I started to blog some amusing conflicting tidbits found in the news the last three days about smoking. As I hit this page, though, of listings of articles about cigarettes and smoking, I changed my angle.

(Depending on when you get this, the emphasis of the page will likely change. I'm too lazy to take a screen shot).

Here's a sampling of headlines.

• target="_new">Study: High School Students Smoking Less
• Do cigarettes cause cancer? I'm not sure, says boss of sued tobacco firm (Probably not if you glue them together and use them as bookends)
• Tobacco chemical brain drug hope
• German smokers laugh off health warnings (The "warnings" are hilariously strange from an American perspective - worth a click)
• Smokers: Beware Bad Air
• Tobacco firms try back-door protest
• Smoking opponents generate new heat (Registration required - about a smoking ban in the works in Illinois)
• Restaurant employees seen as major risk group for cancer (Out of Finland)

Posted by: hln at 05:56 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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There are lots of fitness/nutrition/protein bars on the market today. One, Luna, made by Clif Bar, markets its product especially to women. Packed with soy protein (wahoo!), Luna bars also offer a large amount of folic acid, and, depending on the flavor/type, calcium and other important nutrients. They range from 170 to 180 calories, and they're great snacks.

Since I've tried them all except Chai Tea, Chocolate Peppermint Stick, Peanut Butter and Jelly, and Orange Bliss, I thought I'd give a review.

The Flavors.

I'll start with the negative. I just recently tried the two new flavors, Caramel Apple and Dulce de Leche. Uh, yuck! They taste imposed...too sweet with a bit of an aftertaste. If I'm hungry and it's the only healthy choice, yeah, I'd eat one. Both have some sort of strange icing on the bar. It's just too much.

Now - two bars "weigh in" at 170 calories; the rest are 180. The two at 170 are Sesame Raisin Crunch and Toasted Nuts and Cranberry. Both are great, and I often use these as cycling snacks (3/4 of one or so at each refueling stop). The reason? Nothing meltable, and that matters in extreme heat. Endorsed.

Of the remaining bars, 180 calories each, the top choices for me all include a bit of chocolate. It's the perfect amount of chocolate. You see it; you taste it, but it's really negligible. Those are Chocolate Pecan Pie, S'Mores, and Nutz Over Chocolate. These are not, because of the chocolate, bike friendly in temperatures nearing and above 80, but they make great afternoon or mid-morning snacks and can even serve as the occasional late breakfast.

So-so flavors? The Lemon Zest is too...zesty. Tropical Crisp was okay, but I wouldn't buy it if I had other choices. I've eaten so many of the Cherry Covered Chocolate ones that I'm tired of them, and Sweet Dreams left me craving more water to get rid of the cloying aftertaste (but otherwise good).

Now, the nutrition info. I'll use Nutz over Chocolate. Sorry you low carbers - you're likely going to rule these out at 24 grams of carbs for a 180 calorie serving. But check it out - all of the folate a woman needs, and 35% of the calcium. This is great for a person like me who doesn't eat much dairy.

Where can you get 'em? Well, many grocery stores will sell them, as will stores like GNC. I get them in bulk online from All Star Health, as this is the best I've found with pricing. I'd recommend the grocery store sampling method before ordering, as most people's taste buds are far less whacked than mine.

My personal favorites are Genisoy Extreme bars, though. That's a review for another day.

hln

Posted by: hln at 08:39 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I should split this category into Health, Fitness, and Nutrition categories. Look for those, uh, someday.

In the building where I work, there's a nutrition company, the name of which escapes me. The point I want to make, though, is that I was in there one day talking with one of the dieticians, and she showed me two models that they use to visually educate clients about the differences between fat and muscle. The models are made of plastic, each representing a pound of its respective material.

The muscle is very dense, of course - we all know that - muscle "weighs more than fat." The fat, aptly colored a sickly yellow, appears 1.5 times larger.

I'm going to state the obvious for a moment, so bear with me. Weight/resistance training builds muscle. If you "convert" (which is really a bad term because that's NOT what's occurring - in a pure sense, you're losing the fat and gaining the muscle) 10 pounds of fat to muscle, is your body composition going to change? Oh, you betcha it is.

Focus if you will on the next celebrity whose picture you see. Look at his/her arms, legs. Those arms and legs are built with the help of personal trainers. They're built with weight-bearing exercise. Weight training will not make you fat, ladies. And gentlemen, it will not bulk you up significantly unless you tailor your program to do that...and have the genetics to make it happen.

Why am I harping on this? Probably just because I can. I'm irritated with a lot of things diet and exercise these days - others' "gospels." Perhaps this should be a RANT. You decide. It's just disjointed ravings.

more...

Posted by: hln at 10:38 PM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
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1 It's very helpful. I get so tempted by those "diets" and their promises. Even Weight Watchers makes me twitch in ways I can't quite define. My idiot fiance is following some ridiculous "soup diet" but only until he loses 10 pounds, and he's close - after a month. He'll probably gain it all back. Me? Only 4 pounds, total, in as many months. I'm trying to learn to eat better, not diet, and my stubborn head isn't helping. I know, exercise would help. I'm fighting that battle too. But yes, thanks for talking about these things. They keep me sane.

Posted by: Jennifer at November 12, 2003 05:50 AM (kjOoJ)

2 You might be doing your best Don Quixote impression for most people. I, on the other hand, appreciate someone posting this stuff. Lots of people tend to get surly when I bring it up. In this age of instant gratification, everyone wants results now. The other day I was speaking to someone about the importance of changing their eating habits in lieu of, or in addition to, their diet. I mentioned how even a tiny change in caloric intake can affect their weight with the following example: Say you're eating dinner and you decide to have an extra dinner roll. That's 100 extra calories, on average, so no big deal, right? Wrong. Imagine ingesting 100 extra calories every day for a year. You will be celebrating the New Year accompanied by 10 more pounds. Probably had no affect on the other person. Oh, and some feedback on the Weight Watchers thing: my wife uses the program(she stopped while pregnant) and it looks like a decent combination of limiting intake while simultaneously changing behavior. Participants are forced to account for each and every food item that they consume, and are gently persuaded to eat less caloricly dense foods. You are also required to eat a minimum number of servings from fruits, vegetables and dairy products. The dietary mix achieved is fairly healthy. Oh, and people are encouraged to exercise daily, if for no other reason than bonus points are accrued allowing them to add the occassional snack. My only beef with Weight Watchers is their blind support of the height/weight tables. All through high school, I was classified as overweight, even when I had a 28" waistline and 6% body fat. Consequently, I pretty much ignore the tables. If I tried to get down to the weight suggested by WW, I'd have to lose about 25 pounds of lean muscle mass en route. Not a chance. I do have my own handy dandy fat calipers, though, which I find much more useful in keeping track of my weight. The upshot of this long-winded comment is that I, at least, appreciate your health related-posts. Thanks.

Posted by: physics geek at November 12, 2003 01:03 PM (Xvrs7)

3 I'm a tentative Atkins believer -- and the diet is much different than parodied. The "jump start" is not a psychological thing, it's designed to clear your liver of stored gylcogen so that your body will switch over to a fat-burning metabolism. There's also very little of totally eliminating foods. The "diet" is most strict during the first two weeks, but gradually becomes much more balanced as fruits and more carbohydrates are reintroduced. In some ways, Atkins is not truly a diet, but is designed to be a permanent change in the way you eat. Not for nothing is his second book entitled "Atkins For Life." And no, your "Kashi" isn't quite as bad as soda. Fiber is good (and is encouraged on Atkins). After that, your Kashi looks like it has about 30 grams of carbs, including 11 grams of sugar. Sugar, of course, will make your body rapidly react by producing insulin. The other carbs (except the fiber) will do that to a greater or lesser extent, depending on their composition. If you are a lucky person whose body reacts properly by producing the right amount of insulin, that's great. For many of us, though, that amount of carbohydrates will produce a rush and then a crash (just like when you were a kid and had too much sugar). That, in turn, leads to all sorts of symptoms, including headaches, irritability, difficulty sleeping, and increased hunger. Switching to a way of eating that avoids that rush/crash cycle can be tremendously helpful to a huge number of people. It may not be for everybody. I'd urge anyone considering a change in the way they eat to read up on Atkins and other diets before they start anything. Most of the information in the Atkins book is available free on www.atkins.com. And no, I don't work for them, but I've been on Atkins for about 3 weeks. I'm losing weight slowly but steadily, but more importantly, I feel 1000% better. My headaches are gone, I'm less irritable, less hungry, and I sleep better. It may not be for everyone, but I'm a believer.

Posted by: Spoons at November 12, 2003 04:59 PM (F3d90)

4 Clear glycogen! I have to cough; you're talking to an athlete. Clearing glycogen is a BAD thing. Fat burning! You mean ketosis. You know - the stuff that taxes your liver, makes your breath bad (potentially), and burns muscle BEFORE it burns fat. That being said, I do use Splenda any time I would "add" sugar (like, teaspoons). If I sent you a list of what I eat each day, it wouldn't qualify, but I hit all the food groups (light on dairy, actually - taste, not restriction), and I'm medium carb, medium fat. I have to be because I'm burning the carbs. I've not seen Atkins work for anyone in more than the short term. So, color me a skeptic. And the lack of harsh restriction on saturated fat really turns my face red. Simple carbs probably do produce the rush and crash. I simply wouldn't know - I avoid them in most cases - maybe a bit of bread with dinner, but I never do "pure refined carbs" unless I'm on the bike and planning to ride for more than an hour and a half. Good luck with Atkins. Watch your kidneys. Watch your liver. Get plenty of salt and water...but you probably know that. And if you're not exercising, get your ass away from the computer and MOVE. Thanks - well-written and intelligent response, even though we disagree. hln P.S. I don't think I am "lucky" - I think I'm careful and eat really well, and I definitely advocate eating often, eating consistently. I eat five times a day, sometimes six to seven (depending on amount and timing of exercise...I'm likely to hit 7 times today, but two of those times will be only 60 calories - graham cracker or some dates to RESTORE glycogen. I use that stuff). I should slap a full day's diet up on here to show what I mean. hln

Posted by: hln at November 12, 2003 06:18 PM (CWwGn)

5 I've lost over forty pounds (and kept 'em off for the most part, tho the weight does go up a bit 'round the holidays...) in just under three years, basically by using a Weight Watcher's diet: balanced meals, watch the excess fats and empty calories, more veggies, portion control, and breakfast. The gf and I have attended one-evening lectures at the local hospital, taught by nutritionists: Vegetarian eating, and meals-on-the-go. Vegetarian because of my cholesterol (we're not vegetarian, though we have cut back on the meat and we have several vegetarian dinners each week); on the go because of the same reasons anyone else might. If you can take similar lectures, I highly recommend them. Two points I'd like to make: The sugar/carb crash can be minimized by eating protein with your carbs--for instance, a tablespoon of peanut butter works wonders. I don't recall the mechanism exactly, but it made sense when it was explained to me, and I try to keep protein and carbs balanced (Heather, you might also talk about why protein helps one recover after exercise in the future). Breakfast works wonders. Eating within three hours of waking 'counts' as breakfast; waking up at 6 am and eating at your desk at 10 am doesn't count. Skipping breakfast puts your body in 'starvation mode' because it doesn't know when you'll eat next, and your metabolism goes down to preserve energy. And I love Kashi, too! Though I'm eating it with soy milk, mostly. Next thing for me: Gotta get to the gym and exercise more. In the meantime, I'll stick to less meat, more veggies, and fewer sugars--just like doctors have been telling you to do for years. --Victor P.S. Did you delete a comment? Your 'clear glycogen' comment seems to have come from nowhere. . .

Posted by: Victor at November 12, 2003 07:59 PM (16A49)

6 I've lost over forty pounds (and kept 'em off for the most part, tho the weight does go up a bit 'round the holidays...) in just under three years, basically by using a Weight Watcher's diet: balanced meals, watch the excess fats and empty calories, more veggies, portion control, and breakfast. The gf and I have attended one-evening lectures at the local hospital, taught by nutritionists: Vegetarian eating, and meals-on-the-go. Vegetarian because of my cholesterol (we're not vegetarian, though we have cut back on the meat and we have several vegetarian dinners each week); on the go because of the same reasons anyone else might. If you can take similar lectures, I highly recommend them. Two points I'd like to make: The sugar/carb crash can be minimized by eating protein with your carbs--for instance, a tablespoon of peanut butter works wonders. I don't recall the mechanism exactly, but it made sense when it was explained to me, and I try to keep protein and carbs balanced (Heather, you might also talk about why protein helps one recover after exercise in the future). Breakfast works wonders. Eating within three hours of waking 'counts' as breakfast; waking up at 6 am and eating at your desk at 10 am doesn't count. Skipping breakfast puts your body in 'starvation mode' because it doesn't know when you'll eat next, and your metabolism goes down to preserve energy. And I love Kashi, too! Though I'm eating it with soy milk, mostly. Next thing for me: Gotta get to the gym and exercise more. In the meantime, I'll stick to less meat, more veggies, and fewer sugars--just like doctors have been telling you to do for years. --Victor P.S. Did you delete a comment? Your 'clear glycogen' comment seems to have come from nowhere. . .

Posted by: Victor at November 12, 2003 08:00 PM (16A49)

7 AWESOME - couldn't have said it better myself. I have always watched what I eat and tried various diets - including Atkins. I didn't lose true, steady weight and found it EASY to maintain until I met with a personal trainer and got advice on nutrition and exercise. I just started to count calories every day - no matter what way shape or form and only eat so many. Of course, within those calories, you have to choose for yourself what you want to eat to feel the best. If you want to drink alcohol for all your calories a day, you would probably lose weight, but probably wouldn't feel that great or be that healthy. A skinny person is not necessarily 'healthy'. Just like some larger people are fairly 'healthy' even if they don't look it. With my personal trainer, I also found although I did do weights every week, I had to change up my routine and add some cardio with it. Now my base exercise routine just amounts to about 5 hours a week and I count calories. No problem. I lost 25 pounds and 10% body fat and GAINED muscle. It was over approximately 6 months of time and have maintained for over 3 months. I feel so in control of my body - it's wonderful.

Posted by: Lorena at November 15, 2003 10:13 AM (ubhj8)

8 Oh yeah - and Weight Watchers is good, too. All it is is WW counting your calories for you. If you read the packaging, the serving sizes, and actually measure out all your food, you can easily do that on your own. The only thing missing is the "group" support and atmosphere.

Posted by: Lorena at November 15, 2003 10:17 AM (ubhj8)

9 I think that there are a lot of things that Atkins was right about, and have since seriously curbed my carb intake. Since I did that, my tastes and cravings have seriously changed. The main thing that I did was drasticly cut back on the sugar I ate. The main part of that was simply giving up soda pop. I still eat my share of carbs, but it isn't the bulk of my calories anymore. The other thing that I did was start weight training. I have twice the strength I had a year ago, and my weight has changed exactly three pounds. On the other hand, I've gone from about 26% body fat to about 19%.

Posted by: Phelps at November 15, 2003 03:46 PM (HlHi7)

10 Nice, Phelps! I never drank soda, so I wouldn't know how that would impact someone. (I'm an odd duck, no?) I haven't done anything to "curb" carbs per se with nutrition, but I have tried to drop empty calories of all sorts from my day-to-day intake. So that means the switch to whole wheat pasta, full fiber cereals, etc. And LOTS of fruit. I'm proud to say that with the very few processed foods we eat here in Noggle manor, I don't get much "added sugar." Ladies - check out the Luna bar post! hln

Posted by: hln at November 15, 2003 04:45 PM (yJyUC)

11 Phelps, I'm curious: What kind of carbs *do* you eat? I'm assuming you're cutting out the simple carbs (sugar, basically) but if you are weight training, you need carbohydrate so your muscles will have something to use as fuel. (I realize we don't know each other, so let me assure you there's no 'hidden agenda' in my question--I truly am curious.)

Posted by: Victor at November 16, 2003 08:55 AM (16A49)

12 Very well-stated! I came across your blog through Live Journal somehow. I enjoyed this entry a lot. Thanks!

Posted by: Hollie at January 13, 2004 07:57 AM (56Trs)

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A sign in Stephen Lanzalotta's bakery reads, "Senza il pane tutto diventa orfano." In Italian, that means, "Without bread everyone's an orphan."

But fewer customers are buying his European-style breads and pastries these days — thanks to the Atkins diet, many regulars are cutting back on carbohydrates. Lanzalotta says the low-carb diet has contributed to an estimated 40 percent drop in business at his shop, Sophia's.

Some customers have even stopped by to apologize.

The National Bread Leadership Council, which says 40 percent of Americans are eating less bread than a year ago, has scheduled what it calls a summit this month in Rhode Island focusing in part on low-carb diets and how to educate the public that breaking bread is still part of a healthy lifestyle.

"It's too bad that we just can't eat all foods in moderation. But no, we have to do something dramatic all the time," said Judi Adams, president of the Wheat Foods Council and a registered dietician, referring to the Atkins diet. "We have to look for this magic bullet."

Posted by: hln at 08:07 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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Whenever I'm in a different city, I find a gym for the day. Today, it was Ozark Fitness, which is about a mile from my mother's house.

Which can most adequately be called a Meat/Meet Market. While working my chest in the free weights area today, I saw this woman who was in her 40s, perfect bod, matching outfit, lifting small weights, and flirting with men of different shapes, ages, and sizes. Her top half was highly surgically altered (as women that thin are not endowed naturally with canteloupes). It was amusing. The "gentlemen" were just eating this up.

I got my share of onlookers, too, which I'm not used to. Most obviously was my work on the leg press. I dress for utility at the gym - no little "outfits," and I was badly in need of a shower for aesthetic purposes (hair!). Still, they stare. Not used to that. Gawkers! Turn away, and get back to your lifting.

People of all shapes and sizes in this gym, and that's good. There's even a separate "ladies'" gym, which I think is funny. The machines are all calibrated so that they max out with pretty low weights. I guess this makes women feel stronger because they use more plates (5 pounders)? I coulda maxed out the thigh machine but, naaaa.

Exercising in different gyms keeps everything more interesting, and, like most things, you're glad to be back home working in your own gym. I don't see any gawkers there (gawking at me or others, really) - most people in the free weights, Hammer machines area are pretty intent on their exercises, which I prefer.

hln

Posted by: hln at 01:08 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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I joined Netflix yesterday. Why, you ask? I mean, it makes no sense. I barely acknowledge the television. Here's the answer.

Magneto 9004. It will turn my bike into an exercise bike. And I can stomach a couple of hours on the bike a few times a week if I've got a movie to watch or a hockey game to spectate (or yell at).

So, the not-so-surreptitious plan is to train all winter in hopes of raising my speed closer to the level of these guys.

Training would commence today were it not for the fact that I strained my neck while lifting yesterday. Everything should be back to normal within 3 more days, I hope. I've been icing it at the recommendation of a trainer friend. It's kinda funny, too. The best (read: most comfortable) solution to the problem of how to ice one's own neck is solved by a frozen haddock filet. Ten minutes of icing (lying on the fish filet), and then ten minutes off. Repeat. Refreeze haddock.

Works like a charm. Wine also helps me to forget that my neck aches.

hln

Posted by: hln at 06:59 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I have two responses to this.

One is horribly snarky and can be summed up in one sentence: "But have you stopped buying cigarettes before food?"

The second is the real response - what's the best way to fix this?

- Despite the nation's struggle with obesity, the Agriculture Department says more and more American families are hungry or unsure whether they can afford to buy food.

Some 12 million families last year worried they didn't have enough money to buy food, and 32 percent of them actually experienced someone going hungry at one time or another, said a USDA report released Friday.

Some 34.6 million Americans were living in poverty last year — 1.7 million more than in 2001, according to the Census Bureau.

Hunger seems like an unlikely problem in a country where nearly 65 percent of adults and 13 percent of children are overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (news - web sites).

Barbara Laraia, an associate professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, said hunger and obesity can coexist because many hungry families buy high-calorie foods that are low in nutrients.

"They're dependent on foods that are going to make their bellies feel full, rather than on nutrients," Laraia said. "The diet is compromised."

Posted by: hln at 02:47 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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