a tale as old as time

it's been one month (monday) since i competed in my first triathlon. a great accomplishment! but, since then i have done nothing. i mean sure, the first week was a much needed break for recovery, and health reasons. then the next week i was out of town. but after that the excuses are flimsy and the effect is obvious. i am lethargic and gross. the worst part is that i know what's causing me to feel so bad - inactivity, but i can't seem to work exercise back into my life. and i am one of those people who makes better food choices when i'm active. it's a tale as old as time, bodies in motion tend to stay in motion while, bodies at rest get fat and lazy! i've done this too many times to count. - i've got to get out of the doldrums.

Happy Medium Moral: it's okay to rest on your laurels a little bit, but it's not okay to be so lazy that you're an unhappy medium.

do what's good for you....

wow, what's good for you? so many people ask this question, and when they do, are met with so many (possibly too many answers). i think what's good for you, is what's good for YOU. i have spent way too much time trying to figure out what makes someone else happy and healthy and then trying to copy it. in my estimation, time is better spent learning what works for you. that being said, finding what's good for YOU can take some trial and error. take for instance dieting. i the last post i bid farewell to fad diets. however, i think there are a lot of "diets" out there that can be good for you. in fact, in the past i have found some that were good for me. i like Body for Life. it's simple, reasonable, and has a motivational aspect that gets me moving. Sarah recently emailed me about The 5 Factor Diet. Still another friend has had great luck with Weight Watchers, and another lives by Dr. Ian's Smash Diet. the common link here is each person is happy with what they feel works for them, also important to recognize is each of these diets is similar in approach: sensible eating and exercise.



Happy Medium Moral: if you want to diet, pick something sensible that makes you feel good.

say goodbye to fad diets

interesting statistic: Americans spend $33 billion annually (projected to be over $54 billion by 2009) on weight-loss products and servicse, while becoming fatter and more impatient than ever!

who hasn't fallen victim to the shiny promises of a fad diet? when i was in high school, i was convinced i could lose a pound a day, and i wasn't alone in this misconception. to get there, i employed more than one fad diet. there's the cabbage soup diet, the pineapple juice diet, the 3-day diet, all promising a quick fix of 10 pounds or so. but then there are the fad diets that expect you to stick with them, low-carb diets like Atkins, pre-packaged options like Nutri-system, or meal replacement diets such as Slim Fast. sticking to diets like these can range from impossible to dangerous.

the problem with long term weight-loss goals and the pre-packaged and meal replacement plans is while they promise to teach you about portion control and balanced eating, in the real world you can only actually learn these skills through eating real food and creating meals you will enjoy. with low-carb diets, you limit your energy source: complex carbohydrates. i don't know about you, but energy is a key component to my life!

Happy Medium Moral: stear clear of FADS, in my experience they just make you fat, and a little stupid. on the flip side, all diet plans are not fad diets, some are very helpful and educational. with Sarah's help, my next post will cover that topic, diets that help you be a Happy Medium.