love with Nike. Quite frankly, I was a little bit. The Nike+ has gotten my butt out the door for a couple of months now. When I walked into the Nike Store in Las Vegas, I was a fan.

I walked out a hater, though.

You’re looking at the reason why. I have been in love with the Nike+, so I thought I would look at some of their overpriced iPod clothing and see if there was anything that I would be willing to plunk down my money for. The commercial for the Nike+ had the guy wearing a shirt where the iPod fit into the sleeve. I liked that shirt so much that I was willing to pay the 70 bucks for it. Unfortunately, Nike lost a sale.

The shirt that I’m holding up is an XL. By my estimation, it is about the same size as an extra-small in other brands, but Nike thinks that this is an extra-large. The not-quite-so helpful service girl said, “Try it on. They are stretchy.” I took the XL into the dressing room, but it was so tight that the bottom seam rolled up to my bra. It was a painful reminder of what it felt to weigh 235.

At that weight, I couldn’t fit into any exercise clothes except one brand from K-Mart. I was so grateful that they made exercise clothes in my size that I bought two weeks worth of pants and shirts. I bought the entire inventory at three K-Marts.

Nike just doesn’t get it.

The fact that they don’t carry a size for me when I’m fifty pounds lighter, just tells me that they aren’t an athletic clothing company. They’re a fashion clothing company just like Kenneth Cole. They don’t want “fatties” like me wearing their clothes and giving them a bad name.

Despite the look on my face, I was near tears when I had Mike click this picture of me. Despite all the weight I’ve lost, I’m still not thin enough for Nike. Well, they can take their 70-dollar shirts and stuff ’em. I’m going to give my money to a company that deserves it.

It makes me want to throw my Nike+ in the garbage.

I’ll admit, I have. When our mail carrier left a plastic bag in our mailbox to donate food to the local food bank, I got rid of all the tempting food in my house. Anything that hadn’t been opened that was a troublesome food for me, I sent on its way to charity. I even felt like I was doing a good thing, but if it’s not good for me to eat, is it good for the homeless?

• Food banks and junk food – Slashfood

It seems food banks are receiving an influx of unhealthy food.

“The shift in the types of food donated to food banks leave the administration of the banks wondering ‘whether they should distribute all food received, regardless of nutritional value, or only the more healthful items.’ This is an area of concern for many, especially considering that obesity rates tend to be higher among the low income groups that need food assistance like food banks provide and in some cases, banks are already turning down certain food items, like sodas.”

The quote, “Beggars can’t be choosers,” is so old and such a part of our language that the original author of it was lost long ago. Then again, most of that food is something that I actually like. I consider it a treat and I’m only sending it on so that I don’t add to my girth. I really don’t know how I feel about this.

Fall is the perfect time for squash and one of the more interesting to choose from is eggplant. The Boston Globe has a few recipes on how to cook the purple plant.

• An Eye for Eggplant – The Boston Globe

Eggplant is best prepared over a fire:

“Smoke and eggplant is one of the great flavor pairings, so much so that each of the regions of the Middle East and all the countries that border the Mediterranean have a smoky eggplant dish. Cooked over low coals, the taut skin of the vegetable collapses, the flesh takes on a mild smoky flavor, and when pureed with olive oil and lemon juice, the eggplant turns silky.”

Next time you hit the grocery store, pick up an eggplant and experiment with your barbeque. You might discover a new dish that is tasty AND healthy.

Mary, from fitfemme, opened up in the locker room with a woman who had lost eight pounds in just a couple of weeks. Her secret:

Don’t eat the donuts at work.

• fitfemme: Mary’s fitness blog: In the locker room

They discusses the behavior of coworkers who bring fatty and sugary treats to work every day and came to an interesting conclusion:

“The colleague replied that she had a family member who worked at Krispy Kreme, so she got a discount–and then she added that perhaps by eating lots of doughnuts some of the older workers would vacate their jobs more quickly and create promotional opportunities for the younger ones.”

They’re not only trying to sabatoge your diet, they are trying to sabatoge your life. Next time you see a box of treats in the break room, pass them by. They’re not worth your waistline or your life.

The end of summer has come up so quickly that I almost forgot that the new television season is coming up and with it, The Biggest Loser.

• NBC.com > The Biggest Loser

I was not a fan of this show at the beginning of the season last year, but this year, I’ll be waiting at the edge of the couch to watch! This year they have contestants from every state in the United States. One person from each state makes for a lot of contestants, so I don’t know if I’ll be able to pick my favorites like I did last year. It will definitely be a change.

They have replaced Jillian Andersen Michaels with a blonde named Kim Lyons. A press release from NBC said that Jillian left of her own free will to pursue other interests. Jillian’s website says NOTHING about it, so I guess I just have to believe them. I’m going to miss Jillian. I like her technique much better than the touchy feely stuff Bob does. I don’t know anything about Kim Lyons except what NBC says, and that all sounds like a bunch of hype. I’m kind of bothered that they went with such a cutie. I know it’s not fair to judge someone by their looks (isn’t that what bothered me when I was fat?), but I have nothing but hype and her looks to judge her by. I can’t wait to watch the show to see how it will be.

Last year, The Biggest Loser was SO motivating to me. Watching all those people give it their all really helped me to give it my all. They were exercising four hours a day. I could fit an hour a day into my schedule. I watched them all fall while I exercised. Sometimes I’d watch the episode two or three times a week. I am really looking forward to seeing this season’s show!

Via: Season 3 of “Biggest Loser” features contestant from each state – That’s Fit

I saw this postcard on PostSecret this week and it looked so familiar. I used to keep a tally like this to mark the days I had gone without a binge. I think the most I’ve lasted is eight weeks. I stopped doing it because I would see all the tally marks pile up. Just looking at them grow would make me feel this enormous pressure. I would say, “It has been so long since I last binged.” Part of me would be proud of that and at the same time, another part of me would think, “I can do it just this once… It’s been so long…”

Right now, I don’t know how long it has been since I last binged. I know I didn’t binge yesterday, but I really have no idea if I binged the day before. I don’t know if keeping track was good or bad…

PostSecret‘s beneficiary is the National Hopeline Network. It is a 24-hour hotline (1 (800) SUICIDE) for anyone who is thinking about suicide or knows someone who is considering it.

Sometimes I think that if I had lived my younger years differently that eating healthy would be easier now.

If you could change something in your past that has affected your weight and health, what would it be?

What are you doing right now that you could change that would make your future easier?

The Question of the Week is meant to be an Inner Workout for you. Find some time during the week and allow yourself to write the answers to the questions posted. You can write them on paper, on a word processor or here in the comments section. Whatever works for you as long as you do it.

Keep writing until you find out something about yourself that you didn’t know before. I’ve also heard that it works to keep writing until you cry, but that doesn’t really work for me. Whatever works for you. Just keep writing until it feels right.

Exercise is a fun and enjoyable way to keep healthy for everyone. The Buddy Walk is trying to raise awareness about Downs Syndrome and sponsors walks all over the country. You can find one to volunteer for here:

• Buddy Walk

Encouraging exercise for all members of our society makes our world healthier on a whole. Give the Buddy Walk in your area a little of your time and you will profit more from it than you will every know.

I hadn’t heard of Fat Chance until I found this review from Rudd’s Sound Bites. Mo’Nique is sponsoring a beauty pagent for fabulous and thick women. I think it’s absolutely wonderful!

• Rudd Sound Bites: Fabulous and thick by Stephanie Feldman

Stephanie believes that the show is not quite comfortable in its skin, but it has moments that are inspiring:

“There is one contestant, the African-American security guard Tiffany Jones, who does not don a wig to cover her short blond cut. MoNique says she couldn’t allow Tiffany to cover up her own beauty, and Tiffany answers that she is thrilled not to have to hide her hair or tattoos to be beautiful.”

If you missed the show, you can see clips from it on Oxygen Network’s official website for the show:

• Mo’Nique’s F.A.T. Chance

For more information about Mo’Nique and her sassy attitude, see her official website:

• The Official Monique Website

Remember, loving yourself just the way you are is the first step toward living a healthy life. Shows like Fat Chance are a way to learn to love yourself and be able to commit to living a healthier and stronger life.

If you have ever talked yourself out of exercising, you know that there are a million excuses not to work out. Wendy Bumgardner at About.com blows all those excuses out of the water with her Excuse Busters series:

• Walking Excuse Busters – Too Busy to Walk

• Walking Excuse Busters – Scared to Walk Alone

• Walking Excuse Busters – Lonely Walking Alone

• Walking Excuse Busters – It’s Too Cold

• Walking Excuse Busters – Too Hot to Walk

• Walking Excuse Busters – It’s Raining

• Walking Excuse Busters – I’m Tired

• Walking Excuse Busters – Sore Muscles

• Walking Excuse Busters – Sore Feet

• Walking Excuse Busters – I Have a Cold

• Walking Excuse Busters – My Family Misses Me

• Walking Excuse Busters – Walking is Boring

• Walking Excuse Busters – Unmotivated

• Walking Excuse Busters – I’m Too Fat to Walk in Public

• Walking Excuse Busters – I’m Too Old to Exercise

• Walking Excuse Busters – Health Concerns

Wendy has compiled such a thorough list of excuses and how to bust them that there really are no excuses. No matter what you say, there is a way to work around the problem. Now, if you don’t exercise, you need to analyze why and find a way to bust your own exercise excuse.