I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who has trouble with Nike+. It looks like Michael Verdi experienced the same epic fail that I did.
This has been an ongoing problem since the beginning of Nike+. Their insistence on using a clunky Flash interface has truly been their downfall. I can’t wait until RunKeeper has the ability to challenge your friends to races. When they do, there will be no need for Nike+ anymore.
In Utah, the home builders periodically have The Parade of Homes, where they showcase their building skills. It allows normal people like me to tour huge mansions.
Most of the time, I don’t care at all for the homes. They are so large that I can’t even imagine keeping them clean, much less living in them. This year, however, I did fall in love with one aspect of one of the homes: The Canterbury Gym.
The house was on Canterbury Lane and their personal exercise room was gorgeous. On the wall was the following quote:
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.
Aristotle
There were treadmills and elliptical trainers, but the most interesting feature of the gym were the light fixtures. They were a combination of light and rotating fans. Here is a little video of what they looked like.
Do you need a home gym like that to keep fit? No. All you need is enough room to move around or maybe a corner of a room for a treadmill. The fanciest home gym on the planet isn’t enough to get you fit if you don’t USE it. Those rotating fans were sure nice, though. What they provide more than a normal ceiling fan or even just a cheap fan clipped to your treadmill, I don’t know, but they looked pretty.
When I first saw Project Natal, flashbacks of trying to get Playstation’s Eye Toy to work filled my mind. The disappointment of a new toy that doesn’t work was all I could think about.
It just looked like a marketing ploy and I had no hope that it would work.
Then I saw this video of Felicia Day playing with Project Natal:
Just found this video of me doing Natal. It was pretty much the highlight of my E3. It is so fun and surreal to be IN the video game. Can’t wait to be able to cast a fireball with a single thrust!
Felicia Day is a long time World of Warcraft gamer, so I tend to believe her opinion a little more than the marketing spiel I saw from Microsoft, until…
I noticed that they have her playing on a white carpet in front of a white wall. How many of you have a stark white wall to stand in front of when you’re playing a video game? Not me. The video games are in the living room, so I’m standing in front of a couch. Sure, it’s easy for Project Natal to be able to see Felicia’s movements when she’s standing in front of a big white wall. Throw a couch and some friends on it and once again, I have SERIOUS doubts about whether this thing could work.
People have been saying that Project Natal is going to give the Nintendo Wii a run for their money in the exergaming market. I’d love for it to be true, but I think we’re going to have to wait ten years before technology is good enough for this to work in any living room.
Yesterday, I walked the Judge’s 5K Run with people from my Weight Watchers class.
Our leader, Gina, had told us to meet at the northeast corner of the parking lot so we could all keep together. Here’s a photo of all of us together. Our Weight Watchers leader, Gina, is on the right. She has been at goal for years. On the left is Jim, he has lost over 100 pounds on Weight Watchers and he is looking great!
Before they started the race, they had some radio personalities talking and they interviewed Miss Utah. She was running the race with us all.
My only thought was, “Is she going to run the race wearing that crown?” For the record, she did not. When she passed me I pointed it out that she wasn’t wearing her crown and she said, “I ran my first race with the crown and that didn’t work out.” Good to know. Next time I run a race, I’ll make sure to leave the tiara at home.
I used RunKeeper to track the run, so you can see the map of the race here.
Of course, I wanted to use the miles for the run to compete in my weekly Nike+ Challenges, so I ALSO tracked the walk with my Nike+. I love how RunKeeper maps my walks, but I also love how I can kick some serious butt in the weekly challenges with Nike+. For now, I’m measuring my runs TWICE and carrying both my iPod and my cell phone. Until Nike allows cool features like the RunKeeper site, I won’t be able to use just the Nike+. Until RunKeeper adds the fun connectivity of racing against other RunKeeper users, I won’t be able to use just the RunKeeper. I’m stuck between them both.
I had a lot of fun at this 5K walk because my friends from Weight Watchers were there with me. I can’t wait for our July 5K!
I have been using Edibles for a few months now and I’m loving it. I love it even more after seeing how well it has worked for one of its creators:
YAY! I made my WW goal last week! I was so nervous going in I almost didn’t want to step on the scale. I lost 2.5 lbs last week which puts my total weight loss at 91.2 lbs. I am now starting the “Maintenance Phase” of WW. It’s a little weird and a little scary to not be trying to lose weight. It’s been such a long time on WW that it’s almost part of me. I have to turn the weight loss mindset off and turn on the maintain switch on.
Here are her before and after pictures. These are the undramatic photos. Her boyfriend took some smokin’ hot pics of her as well, so you can see those on her blog here: From Fat to Fit: GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations, Dawn! After two years of following Weight Watchers, she has finally made goal! Kudos to ya, babe!
Yesterday, I talked about The Digital Diet, which is changing your photographs so that you look slimmer. I stated that this technique isn’t a good idea because it clouds our view of reality. If we can’t accept how our bodies are right now, then how can we change them?
But sometimes, we NEED to cloud our view of reality.
Sometimes we can’t remember what it was like to be thin, or in my case, I didn’t ever feel thin, even when I was. In that case, I needed a photograph to tell me what I was shooting for. I needed something to use for visualization for a goal. Now, I could have used an old photograph of myself and slimmed it down using the Digital Diet techniques, but there is another way to create a goal photo and that’s Face Swapping.
This video gives you an example of how face swapping can be done using Photoshop. I suggest you mute the volume unless you like The Beastie Boys.
That video looks great, but it isn’t a very good tutorial. Here are two videos that are GREAT tutorials, but their finished effects weren’t that spectacular.
I used the techniques in the Tom Cruise/Jennifer Aniston video to make this photo of myself. I look at it for a couple of minutes every night before I go to sleep to visualize my perfect body and how I’ll feel when I’m physically fit.
I’m actually incredibly embarrassed to show my goal photograph here. I’ve used this particular one for a few months without mentioning anything here on Starling Fitness, but having something to work toward is really helpful to me. I’m actually MORE embarrassed to show this photo than to show my before pictures. I’ve never gotten to goal, so this photograph gives me an idea of what it will be like to be thin (and about five inches taller).
Using Photoshop techniques to give yourself a Digital Diet is a double edged sword. It can be kind of bad if you are using it for family photos to change history and further keep your head in the sand about your health and fitness. It can, however, be an amazingly powerful tool to help you visualize what you want from all this exercise and healthy eating.
Use your Photoshop Skillz wisely.
Update 05-29-09 3:09 pm: Braidwood has written an excellent entry in response to this one:
If you don’t own Photoshop and don’t want to pay the $600 price tag for it, there is a great open source program available that can do almost as much as Photoshop for FREE. You can download it here:
Long ago, I wrote about making yourself look thinner with Photoshop techniques.
Back then, I said:
In the end, there is no software that can make you look better. You have to do the work to look better. I have never had a better photo taken of me than the quick clicks of friends when I am healthy and strong.
It looks like photography websites are eagerly jumping on the bandwagon of making their subjects look thinner using this technique. Here is a video showing photographers how to make their clients look a little bit thinner in their photos using the Transform Tool in Photoshop. If you are using GIMP, use the Scale Image tool.
There is also a way to do something similar to this using the Liquify Tool. If you are using GIMP, use the iWarp tool. Here is a video tutorial showing those techniques as well.
I think that minor manipulation of photos like this is just a way for us to fool ourselves into not seeing our true selves. Until we are willing to look at our bodies and accept the way they are RIGHT NOW, it’s impossible for us to make the appropriate decisions to change it. If you accept your body the way it is and love it, that’s great! If you accept your body the way it is and want to change it, that’s great, as well. The first thing you have to do, however, is ACCEPT your body the way it is.
There is one exception to this thought and I will talk about that tomorrow.
Via: Pioneer Woman Photography – Ree Drummond
If you don’t own Photoshop and don’t want to pay the $600 price tag for it, there is a great open source program available that can do almost as much as Photoshop for FREE. You can download it here:
Update 06-25-09: I’ve found another good tutorial that really gives you a clear idea of how to do this:
I was so excited when I heard about My Weight Loss Coach for the Nintendo DS.
I pre-ordered it, so when it arrived, I was excited to finally get a chance to try it out. Unfortunately, it left me bothered and unhappy with it. The pedometer was cool and it worked seamlessly with the DS, but the software and user interface was clumsy and limited. You can see a video walk-through here:
Download this video for your iPod
It might look cute and fun to do, but there is ONE problem with this that made me stop using it. You can see the issue at the 2:21 mark. It asks you if you want to “Wrap The Day.” If you misread this as finishing putting in food for now and accidentally choose “Yes,” then you cannot add any more food that day. It’s completely closed off for you. I did that a couple of times because instinctively, it seemed like I should answer “Yes” at that screen because I was done adding my breakfast. After the second time, I went back to keeping track of my food on paper.
I liked how they kept track of energy units, which were worth approximately 50 calories. That is really close to the calculation for WW Points, so it worked well with the way I kept track of food. Unfortunately, the software was so limited that there are some foods that are just NOT on the list and no way to enter your own food unless you just enter something else with the same amount of energy units. It was an irritating experience to enter my food.
Exercise was just as irritating. I know they were trying to make it easy, but swinging the clock hand around and around to say how many minutes of exercise I did was just ludicrous. Keeping track of things should be EASIER than writing them down when I have to use my DS to keep track of food. Sure, it was cute, but I need efficient as well.
Ubisoft are the creators of my beloved Rayman Raving Rabbids and they licensed Yourself! Fitness, so I have come to expect good things from them. Unfortunately, My Weight Loss Coach didn’t live up to the Ubisoft name. Save your money and don’t bother with this one.
Just looking at these Air Shorts makes me laugh, but then I learned that they were so popular that there were TWO companies making them. Here is the description on how they are supposed to make you slim:
Inflatable exercise shorts for men and women. Wear while doing your morning sit-ups, housework, etc. Great for exercise and for shedding body moisture. Inflate to fit. Gives support and massage at waist, hips, thighs, buttocks. One size fits all. Inflates with a simple tube.
They charged seven bucks for those ghastly things back in the 70’s, which would equate to about 38 dollars now. Would you pay forty bucks for those ugly things?!
The next time you’re tempted to buy something for weight loss, remember the Air Shorts. Save your hard earned money and let the fads fall by the wayside.
Via: Plaid Stallions : Rambling and Reflections on 70’s pop culture: Scarred Forever
I found this advertisement from the 1920’s for The Weil Reducing Belt.
It reads:
Fat Men!
This new self-massaging belt not only makes you look thinner INSTANTLY – but quickly takes off rolls of excess fat.Diet is weakening – drugs are dangerous – strenuous reducing exercises are liable to strain your heart. The only safe method of reducing is massage. This method sets up a vigorous circulation that seems to melt away the surplus fat. The Weil Reducing Belt made of special reducing rubber, produces exactly the same results as a skilled masseur, only quicker and cheaper. Every move you make causes the Weil Belt to gently massage your abdomen. Results are rapid because this belt works for you every second.
Fat Replaced by Normal Tissue
From 4 to 6 inches of flabby fat usually vanish in just a few weeks. Only solid, normal tissue remains. The Weil Reducing Belt is endorsed by physicians because it not only takes off fat, but helps correct stomach disorders, constipation, backache, shortness of breath and puts sagging internal organs back into place.
This ad might seem ludicrous and silly over eighty years later, but there are companies that are still selling this idea to this day:
Just like in 1920, you are unlikely to see any long term effects from a reducing belt, or trimming belt, or abs belt or anything that you put on your body. The only thing that will be lighter is your wallet.
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