Sunday, June 29, 2008

GutCheckCast 10 - Surprising Successes

Although Doug was enjoying the cuisine d'Disney, and I didn't get much of a work out, he drops 1/2 pound, and I drop almost 1/2 pound.

We briefly discuss the Push-up Challenge from last week, and it looks like this will be our first week on the way to 100.

Good footwear for exercise is important - make sure your shoes are comfortable, and provide good support.

Matt's links for this week include:
Just a Guy Thing ran an article on free running or "Parkour". If you've seen the opening scene of Casino Royale, or the chase through Brazilian streets in The Incredible Hulk, you've seen free running. More information also at www.americanparkour.com, considered the online base for most free runners.

The Dumb Little Man Blog had a recent article on keeping fit while traveling. It is a short post with only a few tips, but they are a great reminder as we begin the height of Vacation (and Con) season here in the USA.

Zen Habits (is running zen? I suppose it very well could be...) had an article on turning your couch loving self, into a running fool in 5 steps. It makes no illusions that things will progress rapidly, but does give good basics on how to build up your running speeds along with Health benefits of running to boot.

And that's it for this week. Stay positive, have fun. Now get out there and check your gut.

Enjoy!

Download GutCheck10.mp3

Sunday, June 22, 2008

GutCheckCast09 - Living the Sweet Life

Because MSH is sitting in for Doug this week. My apologies again for the audio quality. We're going to have to do something about that.

Doug's down...
Zach's down... and breaks ten pounds this week.

We discuss ... BMI measuring scales, and gaming their systems,
Fringe Benefits of a Diet and Exercise Program, Pain (hear Zach squeal like a little girl), Family Fun Time, etc.

Then audio quality takes a sudden dip, so I discuss solo some traps, like focusing on weight to the exclusion of all else, and beating yourself up/constantly denying yourself any of your old favorite foods.

From Matt (foodandexerciselog.wordpress.com) AND from Random (sturgeonslaw.com)

100 Pushup Challenge is all about helping you be able to do 100 pushups in 6 weeks.

Foodsel is a website that gives you nutritional information on the foods you eat (including a cool visual lay out), but also provides you with an idea of how much of what activity you need to do to burn off the calories.

Reader's Digest had a recent article on how to help control your cravings. This is mostly repeated from any list of things to help you control cravigns but always deserves another read.

Hope you guys enjoy the episode, and the great links above. We'll have to start comparing notes on the 100 pushup challenge.

And that's it. Enjoy!
Call our voicemail - 206-666-4196

Download GutCheck09.mp3

Monday, June 16, 2008

DDR, Doug's Follow-up

While so many of you have been getting fit with your Wii, I have been relying on my trusty old PS2. I think that Dance Dance Revolution is a great aerobic workout on those days when you may either get drowned or heat stroke doing the usual outdoor workout.

I have two flavors of DDR that I use interchangeably. DDR Konamix is actually a PSX outing, while Supernova is specifically for the PS2. Each has their pros and cons. Konamix was my first entry into the series and was originally purchased as just a "different" sort of game, not so much as a vehicle for exercise, per se. I like the way Konamix handles the workout mode, as it essentially lets you pick your own songs and shows you the calories that you've burned while doing that.

Supernova's workout mode makes me feel like a spaz. I don't need a videogame telling me something I already know. That said, Supernova provided a much more America-centric, eighties-driven playlist. Everything from Funkytown, to Bowie's Let's Dance, to Video Killed the Radio Star makes this an enjoyable process. All those years of playing Konamix have made some of the songs "old friends" but for the newbie, the J Pop isn't likely to inspire you the way that familiar songs will.

The other nice thing for me ? I'm not under the gun the way you might be on a piece of exercise equipment at the gym. No pressure. Just me and my White-man's overbite gettin' down with my bad self.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

GutCheckCast 08 - Wii're very excited

That's right, fellow geeks. Doug's got his Wii on.

He's already suffering motion-related injuries. Not as bad as some, but there you go.

And he's down .2 pounds. 229.8 lbs.
Zach is down .6 pounds. 243.2.

Zach goes to Wendy's and discovers the .99 cent value menu. (chicken sandwich - 330 calories, stack attack - 380) And mandarin oranges.

Zach's lifting weights, and has topped out his barbell set. He must find more weight.

Doug talks about DDR and fitness - (Doug likes 80's music) and can do 30-40 minutes in an aerobic set. (Zach is understandably impressed.) For a free PC clone for DDR, check out stepmania. Dance pads are available in a number of places - Zach got his at the world's garage sale, eBay.

Matt (at foodandexerciselog.WORDPRESS.com...)

sends us some great links.

Healthy Habits is a blog done by a personal trainer with advice how to get the most out of your workouts.

Health Assist is a blog about healthy habits and how to avoid the not so healthy ones. They also have the Calorie Burn Calculator which helps you figure out haw much time you have to put into an activity to burn X number of calories.

Shapefit.com is a website full of exercises and nutritional information to get you on your way to better physical fitness. They even have the Fit Tracker. A Diet and exercise tracker mixed into a social network platform, with tons of options for anyone.

Good luck this week!

Download GutCheckCast08.mp3

Sunday, June 8, 2008

GutCheckCast 07 - Major Milestones

This week -
Doug hits double digits, having lost over ten pounds in seven weeks.
Zach is plugging along, with a total of nine pounds lost in the same time period.

We talk about a thing called "the Internet" and the fact that it's chock full of information. For example, our silent partner Matt has sent some great links.

For Doug's Disney Vacation -
Basics on How to stay fit at Disney World - Gives you some basic information on how you can keep in shape at Disney including how far certain walks are and approximate amount of calories you can burn taking these walks.

Pass Porter has a few basic tips of how to eat properly at Disney.

And for the rest of us:

Lifehacker had a recent article on free online tools to help you track your fitness progress. Although most of the tools listed are more for keeping track of your food, but its still good.

Stronglifts.com is a website put together by a body builder and has been working on it for a few years and he has some great information for non-professional weight lifters. I strongly recommend looking through the older articles as much as the newer ones. Even if your not looking into body building, it still has some great information on things as simple as how to properly stretch.

Intervaltraining.net has a lot of information on Intervals and how to incorporate them into your workouts. And even a few Interval training workouts that you can follow for a desired effect. And if your not convinced of the the power of intervals (since this is partly a huge ad for books on intervals) then just see what The Mayo Clinic has to say about them as well. (Note from Zach - this is a principle that I've used in the past for cardio, and is the basis for the "Couch to 5k" training regimen. It really works, and I encourage you to try this.)

Matt has been keeping track of his own progress at http://foodandexerciselog.wordpress.com/, and we encourage you to check his site out and cheer him on. He's posting some great numbers, and video updates, so what are you waiting for?

And that's it for this week. Have a great one, good luck, let's get out there and pound some pavement!

Enjoy!
Download GutCheckCast07.mp3

Thursday, June 5, 2008

MSH Presents: Pico De Gallo

Everything below this 'graph is from MSH. Her Pico is absolutely fantastic, and goes great on everything I've tried it with so far, including her chili. You don't need chips - scramble some egg whites, fry up some bacon (according to Men's Health it really is healthier than other breakfast meats) and throw all of the above and some pico in a tortilla for a healthy, protein-packed breakfast taco. If you've made the pico the night before, that's even better, because the flavors get a chance to blend. Yum.

This recipe is one of my favorites. It is a great condiment that can go on chicken, beef, pork, fish, or other meats. It is also great for dipping. It is a little labor intensive, but well worth the effort. Enjoy!

Pico de Gallo

8-10 Roma tomatoes, diced
1-2 jalapeƱos; seeded, ribbed, and finely diced
1 bunch green onions, sliced
½ red onion, finely diced
½ white onion
juice of 2 limes
¼ tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. dried parsley flakes
salt & pepper to taste

In a large bowl add the diced tomatoes, then salt them with ¼ tsp. of salt, and stir. Add the rest of the ingredients, and stir. When I squeeze the juice from the limes, I like to use my kitchen shears to cut the pulp into the mixture – it adds more lime flavor! Taste the mixture, when all of the ingredients have been added, and adjust the seasoning accordingly.

A quick mid-week check-in.

My wife hates it when I tell her I'm having oatmeal for lunch. She's not really a breakfast food junkie the way I am. Having said that, for the last couple weeks, I've been eating oatmeal for breakfast and lunch on Monday - Thursday (until today - a man can only live without his beloved breakfast tacos for so long. But here's to the next two weeks.). I think I'm getting good results, as I hopped on the scale and... well... we'll save that for Saturday.

But the most encouraging thing for me personally is that My Sweet Honey (my wife) has started noticing and commenting. Of course, this morning it was "I think we need to buy you some new pants, the ones you're wearing are hanging off of you", but still, it's sweet.

And for the last two nights, she and I have gone down to the middle school a couple blocks from the house and started walking the track. We've been hauling our child (Codename: Queso) with us, and she's seen us getting up and moving.

The fact that I'm encouraging my whole family to get up and exercise is a huge deal for me. And speaking of family and MSH... I owe you guys some recipes...

Sunday, June 1, 2008

GutCheckCast 06 - The Happiest Meal Plan on Earth

This Week -
We start by discussing... Pokemon in general, Darkrai in specific... for just a moment...

Mixed results at the scale.
Oatmeal v. Breakfast Tacos (are you sick of hearing about this yet?)

Doug will be headed to Disney World in a few weeks, which includes...
The Disney Dining Plan

And Men's Health.com tells us to Eat This, Not That.

We hear from the King Of Voicemail, who has very nice things to say about My Sweet Honey's contribution last week... which reminds me... I owe you guys some recipes. Keep an eye on the feed!

Enjoy!
Download GutCheckCast06.mp3