To do a job right, and efficiently, you need to have good tools. That’s as true for police officers as it is for technical support people as it is landscapers. It’s also true for people who are trying to lose weight.
No, I’m not talking about a fork and knife. I’m talking about tools that help keep track of your progress, what you’ve eaten, what helps motivate you or to exercise equipment. Here are some of those tools that I use (or have), that I think are helpful to us all.
iPod/MP3 player – I know I couldn’t do a cardio session without mine. If I don’t have music to listen to, my mind starts to go places that I don’t want it to go while working out. I’ve listened to all sorts of music and podcasts when jogging, but in the end, I find the heavy/loud/hard music to be my best motivator. I have an iPod now, but really liked my old iRiver that I used before. And I know my wife loves her tiny little iPod Shuffle.
Tape measure, calipers & scale – These items help me measure my progress. Now, I’m not going to be as reliant on these as I have in the past because they only tell a part of the overall story. What matters to me is, am I honestly happy with the effort I’ve put into my plans? If I am, then I know the weight and measurements will come. But I have to be honest with myself. The tape, calipers and scale are really for setting my baseline. Then, I’ll check on them every so often (the scale weekly for our weigh-ins).
Google Apps Spreadsheet – I’m a techie, so of course there has to be a way to get Google involved. I use Spreadsheets to keep track of my weekly food intake. The beauty of this is, I can login from anywhere there is an internet connection and update my log. It’s a browser based program, all you need is a web browser like Firefox, so I can use any computer I’m at too. If you don’t have a Google Account, I’d go get one and try out Google Docs. There is also an online document editor (like Microsoft Word) in Google Apps that lets you create documents online too.
Resistance bands – I used these after I got over the “how ridiculous, who can get a workout with some rubber bands” thoughts. Guess what, they do give you a pretty decent workout. The only problem I had was I tried to over do it on one band, and the handle snapped off the band and whacked me good.
Swiss ball – I sat on a swiss ball for my desk chair at the office for almost 4 years before it popped on me (I would have loved to see the look on my face when it went). It did amazing things for my back and abs. For example, I golf maybe once a year. I’m a hack. Typically, after my annual golf outing my back and sides would be sore from the 18 holes of twisting (usually more than 100 shots). It was painful. After sitting on the ball for a year and then getting out on the course, my back never bothered me. I have to assume it’s because sitting on the ball exercises all those core muscles all the time, so swinging the club 100+ times was nothing. Of course, the ball can be used for daily workouts too. There are some VERY tough exercises for that damn ball (it’s a love/hate relationship for me).
Those are a few of the tools I use to help me out. I know there are many, many more out there. So please, share with me what tools you use to help keep you on track, motivated and fit.
hey there…i’ve been reading your blog a bit this morning. good work! just thought i’d let you know about some resistance bands i found in an interview with Terrell Owens. apparently he and another company called bodylastics got together and he’s helping market their bands, and i have to say, they are a really awesome set of bands and actually priced well too. you can check them out at http://www.tobands.com
i must say, you are braver than i, as i have pictures similar to yours, but won’t post them…maybe when i’ve achieved my goals. hanging them on my bathroom mirror and using them as a desktop wallpaper at home is motivation enough for me…
keep up the good work!