I’ve been reading a lot of news stories lately about the accuracy of fitness trackers, which has been debate in the fitness community ever since I started in fitness over 10 years ago. The calorie readouts on the treadmills, ellipticals, and heart rate monitors were all that were available, back then. Soon after I started personal training, the bodybugg was introduced (and if you’re a long time reader, you know that I loved my bodybugg sooooo much that I became a reseller). It was expensive, but it was a great tool, and I finally felt like it offered the missing side of the equation to my food logging; you can log your food all you want, but unless you know how many calories you’re burning, you don’t have the full picture. Even if you are logging your food, how do you know if you’re consuming too many? Or not enough? I Read More . . .
Is the bodybugg worth it?
It’s true. The bodybugg is a pricey piece of equipment, and ultimately, only you can decide how much money you would be willing to pay to lose the weight you desire. I get asked this question A LOT. Is it worth it? When I started with the bodybugg, I only had 15 lbs to lose & was convinced that I had a slow metabolism. I knew that my workouts were good: I’m a personal trainer & nutritionist, so I knew WHAT I was eating was good too. What the bodybugg immediately exposed was that I was sedentary the 23 hours in the day I WASN’T exercising. We all know that moving burns more calories than not moving. The bodybugg illustrates that fact very clearly. Here’s my activity graph from one day. You can clearly see where I was moving & where I wasn’t. I apparently went for a run & Read More . . .
bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 4 – Activity & Accuracy
<< Previous Round bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 3 – Sleep Tracking So the reason I was initially drawn to the bodybugg was that it allowed me to see how many calories I was burning in a day. I knew how many calories I was eating. What I didn’t know, was how many I was burning; but why is that even important? Weight loss is a simple equation of consuming fewer calories than your body burns. There are TONS of food logging websites & tools, and as I mentioned, I knew what I was eating, because I was logging my food for years prior to knowing about the bodybugg. But eating is only half of the equation in weight loss and weight management. I can tell you that if you eat 500 fewer Calories per day than your body needs, you will lose 1 pound per week; I already knew that. Read More . . .
bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 3 – Sleep Tracking
<< Previous Round bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 2 – Food Logging According to the National Institutes of Health, 50 to 70 million Americans are affected by chronic sleep disorders, and I am very fortunate that I am not one of them. I didn’t realize this until just a few years back. I have no problems sleeping. Sure, occasionally I’ll have a night where I randomly wake up in the middle of the night, or have trouble falling asleep, but it typically doesn’t last more than one night & the visualization techniques I use will usually work to get me to sleep. The bodybugg armband has the ability to show sleep efficiency, but the web application doesn’t expose it. Sure, you can wear it to bed & you can see in the activity graph if you got up, but overall it doesn’t display anything different if you’re just lying there, awake Read More . . .
bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 2 – Food Logging
<< Previous Round bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 1 – Getting Going Logging your food is THE most powerful thing you can do to improve your diet & eating habits. Logging your food prevents you from mindless munching. It creates this awareness of everything that you put in your mouth – even if you're journaling your food with a pen & paper. I don't exactly know why it's so powerful – there are a lot of reasons: you become aware of everything that you're eating. Suddenly, you change your eating habits because you don't want to write it down (those 4 hershey's kisses that you scarfed off of your co-worker's desk. Additionally, you gain this awareness of how many calories are in the foods you eat. Whatever reason resonates with you, if you want to drop a few pounds, start journaling your food. Food journals have been around for ages! I Read More . . .
bodybugg vs fitbit: Round 1 – Getting Going
Hello, My name is Elizabeth & I'm a data geek. That's why I love my bodybugg. I've loved my bodybugg pretty much since the day I got it. The bodybugg is the first tool available that allows you to really see how many calories you're burning in a day. This is a fantastic insight for folks who are trying to lose weight, or maintain their weight loss because how do you know how many calories to eat if you don't know how many calories you burn? Since I'm a nutritionist, wellness coach and personal trainer, I instantly recognized how powerful of a tool this was & became a licensed reseller, which affords me the opportunity to distribute them to my clientele. Initially, the bodybugg didn't have any competition. The first competitor was the GoWear Fit, which is the same product distributed by the company that actually makes the bodybugg armband; Read More . . .
Do those new funny shoes work?
Subject: ? For your trainer Hey – I was wondering about those tennis shoes with the funky bottoms…skeechers and reebok make them (maybe also earth). Anyway, can you ask your trainer if she has an opinion about them. Wouldn’t want to miss a buying opportunity if it’s healthy! Thx! I think that’s funny. You know – I AM interested in them though. Let’s see – what are their claims? From Reebok: (OMG! is their advertising selling sex!) 78% of men are speechless. 81% of women jealous. EasyTone helps you get better legs and a better butt with every single step. From Sketchers: 1. Tone your muscles 2. Promote healthy weight loss 3. Make it easy to get in shape! Okay – so at least they’re not trying to claim that you’ll burn more calories in them. What I think they’re doing is providing an unstable surface, so that you have Read More . . .
Bodybugg Calories Burned
Another Frequently asked question about the bodybugg application is: "Why do I have two different Calories Burned Numbers? I just got my Bodybugg last night. It seems to be working and when I uploaded data from the armband to computer, at the bottom it said I had burned 31 calories-had only been wearing it for a few minutes. The top display for the overall day is completely out of whack says 381 calories burned so far which can’t be done in wearing it a whole ten minutes?" The Red arrows in this screen shot point out the conflicting data. Clearly the numbers are different, but why? The top number shows the total number of calories burned during the entire day. The bottom number shows the number of calories burned during a specific time of day, typically your waking hours, which is illustrated by the darker gray area that the blue Read More . . .
Heart Rate & the Bodybugg
There’s been a TON of discussion recently about Heart Rate Monitors (HRM) & the Bodybugg: The bodybugg should have one… Why doesn’t the bodybugg have one?… an HRM can do the same thing as a bodybugg at a fraction of the cost… and so on. So, I’d like to address some of the questions about Heart Rate & the Bodybugg. Heart Rate Monitors HRMs can range from $60 – 400. The most basic will tell time & HR. More sophisticated ones may also track GPS location, calories burned, speed, & allow you to upload the data to a website to look at it, and may keep history of several previous "files" (or workouts). I used a HRM for years because it was the only tool available to tell me how many calories I burned when I exercised. However, I tried wearing it the entire day once had no luck as Read More . . .
Bodybugg or No Bodybugg that is the Question?
Yesterday, I posted an article about whether the Bodybugg is useful for fitness pros. It was spurred by a conversation on twitter with another personal trainer, out of Seattle, @Targettraining. He asked if he could post a response. Here it is: Guest Post by Shayne P. Norton In the small article I will discuss why the Bodybugg is not for everyone, and why would you want it. So there are many controversies about calories in versus calories out, fat loss and weight loss. Well I am here to tell you the difference and obsession with the people of today. I have learned in my field of personal training that personal trainers will lie to you at a corporate gym due to the pressure of sales from the management. Trust me I have been there and done that, also if there is a personal trainer that has said that they haven’t Read More . . .
There are No Short Cutz
Studies show that one of the keys to losing and maintaining weight loss is a strong social support system. But what if you don’t have a strong social support system? Are you doomed to a future of being overweight? Nope. Not at all. If you know my story, you know that it took me a long time to get where I am today, and I don’t know if I would be where I am without my support family. I don’t really remember when it happened, but Gary had started working out with his trainer, Mike, who was really into bodybuilding. It was through Gary that I learned about the user forums on bodybuilding.com. I started participating in the online forums there, & learned a LOT about lifting weights, eating cleanly, and losing weight. I also learned that although the forums were moderated, any shmoe with a keyboard can write whatever Read More . . .
The Quality of Your Diet is Revealed at the Grocery Store Check-Out
Have I mentioned that I’m cheap? Well, I don’t want to say "cheap" because I truly believe that you get what you pay for. I don’t like spending money – (okay, that’s better!). I don’t have grocery coupons down to a science like the Economides Family, and honestly never really understood them, but on Sundays I look through the ads of the Sunday paper circular. I don’t really know why I look through the coupons, the stores don’t supply coupons for the foods that I buy. Maybe it’s a curiosity of "What new and evil processed food have manufacturers dreamed up now? And how are they marketing it as ‘not so bad’ to unsuspecting consumers?" Next time you look at any food advertising that you get in the mail, or along with a paper, notice the types of products that they’re advertising. All coupons are for processed foods: microwaveable meals, Read More . . .
The Gift of Elizabeth
NOTE: pronouns (he/she) were intentionally interchanged in this post A few years ago I had a client approach me for a Valentine’s Day gift-certificate of Nutritional Counseling for her husband. "He really needs to start working out and eating better. He’s getting fat & I think he could really use your help." He never called me to schedule his appointments. I knew that he wouldn’t. One would probably think that I would be a huge advocate of giving the gift of Elizabeth; after all, it’s a win for everyone. Right? Well, not necessarily. Purchasing health related gifts for your loved ones is a delicate gift to give. This applies to purchasing personal training, nutritional counseling, gym memberships or even workout equipment and fitness gadgets like the bodybugg. If you’re reading this blog, you are probably somewhat interested in your health. You know how good you feel by eating foods that Read More . . .
The perfect little jacket
I think I have found the most perfect running jacket. Do you hear the sound of angels? No? Well, if you get this jacket, you just might. It’s the Sugoi Hydrolite Jacket. It’s translucent & has a tacky, rubbery feel. It’s waterproof, yet breathable, light, wind resistant & has reflective material on both the front & back. Yes, it’s expensive, but if it follows the $1 per wear rule*, and I think it will, then I feel that it’s worth it. And I did get it on sale – so that makes me happier. Getting good gear is so important to exercise adherence. If you don’t have gear that fits well, then you don’t want to put it on, and you won’t exercise for as long as you’d like because it’s not comfortable. Plus, if you’re excited about your exercise clothing, you’re more likely to put it on & want Read More . . .
Bonana fanna fo Fana
Let’s see here… I need to take role of all the stupid diets that don’t work. Grapefruit Diet? Check Cabbage Soup Diet? Check Cookie Diet? Check Maple-Syrup/Lemon Juice/Cayenne Pepper Diet? Check Check Check Banana Diet? What? You haven’t heard of the new Banana Diet that is sweeping Japan like a Giant-Sized Godzilla/PokeMon character? Here are the specifics: A banana (or as many as you want) and room temperature water for breakfast Eat anything you like for lunch and dinner (by 8 p.m.). A three o’clock snack is okay No desserts after meals You have to go to bed before midnight Unsure of what the “room temperature water” is all about for breakfast, the only problem I have with the diet is #2, oh yeah – and #3. So for lunch, I’d like a Bic Mac & a large fry; Dinner, I’d like a whole pizza. And that 3 o’clock snack? Read More . . .
3 pounds
One of my guilty pleasures is that I watch Oprah. No, I'm usually not home at that time of the day, but thank goodness for DVRs so that I can record it; saves a lot of time skipping over commercials, but also, if I'm not interested in the topic being aired that day, I'll just delete it. Yesterday she had Gwyneth Paltrow & Mario Batali on her show to promote a new series that is coming out where Gwyneth & Mario travel around Spain eating their hearts out. The first segment of the show was an interview with Gwyneth about her workout routine (see the video). I can only imagine that they did that so that America wouldn't curse Gwyneth after seeing her eating her way through Spain; giving rise to the fact that no one gets a free ride as far as the calorie formula goes – Calories In Read More . . .
Trick-or-Treat! Here’s a pencil….
Halloween is fast approaching, and since I am a wellness coach, nutritionist and personal trainer I don’t feel like I would be acting responsibly if I gave candy to the trick-or-treaters. For the past few years I’ve been conflicted about what to give the neighborhood kiddos. Candy is fine in moderation, however there really isn’t anything moderate about the abundance of Halloween candy children receive: not to mention that Halloween signals the beginning of the 5 month long sugar-fest that concludes with chocolate eggs and colored sugar coated marshmallows in the shape of chickens & bunnies. One year I tried to sell Gary on giving away those small 8oz water bottles, but he convinced me that we would get egged by the kids. When I looked into it, it wasn’t very economical either. You can get 6 lbs of candy (150 pieces) for less than $25; A case of 48 Read More . . .
I’ll try not to let it go to my head
I was interviewed by the local press last week about the Bodybugg. Jessica, my client did an excellent job in the interview & I think she even upstaged me a little bit. I'm excited about the buzz that it's causing. The news story was even picked up by not only the Texas Cable Network, but also three other markets: Austin, Las Vegas, and Topeka Kansas. How exciting! Apex is thrilled with the exposure, as they should be. It's a really cool device & I'm confident that it will do well. Lately, folks have been asking me if it will work for them. Yes, it will. However, I've been coming up with a list of criteria for those who it will work best with: You're motivated enough to wear it all the time – If you only want to wear it part-time, then just go out & buy a heart rate Read More . . .
The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off.
It’s not that people lie on purpose; when it comes to weight loss, the most recent statistics show overweight people underreporting daily food intake by 30-40% while normal weight individuals underreport by 16%. Virtually no one over-reports their food intake. Additionally, they’ll overestimate how much they move. The combination of those two little white lies that folks tell themselves is partially to blame the expanding waistline of the American public. I’m not immune to these lies. I feel like I’ve struggled with my weight for years. Well, wait… let me back up there. For most of my life I ate whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. It wasn’t until I was in my first marriage that I used food to emotionally cope with my problems. Although I wasn’t fit when I got married, I was thin, and when I got divorced,I was definitely fat. Here’s my transformation in case you’ve Read More . . .
alli or enemy?
Alli is a diet drug that is available today over the counter. Alli is a reduced strength version of a prescription only pill called Orlistat. Orlistat works by preventing the body from absorbing all of the fat that a person has consumed (an estimated 50%). That sounds good. Right? If the body doesn't absorb the fat, then it doesn't absorb the calories that you've consumed through fat. Fat is higher in calories than protein or carbohydrates. Each gram of protein or carbohydrates, holds 4 calories. Each gram of fat holds more than twice that at 9 calories. So then by taking alli, consuming fat isn't as calorically expensive. If I eat the same number of calories and take alli, I'll reduce the number of calories that my body absorbs, thus giving me a calorie deficit; which is what is needed in order to lose weight. Well, thinking about it, where Read More . . .