Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Put My $$$ Where My Mouth Is

I need to refocus! I NEED YOUR FEEDBACK!

Move more, eat less!


I am putting my money where my mouth is and registering for the race. So I am registering for the Disneyland half-marathon TODAY. That's $120 commitment. K? B? H??? (or maybe the 5k which is only a $40 commitment and minus the fear of being picked up by the "You are too damn slow!" bus)

So that's for the "move more", what about the eat less? I was doing so great and then it was my anniversary, birthday, Valentines, vacation. I am a walking excuse! No more. I am starting today ~ as soon as I go get some groceries ~ as soon as I decided my dieting path. South Beach? Sparkpeople? Or Weight Watchers? Too many decisions! Could someone just make them for me please? Here's the deal.

South Beach
Pros:
  • No counting points or calories (or logging food)
  • I can eat CHEESE galore (I LOVE CHEESE)
  • I get results fast!
  • The "no cheating" allowed or you did-it-for-nothing clause provides for great self-control on my part
  • It's free of meetings/ fees
Cons:
  • Fast loss= fast gain
  • No carbs, frozen meals (Ya'll know I love cake & bread, right?)
  • No alcohol
  • Hard to accommodate at parties and eating out (and we all know I like to parTAY)
  • Expensive to eat this way (meats, cheese, and veggies only)
  • 4th Day headaches and low energy make running difficult


SparkPeople.com: Get a Free Online Diet
Pros:
  • It's totally FREE!
  • It's a gradual switch to basically a healthier life style ~which is what I want
  • No foods are off limits
  • Factors my exercise in with how much I am allowed to eat. Move more= Eat more
  • Tracks other healthy needs besides calories: fat, vitamins, fiber, cholesterol, etc. so I move to balancing my needs. Sounds super healthy, right?
  • Support from strangers on message boards...a little weird, but if my friends joined wouldn't be so weird.
Cons:
  • Must log ALL foods
  • I have been known to cheat, but still lose weight. Oops! I forgot to log that bite, does it count?
  • No local friend support or accountability
  • I really need the "buddy system" for anything to work


Weight Watchers

Pros:
  • No foods are off limits, just have to eat more "0 point" food (veggies) to compensate for crap food.
  • Factors my exercise in with how much I am allowed to eat. Move more = Eat more
  • Weigh in meetings provide somewhat motivational tips but I am with Jen Lancaster (Such A Pretty Fat ~ hysterical memoir, read it!) in that there is entirely too much complaining about cake!
  • Accountability at weekly weigh ins
Cons:
  • Must log ALL foods (No forgetting allowed)
  • No one I know to do this with me.
  • Again....I really need the "buddy system" for anything to work
  • Again....Super boring meeting in which ladies whine about cake at work!
  • Online tools are expensive =$65 for 3months plus $16/month after
So scrolling back up again it looks like Sparkpeople is the only one whose pros outweigh the cons but it still has a GIANT CON: no friend accountability. What do you guys think? I NEED FEEDBACK in this one, like immediately, so I can hit the grocery store. My cupboards are bare = I don't want to do fast food again! Oh, and I promised Stephen I'd go shopping today, only I can't until I (you) make up my mind about which diet food to stock....HELP!!!



1 comment:

  1. okay, hopefully the THIRD time I try to comment it will work :-) I vote Spark People, I'm on there and as long as I log all my foods I do pretty good with it. I can be your buddy! :-)

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