I'm Bringin' Sexy Back part 2: Food Journal

*Justin Timberlake

Ok so I know it's actually been 3 days since I first tried the 30-Day Shred workout DVD, but today is actually my second day following it. This whole weekend, I was in serious pain. Good pain. Not knee joint pain from the weight of a spare tire, which I want you to know I don't actually have. No, this pain was--and is again--worked muscle pain. The kind that you only acquire from doing strenuous physical activity. Lazy people, like I have an inclination to be, never experience this positive pain. I'm proud of myself, and you should be too.


Before I continue the explanation of my plan to remove my excess baggage, I'd like to throw in a little complaint about that DVD. It's nothing big. Nothing that should prevent anyone from purchasing it, but there is a long intro in the beginning that you can't skip or fast forward through. I foresee it becoming annoying when I want to get my workout on. The simple solution is to put it in, and let it run through it's routine for the few minutes while I'm moving the coffee table to the window and whatnot. I know; it's no big deal. I just had to get that off my chest.


So like I said, this video is not the only part of my plan. I have a bridal shower to attend on Labor Day weekend, and hopes of going down to Charleston for a visit while I'm on the east coast. For this special occasion, I'd like to look pretty awesome. To do that in 3 weeks, I have to pull out all the stops. No, I'm not going on some crazy Hollywood diet where I drink something that looks like diarrhea in a bottle and produces the same effect on the way out. That's just water weight anyway. This modification is about being healthy, not just skinny.


I've recently begun a food journal. This is good on several levels.
1. It requires you to pay attention to what you're eating.
2. It encourages you to measure and later limit serving sizes.
3. It teaches you better food choices.


There are several places you can do this; I have tried more than one in the past. Glamour.com has a fitness challenge, Body by Glamour, where you track your progress, and enter your diet and exercise over a period of 12 weeks. Every week they send you an email of food suggestions, sample workouts, and goals. The coolest part about this resource is that you can create a model of yourself, and see both what you look like now and what you will look like at your ideal body weight (IBW). You can find similar weight-loss programs on most health and fitness magazine websites (i.e. Self, Prevention, etc.).

*Me now (left) and at my IBW (right)

The one I'm using now is http://www.my-calorie-counter.com/. What I like about this one is that you record more than calories. It ask for full stats on your food choices, giving you daily targets on all of them. Calories, cholesterol, fat, sodium, and so on. You can search for items through this site, or create custom entries. The activity log is virtually the same. You can search their database, which tells you how many calories you would burn, based on your weight and the amount of time you enter in their calculator. They have everything from conditioning to dressing a baby while sitting. But again, if you can't find what you're looking for, you can add your own custom entries. They also offer a water tracker, so you can keep up with your eight glasses a day. And there's no time limit on this one; you can do it forever if you want!


A third great resource is DiscoveryHealth.com. They have a program called The National Body Challenge. It's supposed to be something you start on January 1st, but you can register at anytime, and your membership is continuous. What's included? Just periodic emails of articles written by nutritionists and doctors, recipes and tips for maximum progress. No commitment to entering calories or exercises.

More tips and updates to come...

"Kick your own butt." -Jillian Michaels

"That is your body getting stronger." -Jillian Michaels