Geek Fit Friday – Will low altitude mean fewer Olympic records?

How DOES altitude impact performance?

If you have ever traveled between locations of significantly different altitudes and tried to do any sort of physical activity, then you know that a change in altitude has a significant impact how you breathe and process oxygen. The higher up you go, the thinner the air gets.

As an athlete, you have two things to think about.

Air Resistance

You may have heard that Denver is a great place to hit a home run — that is because the ball has less wind resistance there than it would in, say, Milwaukee.

When you translate that to the Olympics, what that means is that if you have been training at altitude — say the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs  … read more

Geek Fit Friday – iPhone App Lose It (Part 2)

A couple of months ago I reviewed my favorite iPhone diet and exercise logging application — Lose It!

Since that time, the people at FitNow have added in a whole lot more accountability in to the application, and made it a whole lot harder to “forget” to track your food intake.

Facebook and Twitter updates. Clearly not for the faint of heart, but you can post your exercise logging, your weight gain/loss, or when you hit your goal.
Mealtime logging reminders. Now that the iPhone has push capability, LoseIt! has taken advantage of it, and you can configured reminders to go off up to 4 times a day to ping you to enter your food and exercise. Personally, a HUGE win in terms  … read more

Also posted in Nutrition

Geek Fit Friday – the price of supersizing

When Less is…Less

Everyone loves a bargain — and in this economy even moreso.

But, getting a great deal on today’s food is not always in your best long-term interest. You already know this, so I’m not going to belabor the point. Instead, because this is Geek Fit Friday, and I’m all about data, I’m going to talk about what supersizing at some fast food joints actually gets you.

7-Eleven: Gulp to Double Gulp Coca-Cola Classic: 37 cents extra buys 450 more calories.
Cinnabon: Minibon to Classic Cinnabon: 48 more cents buys 370 more calories.
Movie theater: Small to medium unbuttered popcorn: 71 additional cents buys you 500 more calories.
Convenience store: Regular to “The Big One” Snickers: 33 more cents packs on 230 more calories.
McDonald’s:  … read more

Also posted in Nutrition

Geek Fit Friday – Santa’s Unhealthy Lifestyle

Did you know that it would take 1.9 million reindeer to pull a sleigh the size that Santa would need to haul all those gifts?

Researchers in Sweden have recently analyzed Santa’s work habits, lifestyle, and the extreme load that he is under on Christmas (900 household visits a second) and are now questioning whether Santa can actually be just one person, or whether he even exists at all.

Estimated sleigh travel speed is 90km/second, which is 256 times the speed of sound.

You can read more about the study here.

Happy Holidays!

-Jen

Geek Fit Friday – Intervals

If you aren’t doing interval work as a part of your training — you should be. If you aren’t familiar with the idea, it’s push it super-hard for a short period of time, rest briefly, repeat.

Tabata intervals are one of the most popular protocols out there (20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for 8 rounds — which is 4 minutes). One set of Tabata kettlebell swings — if you are working at proper intensity — is enough for most people.

Other intervals also work. I often do jumprope one minute on, one minute off for a total of 20 minutes. Or swings for one minute on, 30 seconds off for 6 or 7 rounds.

Having a good timer for this makes the  … read more

Geek Fit Friday – Geek Sources

Where do geeks go for geek info?

I’m detouring a bit this week on Geek Fit Friday to talk about where I like to find my fun geek fit facts that I share here and on Twitter.

Science Daily. This HAS to be a staple for anyone interested in keeping up with the latest in the sciences. The volume of information can be overwhelming at times, and some of the studies may leave you scratching your head and wondering “did someone REALLY pay for that study”  but it’s a great source.
NHS Choices. Because there are a lot of studies out there that are complete garbage (not double-blind, insufficient sample size, conditions no way minic the real world) they must all be read  … read more

Geek Fit Friday – Daylight Savings

An extra hour of sleep on Saturday night. Terrific!

This got me thinking about how important sleep is. In our 24×7 society the mantra, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” is certainly appealing, but the funny thing is that it’s also a faster way to get there!

As a Geek, sleep is super-important to us on a few levels.

Getting the appropriate amount of sleep keeps us more trim. Too much or too little sleep on an ongoing basis leads to weight gain. 7-9 hours per night is the ideal for weight management.

The brain functions fundamentally differently when we sleep compared to when we are awake. Sleep is when we form our memories and process most of our information from the day. While we  … read more

Geek Fit Friday – Lose It!

Conceptually, weight loss is an easy idea. Take in less calories than we expend. From there, the wheels tend to come off.

Anyone (or anything) that can tell you they know exactly how many calories you burn in any activity is flat-out lying to you. The best anyone can do is make an educated guessed based on the “average” person — however you define that. Current weight, muscle mass, metabolism, and how hard you are working all get factored in.

So, the only thing we can REALLY do is count our intake. The National Weight Control Registry shows that individuals that manage to lose 30+ pounds and keep it off 5+ years eat between 1400 and 1800 calories per day. That is  … read more

Also posted in Nutrition

Geek Fit Friday – Welcome

Welcome to my new Friday column, Geek Fit Friday.

As a technology and gadget geek, I thought it was time I started a column just for us. Gadgets, neurology, and easy-to-implement fit tips all in once place!

Here are some posts and articles that I’ve written in the past that will give you a taste of what is to come:

Why You Should Stand While Working
Eye Drills to Increase Energy
Why Money Isn’t a Motivator in  Losing Weight
The Importance of Accountability
Why the Idea “Sleep is for Wimps” is Wrong

I have yet to review any of the fitness gadgets, iPhone apps, or software on the market, but with a bunch of new devices on the market over the past month or two, I can  … read more