In my first Fitness Monday Diary I asked YOU to choose. YOU the reader chose the topic of this, my second Fitness Monday diary. And after three long weeks of mildly grueling research, at a staggering cost of $5.97; I bring you in this new hi-def Daily Kos diary on nutrition.
(I really need to stop reading Cheers & Jeers while watching BBC’s Planet Earth series, and yes I did spend $5 on a nutrition book I found at a tag sale. The .97 is for the Twinkie brand, non-nutritional-food-like-substance I purchased and consumed immediately afterward.)
Come with me over the flip, where I impart my limited nutritional knowledge.
To tell you the truth, I dropped the ball a bit. I started researching this diary with such enthusiasm & somewhere along the way things got busy & the research never quite developed into the writing process. As a friend of mine says, "Life is what happens while you're making plans".
I’m not the best person on nutrition. I think I do pretty well, but like I’ve seen in the comments here several times now; I like to eat good food regardless of the calories/fat/sodium/etc. I work out & try to keep fit to support my eating habits. Having fallen from previous fitness level for various reasons, its going to take some changes to my diet as well as getting back into my workout routine, to get back to the point I’d like to be at.
For full disclosure, I’m a vegetarian for the most part, (I have a weakness for sushi) and have been for the past 7 years. I might write another diary on vegetarianism some time, but for now, I’ll leave it for the comments & focus on general nutrition for everyone. Suffice it to say, vegetarianism isn’t necessarily healthier, it just forces you to think a little more about what you’re eating. As I like to remind people, chocolate chip cookies & beer are vegetarian too.
While I have my doubts about the food pyramid, the idea is about right and it’s why I have such skepticism for fad diets like the Atkins Diet. These diets tend to artificially reduce one aspect of the diet or another & give dramatic results, but like the US’s addiction to oil, it’s not sustainable. Eventually the hassle of sticking to such a regimented diet will become boring or unrealistic; you’ll lapse back into old eating/exercise habits & the pounds will begin to creep back up. Diet pills are tempting too, the quick fix always is.
In lieu of a well thought, well written diary, here's some links that I found while doing my research.
Energy Boosters article on Prevention.com
Some suggestions for quick snacks when you need a little extra kick before a workout.
Fule Up for Morning Workouts article on Prevention.com
Gives some suggestions for those of us who try to get in that early morning workout.
Make Better Eating Choices article on Prevention.com
Probably one of the most helpful quick articles.
Here's some science based articles.
Obesity more Dangerous than Terrorists
Healty Food not so Healthy
Updated food Pirymid for Older Adults