Diet vs. Diet

Interesting comments made on biggest loser tonight that maybe conflicting: No more diets, but the Mediterranean diet is the one to go on....

I believe that the intention was to make it clear that you do not go on and off a diet: your diet is your LONG TERM commitment to healthy eating and the most effective diet is that of the Mediterranean area.

The last 20-30 years have not done the health and nutrition industry any favours, especially with the continued focus on finding the quick fix that solves every individuals weight problems.

I have copied this from www.dictionary.com:

–noun

1.	food and drink considered in terms of its qualities, composition, and its effects on health: Milk is a wholesome article of diet.

2.	a particular selection of food, esp. as designed or prescribed to improve a person's physical condition or to prevent or treat a disease: a diet low in sugar.

3.	such a selection or a limitation on the amount a person eats for reducing weight: No pie for me, I'm on a diet.

4.	the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group: The native diet consists of fish and fruit.

5.	food or feed habitually eaten or provided: The rabbits were fed a diet of carrots and lettuce.

6.	anything that is habitually provided or partaken of: Television has given us a steady diet of game shows and soap operas.

–verb (used with object)

7.	to regulate the food of, esp. in order to improve the physical condition.

8.

to feed.

–verb (used without object)

9.	to select or limit the food one eats to improve one's physical condition or to lose weight: I've dieted all month and lost only one pound.

10.	to eat or feed according to the requirements of a diet.

–adjective

11.	suitable for consumption with a weight-reduction diet; dietetic: diet soft drinks.

It is clear that the original meaning of the word now encompasses the ideal that weight management is part of its intent. Entries 1, 4, 5 and 6 reflect the original intent of the word, and this is where Biggest Loser (I believe) were focusing on.

A diet is not just for after Christmas, it is a way of life.

Results Day - Week 6: The Story so far...

It's been a topsy-turvy, peaks and troughs, ebb and flow, hills and valleys type 6 weeks.....

So this week my weight has dropped, by 2kg to 93kg flat. Nice. However if it goes up again then some serious talking to myself will have to be had!

Weight: 93kg - down 2kg from last week
Fat: 11% - 0.5% reduction (though my muscle weight has also dropped, so I'm not hitting the right levers just yet)
Waist: 95-90cm - an improvement by 1cm on the "suck yer guts in" measure, but not when I let 'em all hang out!

More nutrition focus along with settling the resistance training will help me make the next shift, a target of 10% body fat or less by the end of Feb. An achievable goal as long as I stick to the plan. My strength and conditioning efforts to stabilise my core, obliques (to help support my back when shooting) and overall muscle power are coming along slowly.

Fitting in the Cardio, Resistance and, as I have been reminded by my PT, stretching... is hard, especially as lunchtime is the only real available window to get things done. Anyway, part of the journey is to know what the hurdles are and to find the right tactics to overcome them. I may have to look like a weirdo and stretch at other times in the day, during lectures possibly?

Having moved from one part of Sydney to another for work I have had to relinquish the easy access to a gym that is not heavily patronised. The new one is a body-shop for all the buffed and pumped, squeezing in their lunchtime "massive", and finely honing their muscles. This makes access to the free weights and machines a bit of a lottery but this is not necessarily a bad thing. The body and its muscles adapts to regular routine, and also to the same exercises ("Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein). This results in a plateau, no more bulk, no more fat shedding, the fine sculpture not quite finished. If you are faced with a gym that does not quite cater for the over-subscription then take it as an opportunity to challenge the brain as well as the body, change your routine, do what you are innately good at: adapting.

If you can't get to the bicep weights, do your legs; if you can't do your legs find a Swiss ball or BOSU and challenge your core; if you can't find a machine find another solution, and do it quickly because that little nagging "I can't" will suddenly de-rail you and you'll find yourself back in the office chasing cake... I know it happens, all you need is the reason to not do it and you take it.

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change." - Charles Darwin

Change yourself: adapt, and then change again!


Have a good week, FoS