Dieting: If it sounds crazy, it probably doesn't work!

When I first started college, I had the idea that I would take the old cliche of the "Freshman 15" and flip it around, hoping to drop at least 15 pounds before I came home for Christmas. In order to accomplish this, I decided to start out with the much-advertised Special K diet, where you eat a serving of Special K as a meal twice a day for two weeks and supposedly lose six pounds. That was supposed to kick-start my diet until I got used to eating healthier...

...Except I never got around to that part. Out of laziness or convenience or downright insanity I pretty much ate Special K twice a day for two years. Whoops!

And of course I lost weight (though not anywhere close to 6 pounds every two weeks)...because anyone that eats 800-1000 calories a day while going to the gym religiously is going to lose weight. But it certainly wasn't healthy. So when I read this blog post from the NYT earlier this week about the "Cookie Diet", it sounded familiar. People eating six protein-packed, pre-packaged, over-priced "cookies" every day along with a "real" meal (skinned chicken and broccoli anyone?) to drop pounds? Well I would have much preferred cookies to the K, but the science behind it is the same and, more importantly, the weight's not going to stay off.

In fact, I've slimmed down even more since I kicked my K addiction; though, admittedly, I've had an advantage in being involuntarily gluten free. The point is, diets have to be a lifestyle choice, not a temporary fix. And anyone trying to tell you cookies are the answer to your weight problems is obviously not your friend.

iCoke mini

Normally I would be really cynical and/or snarky about something like Coke's decision to start offering 90 calorie mini cans, but I'm surprisingly okay with the idea. I usually don't like to consume my calories in liquid form (not if I'm not getting a buzz out of it at least), but sometimes there's nothing better than a little bit of ice cold calorie-tastic Coke.


Then again, my acceptance of minicoke could also have something to do with the fact that the snobs over at Slate likened the sleek little can to the introduction of light cigarettes by tobacco companies. I hardly think satisfying a sugary-sweet soda fix is going to give me lung cancer, guys, but thanks anyway.

Outside the bun

Seeing as how it's pretty much all I've eaten in the last three days, I felt compelled to commend Taco Bell , of all places, for making late night snacks and cheap meals on the go possible again.

Oh, Taco Bell, your black jack taco, mexi-rice and three-layer-nachos have served me well with their gluten-free goodness. Though they may be the only three options out of millions of fast food choices in this town, or any town, I couldn't wish for a more delicious fast-food fix.

So thanks, TB. See you next Thursday around 2 a.m.

No excuses

Lately my exercise activity has taken a nosedive as the fall semester (and football season...and TV season, etc.) picked up and I gradually found myself forgoing a trip to the gym citing lack of time.

Well, according to Yahoo News, my excuse is BS, along with any other excuse I may come up with other than, you know, a debilitating illness or losing a limb (and even then they'd probably have a solution).

The Web site offered these tips for anyone who thinks they're too good for a good work-out:

• Think you don't have time? Start out exercising about 10 minutes per day. Before you know it, you'll want to increase the time spent working out.
• If you're too tired after a long work day, exercise in the morning before work, or during your lunch break.
• You don't have to exercise with others if you're shy; take a walk by yourself, or watch an exercise class on TV or DVD.
• Exercise indoors -- at a mall or shopping center -- if bad or extreme weather is keeping you from staying active.
• Avoid boredom with exercises that you find fun and look forward to doing. Mix up your routine with different exercises.

Ugh. Fine, Yahoo, I guess I could watch Glee and work out at the same time. Maybe all their singing will give me an extra boost of energy.

Gimme A Break(fast)

Being a student means I'm no stranger to bad eating habits. Most people my age wake up too late to eat breakfast before going to class or work; instead they move right on to lunch, where they gorge on 800-calorie burritos or buffet-style Krishna food.

Well, that has its own consequences. Eating breakfast has been shown to help with weight loss because it speeds up your metabolism after you wake up and because you won't be tempted to eat a huge lunch later in the day.

But then there's those of us that wake up way too early for breakfast. I'm up at 7 to be at work by 8, but my body doesn't catch up and get hungry until at least 9, so until recently I would forget to scarf down a bowl of cereal or pack something to go. And being gluten-free poses its challenges too: I couldn't just swing in to Dunkin' Donuts or McDonald's on the way to work.

But I soon realized that the lack of food was definitely messing with my motivation once I got to work. By the time I got hungry at 9 I was just ready to go back to bed. A Google search for 'skipping breakfast' turned up a New York Times report stating, "Over the years, a number of studies have examined the subject [of skipping breakfast], and most have reached the same conclusion: starting a day without a solid meal tends to have slight but detectable effects on mood, memory and energy level."

Well if the NYT says it it has to be true (unless Jayson Blair wrote it), so I've changed my ways, making sure I keep some fruit in my purse in case I wake up too tired to cook an egg or something else full of protein to help keep me full through lunch. The little bit of nausea I feel from forcing myself to eat is a welcome trade off to the early-morning haze my brain used to have to work through.

Hoop ba-doop

While in Virginia Beach for a wedding a few weeks ago, in between eating mountains of tortilla chips and fulfilling bridesmaid duties, my friend Summer and I found ourselves wondering what to do while we waited for the excitement to start up again. All of a sudden Summer looked at me and asked, "Wanna hula hoop?"

Friends Kelly, Jamie and Summer hoop it up

I did not want to hula hoop. I had never been able to as a kid and I didn't feel like learning now. Nevertheless, Summer went to retrieve them from the garage while I waited, annoyed, in her back yard. I expected to see two small, possibly neon-colored kids' hoops in her hand. Instead, she came out with two huge, weighted black hoops. She threw one to me, then positioned hers around her waist, spun it around and off she went, twirling the hoop around her mid-section then up around her neck, onto her shoulder, like a circus performer. And like a kid at at a circus, I was amazed. More importantly, I was ready to try it. Giving the giant hoop a spin I stood with one foot in front of the other and shifted my weight back and forth, letting the hoop do the work. Or so I thought. After 15 minutes in the backyard I felt like I'd done a stint at the gym.

"It's really good exercise" Summer told me later, over more chips, saying she got so good at it because she was bored with working out and, having already taken up hula hooping at various hippie festivals (see picture), decided to incorporate it into her routine. Turns out she's not the only one--weighted hoops are actually becoming quite popular at gyms and with trainers. I haven't run out to buy my own yet, but I've certainly warmed up to the idea, even looking up routines online. The only thing stopping me is the lack of a backyard. Summer probably would but I'm definitely not ready to take my hoop skills to the Uptown Village parking lot.