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

I love Ernie’s entry on Google Maps and their public transportation options:

• little. yellow. different. – Dear Google Maps: Your public transportation options mock me

This is the result map that came up when I typed in that I wanted to take public transportation from my house to the DMV. (Public transportation since, you know, I forgot to renew my car registration. Ooops.)

I love how it’s all, “WALK THERE, YOU FAT F***ER.”

The Salt Lake County public transportation is so inefficient that if anything is closer than three miles, it’s ALWAYS faster to walk there. One of the reasons that I like to exercise is because if I have to do something like walk to the DMV, I can. Nothing is in my way and I can survive on just my two feet alone.

Here is a most excellent article from the Diet Blog about water and the idea that we need to drink eight glasses a day:

• Diet Blog: The Mythical Daily Water Requirement

But where did the 8 glasses per day gospel originate?

Dr. Frederick Stare suggested this theory in a book “Nutrition for Good Health” published in 1974 (“theory” being the operative word). The theory caught on despite its arbitrary origins and it has been speculated that bottled water companies are largely responsible for perpetuating the 8-a-day mantra.

So, how much SHOULD you drink? We all love rules, don’t we? Click on over to Diet Blog’s entry and find out!

Photo Credit: Deep Blue by Ak_Saechao from Flickr

Is it possible to eat noodles AND lose weight. According to some, you can with shirataki noodles:

• About.com: What are Shirataki Noodles?

Although shirataki noodles have been around in Asia for quite some time, they’re becoming increasingly popular outside of Asia with people who are trying to lose weight or who are cutting back on carbohydrates.

Shirataki noodles are made from the tubers of an Asian plant (Amorphophallus konjac) called a konjac plant. The tubers are dried and ground to make a flour which is then used to make noodles.

The noodles have a gelatinous consistency and have no real flavor.

Shirataki noodles contain almost no calories, carbohydrates, fat, sugar, protein, or gluten. Although shirataki noodles contain carbohydrates, very little of it is digested in the small intestine.

In addition to having almost no calories or usable carbohydrates, shirataki noodles contain a type of soluble fiber called glucomannan.

I have seen these noodles at the grocery store in the refrigerated section by the tofu. Next time I go shopping, I’m going to pick some up and see if they taste good with some lean meat. If I create a new recipe, I’ll share it with you!

This ad ran in 1975 and it says a lot about the economy of that time:

How to eat well in spite of it all.

Tonight’s dinner doesn’t have to look like today’s economy. Not with Kraft Dinners and a few touches of your own. Like adding some snipped parsley to Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Dinner and serving it with sausage and tomato wedges. Just one of the ways Kraft Dinners can help you eat well in spite of it all.

Kraft Dinners make ends meet.

Back in 1975, Kraft didn’t try to tell me that their Macaroni and Cheese was a healthy part of my daily diet. They hadn’t thought to convince the USDA that I should eat five to eleven servings of grains every day and that their dinner was a healthy way to achieve that goal.

No, they were far less devious back then. They just said it was an inexpensive way to feed your family. If the political pundits are correct, we are heading into a recession worse than they saw in the Seventies. Will the healthy advertising change when it hits us hard?

When Mike and I were first married, we were pretty poor. We ate Mac and Cheese (generic, because it was 25 cents a package), Ramen (10 cents a package) and spaghetti. I don’t know about Mike, but that year I went from 140 pounds to 178 pounds. I gained almost forty pounds in a year eating inexpensive food.

If I had spent my money on the fresh vegetables and meat instead, I would have spent just as much on each meal AND maintained my weight (if not lost). I know it looks like fresh meat and vegetables cost more than Kraft and Ramen, but you need to eat far less to feel full.

If you are feeling the financial pinch, don’t fall into the Mac and Cheese trap. Those simple carbohydrates make you feel MORE hungry than the same amount of meat for your money.

Via: Found in Mom’s Basement: Vintage ad for Kraft mac & cheese resigns itself to 1975’s crappy economy

Mixed Messages from Supermarket Tabloids by Laura Moncur from Flickr

I was at the grocery store on Monday and this is what I saw at the checkout counter. Two different tabloids screeching two different messages at me:

Life & Style:

Refusing to eat: Why these stars look so scary skinny:
Katie Holmes: Katie’s weight loss could keep her from getting pregnant.
Nicole Richie: Is Nicole going too far with her diet?
Nicky Hilton: Nicky is in total denial.

OK Weekly:

Steal Brit’s New Diet
Britney lost 15 lbs in just 4 weeks!
No Pills, No Lipo

If you find yourself vacillating between dieting and feeling like it’s all hopeless, take a look around you. The entire world can’t make a decision between whether being thin is good or bad. It’s almost enough to make you want to give up, but remember this:

• This isn’t about approval
• This isn’t about the rest of the world
• This is about YOU and your health

Don’t let the rest of the world tell you that you’re too fat or too skinny. Make a decision on your own based on how you feel and how your body is reacting to your current weight.

Unbeknownst to me, Adidas and Samsung got together and developed miCoach, which is a running system that works with a very specific Samsung phone and Adidas shoes. It’s very reminiscent of the Nike+ released by Nike and Apple a couple of years ago. How do they compare? Stuff Magazine has a blow by blow comparison here:

• Sport Stuff : Nike+ vs Samsung miCoach: the verdict

Here is their final verdict:

Nike and miCoach are both great running buddies, and deciding which one’s best for you comes down to a few questions. Do you hate the idea of having a personal trainer, use iTunes and would rather use a Nano than a new phone? Then Nike is for you. If, on the other hand, you want the most advanced training system, like lots of voice feedback and prefer using Windows Media Player, miCoach is a better bet.

I don’t know if Adidas realizes this, but the killer app for the Nike+ was the Challenges. Being able to run against REAL people was so inspiring to me that I REALLY over did it and ran too much. As long as Adidas focuses on the training aspects instead of the real-life competition aspects of this technology, I think they’ll be left behind.

If you thought (like I did), that Nike was abandoning Apple with their Nike+ Sportsband, then you might be surprised to find out that Nike is working on compatibility with the iPhone and the iPod Touch. Stuff Magazine was able to look at the cool projects in the works at Nike and they have the complete review here:

• Sport Stuff : Nike+ coming to iPhone and iPod Touch

The first piece of news is that Nike will definitely be extending its compatibility beyond the iPod Nano to the iPhone and iPod Touch. No surprise there really, but the interesting detail is that it could also make use of both devices Wi-Fi (and, ultimately for the iPhone, 3G capability) to let you update your training log on the fly. Once you’ve legged round your local park you’ll be able to send the data (probably via a software app like the one the new SportBand uses) wirelessly without having to sit down and drip sweat over your computer. Very cool.

It looks like they also have training programs that you can use to get ready for a race. Here is a screen shot:

I haven’t been running recently, but even this news makes me a little excited. Could it be that all those patents that Apple was working on with the Lifestyle Coach was for the Nike+ system? Are they breaking off their alliance or renewing it? I can’t wait to see!

Diversify. I suspect they teach it in marketing school or economics school or some school for weasel business owners. If you put your fingers into every facet of the weight loss industry, they you will make even more money. Squeeze every penny out of your loyal customers.

That is what was going through my head when I saw these boxes sitting at my local grocery store.

I’m sure Curves has helped a lot of women add exercise to their daily routine. I’m sure that they are a good company with many loyal followers. I’m not so sure that I trust them to make healthy food for me, especially when it’s a sugar-sweetened, super-processed cereal.

The FTC has filed suit against Medlab, Inc., Pinnacle Holdings, Inc., Metabolic Research Associates, Inc., U.S.A. Health, Inc., and L. Scott Holmes. They are charged with violating Sections 5 and 12 of the FTC Act by making false and unsubstantiated claims that their product causes users to lose substantial amounts of weight rapidly.

• FTC Sues Sellers of Weight-Loss Pills for False Advertising

Here are the names of the products that the FTC has sued:

• Zyladex Plus
• Questral AC
• Questral AC Fat Killer Plus
• Rapid Loss 245
• Rapid Loss Rx

Their advertisements were in newspapers (see advertisement to the right). They made the following promises:

• Lose as much as 15 to 18 pounds per week
• Lose 50 percent of all excess weight in just 14 days, without dieting or exercise
• Clinical studies prove those claims
• Their product causes permanent or long-term weight loss

As typical for weight loss ads, those claims weren’t true and the FTC is working on shutting them down.

Just because the FTC has sniffed out these folks doesn’t mean you are safe. If any ad promises that you’ll lose weight quickly without exercise or diet modification, then they are suspect. Don’t spend your money on them.

I have talking about running skirts in the past.

• Starling Fitness » Running Skirts Tested

Back then, my biggest problem with RunningSkirts.com was the fact that their skirts didn’t have anything to protect my inner thighs (just a panty underneath). Since then, they have added skirts with shorts underneath for protection.

I was told about a new company who is also making running skirts (shown to the right). They have inner thigh protection and a place for your iPod:

• GymGirl Ultra, Gym Girl Running Skirt, Skirt Sports

Now, my only problem with BOTH companies is that the skirts are sixty bucks a piece.

When I can get gym capris from Russell for about fifteen bucks, why would I go to the expense of spending four times that for running skirts? I know they’re really cute and they might be something sexy to wear at the gym if I were trying to attract a mate, but how sexy can you really look when you’re working out?

It only takes about ten workouts until most of my exercise clothes are looking ratty anyway. That’s six bucks a workout, which is over my Five Buck Workout rule.

I love running skirts. I think they’re adorable, but there is no way I would spend $60 for one.

Update 04-12-08: Here are a couple of skorts from other clothing companies on Amazon that range in price from $10-$20.

• C9 by Champion Running Skort at Amazon.com

• Champion Gym Essentials Performance Skort Womens at Amazon.com

• Reflex “Rally” Skirt at Amazon.com

• American Apparel Stretch Cotton Skort at Amazon.com