Fitness Made Easier

I am on a roll with the “glees” recently.  Last week, I discovered a free website that offers many features to assist in healthy living at www.sparkpeople.com.  Here you can track calories, carbs, and fat, as well as steps, minute and distance of different workouts. From fitness to nutrition this site has it all and you get to personalize your settings, including your goals.  So whether you are trying to lose weight or lower your blood pressure, there is a plan for you.

The site offers many similar benefits of its pricey competitors, but unlike weight Watchers and Nutri-system, Spark People does not require a membership fee or meal purchases.  Rather, this site will plan your meals, allowing you to substitute due to taste preferences and budget, and then it will even break it down into a grocery list for you. 

Eating healthy sound expensive?  At Spark People you can even set a budget that fits you.  The site does it all, even design work outs or lets you create your own.  Also, there is no calorie figuring, the site is preset for each food you eat, even if it is not in your plan, you can add it. (Let me say it is accurate against the packaging).   

All of your activities are tracked so you can see your progress as you go, not just at the end of a week or day.  You can also earn points to spend on items like pedometers or t shirts and read the latest health news, search tips for your goals, and join groups and blogs. 

Whether your goal is as simple as drinking more water today or reading from a motivational book, or more complicated like losing 30 pounds this site will fit your needs.  I am not saying this because I get rewarded for promoting the site, I read at U.S. News health that “Participants in a study … who entered their meals and physical activity in online diaries at least once a month for roughly two years were more likely to lose weight—and keep it off—than others who did so less diligently.”  Read the full article at http://health.usnews.com/health-news/diet-fitness/diet/articles/2010/08/03/5-weight-loss-websites-that-work . 

I have lost 3 pounds since I began tracking a week or so ago.  Spark People makes me more aware of what I really eat and at the end of the day when my tracker says I only have 2 grams of fat left in my daily allowance, I skip the ice cream I may have had before.  It makes your diet and fitness goals more visible.  I do not like when I look at the day and it says I only did half of the exercise I planned, then charts it on a line graph with a sharp dip that I slacked a day. 

It takes self motivation too, but this tool will help and it’s FREE.  For those that need more than self motivation, utilize the blogs and support groups.  I have never tried weight watchers, but I have seen signs for their meetings and Going online has to be easier than coordinating with others to meet in a church basement.  Go try it and be sure to let me know what you think.