Tag Archives: lifestyle changes

Cupcake fantasies = diet disaster

Posted on August 3, 2011 | Comments Off

Dreaming of a cupcake to reward yourself for all that dieting work? Well, you may have to reframe your fantasies.

From Eileen:  A friend of mine started a big-time diet and exercise program last week. She jumped in with her typical gregarious enthusiasm, setting up sessions with a personal trainer, reading food labels, packing her lunch, counting her calories … and telling everyone “This is it, guys! This is it!”

 After the first week, she stayed on course, losing a pound. Not a smashing success, but a great start nonetheless. She was pretty pleased with her progress. Slow is OK because this was it, the real deal.

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Posted in Staying Fit

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Wanting Fitness Benefits, Hating Fitness Effort

Posted on June 24, 2011 | Comments Off

If you want to change your life, you have to change yourself. Or, at least part of yourself.

From Joe:  We’ve talked about it before: Converting lifestyle changes into permanent improvements is a major potential stumbling block for everyone who wants to develop better health and fitness practices. That’s why I’m always harping on the importance of framing the issue as one where you change your life by changing your self. Or at least a part of yourself. In the final analysis, that’s the only thing over which you might truly have control.

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Exercise for six years straight? No big deal

Posted on June 1, 2011 | Comments Off

From Eileen: Well, today is my anniversary. Six years of continuous exercise. No flowers. No special dinner out. No real celebration. Actually, it’s almost anti-climactic. That’s because fitness has become part of my everyday life, almost as mundane as making my bed. I certainly don’t celebrate … “Yippee! I’ve taken a shower every day for a decade!” Or “Woo hoo! I ate a meal every single day for the last 12 years.”

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Posted in Staying Fit, Uncategorized

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Can multi-tasking at work wreck your diet?

Posted on May 13, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Joe:  Shortly after the turn of the century, we all were being sold a bill of goods about the coolness factor of multitasking: New gadgets, a new generation of workers, instant communication, all this was presented to as really slick. Article after article represented anybody who did not joyfully and skillfully multitask as being an old fogey — most probably a male old fogey. (For example, a USAToday story with its subtext.)

 A lot of research has been done on multitasking since that time. The gist of this research is that we pay a steep price for constantly switching our attention when we are doing something important.

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2011 Contest coming to an end. Now what?

Posted on May 9, 2011 | Comments Off

From Eileen:  Well, the Fittest Loser contest is officially over for the year … although the winner won’t be announced until Wednesday. (The party is at 6:30 p.m. at John Barleycorn in Schaumburg).

 The big question, however, is will they be able to keep up the momentum when the spotlight ends? All of their trainers believe they will continue on their fitness journey, as you can read in the Daily Herald’s Health and Fitness section today.

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Get going with your fitness pre-mortem!

Posted on May 6, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Joe:  In a prior post about candy jars in the office, I urged you to think seriously about the states of mind that characterized people who voiced opinions about whether or not candy jars were acceptable artifacts in an office setting. If you have already done that, you probably noticed that most commentators – no matter whether they approved or disapproved of such jars – framed the issue in moralistic terms: Candy jars are not a problem in themselves, they said.  Instead, the problem was in the people who lacked self-discipline, suffered from feelings of inferiority, had issues hanging on from their childhood or, as one commenter put it, need therapy. As far as I can see, this kind of moralistic discourse does nothing to address the practical concerns of people who are trying to devise lasting changes in life habits.

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Weighty commitment making her a little cranky

Posted on April 1, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Gerry:  When I was offered the opportunity to participate in the Fittest Loser Challenge and write about the experience, my co-workers were quick to offer suggestions on what to name my column. “The Whiniest Loser” was by far the biggest vote-getter. As they learned more about the rigors of the contest, I think they felt sorry for me and decided to opt for the kinder, gentler “Our Fittest Loser.”

Seven weeks in, I’m thinking they should have gone with their first instinct. I’m definitely whining now. I realize over the last several weeks, I’ve complained, pouted and told long-suffering tales of the travails of exercise, all with a hint of humor. Not today.

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