Integrity - Ross Enamait

I haven't really felt like writing anything in a while, but this post from Ross Enamait's blog drove me to. In a billion dollar industry like fitness/weight loss it is really tough to find someone who will tell you the truth as they see it, and not try to push you to purchase their services or goods. I've been reading Ross' stuff for a few years now, and time and time again he has impressed me with his knowledge, integrity, and ability. His articles and forums are filled with all kinds of information, and there is absolutely no fee to access them. If you haven't taken the time to visit his site www.rosstraining.com, do yourself a favor and do so. In particular, check out The endless search. It's important to acknowledge, and support people like Ross.

Linked In: The Real Biggest Losers...The Viewers

I've never been a fan of the biggest loser and have never been able to bring myself to watch more than a snippet before I changed the channel in disgust. Yes, I'm sure it has inspired some people to make healthy changes in their lives, but for most people it feeds into the quick weight loss trap. Click here to read more at Coach Dos' blog.

Linked In: Manipulating the Truth

Think what you hear on news programs is always truthful? Think again. Better Life, Better Health through Chiropractic writes about a recent "untruth" thanks to a little editing. We'd hope that journalists would present the facts as is and let us come to our own decisions (outside of editorials). However, this just isn't the case. As demonstrated by the CSPI and the chiropractic story, we always need to take information from sources of "authority"with a grain of salt.

CSPI Update

The idiocy of the lawsuit ruffled my feathers enough that I ended up sending them the following e-mail:

To whom it may concern,

While I believe that consumers need watchdogs to keep various industries in line, in this case, I disagree with your singling out of Denny's restaurants. It would be more equitable and have a greater impact if all restaurants were to put the sodium content on their menus. Denny's is not the only business to offer foods with high sodium content.

Take, for example, Subway. Unlike Denny's, Subway is often perceived as a source of healthy food, especially after their successful "Jared" campaign. However, despite appearing to be a healthy restaurant, four of their "healthy" low-fat 6" subs contain over 1000 mg of sodium; the ham sub contains the most - 1200 mg. Taking into account that most people will tend to get a foot-long sub versus a 6" sub, especially after the implementation of the $5 footlong, that means these subs contain over 2000 mg of sodium. Even a footlong of the veggie delite, their lowest sodium sandwich, yields 830 mg. Subway also serves six toasted sandwiches containing over 1500 milligrams.. The "Feast" yields 2610 mg, and that is just the 6" version. Is a footlong "Feast" and chips with over 5220 mg of sodium that much better than the Denny's Meat Lover's Scramble (5,690 mg)? The moderate to high amount of sodium in the food Subway serves, compounded with the appearance of being healthier, should make Subway a more immediate concern than Denny's. At least most people don't go to Denny's expecting to eat a healthy meal. The point is not that you should take action against Subway instead, but to prove that even "healthy" restaurants serve an abundance of sodium. Therefore, singling out Denny's is not an effective means of combating public ignorance of sodium content.

Another reason why I disagree with your lawsuit is that it removes personal responsibility from the picture. Michael Jacobson is quoted in an article on webMD stating the following: "...although Denny's has posted sodium and other nutritional information online, that information should go on the menu. If you drop into a Denny's, you're not going to the web. It's a totally inadequate means of informing consumers". While it may be true that people do not tend to check out the web before eating out, there is absolutely no reason that people at risk such as Mr. DeBenedetto could not have asked the wait staff what low sodium meals were available. It seems he was fully cognizant of reducing sodium intake as he was quoted on the news release on your website that he "at home does not cook with salt or use the salt shaker". If he was taking responsibility for his health in his own home, why didn't he take responsibility when eating out? You can put all the warnings and disclaimers on foods you want, but they will do no good until people start taking responsibility for their own health. Unfortunately, your current course of action puts the responsibility and blame squarely on the shoulders of the restaurant.

If your organization is truly interested in improving public health, you will focus on getting legislation passed to require sodium content be put on all menus and campaigns that encourage people to be responsible for their own health, instead of diverting resources towards attacking a single company.

They actually responded in a decent timeframe (e-mail sent Friday, they responded Monday). Here's their e-mail:

Thanks very much for your email and your views. We agree with you 100% about the need for universal menu labeling and we have been advocating for that for many years. Please visit the CSPI website to learn more about our ongoing campaign:

It's a cop-out response, and doesn't respond to any of the points I made, but I suppose that's not surprising given that they're in a lawsuit. I also sent the e-mail to Denny's. No response from them so far...

Idiots on the Rampage: CSPI vs Dennys

Apparently, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is suing Denny's. Why? Because Denny's uses too much salt in its food. While I'm not convinced salt is the villain it's made out to be, let's put that to the side for the moment. Why pick on Denny's? If you're going to force a restaurant to put sodium content on its menu, every restaurant should have to. Oh, but Denny's must be the worst offender, right? Well, let's just take a look at the poster boy of healthy fast food eating - Subway's. Of their advertised so-called healthy 6 grams of fat or less subs, there are four that have over 1000 mgs of sodium, with the 6" ham weighing in at 1200. Let's face facts, most people don't just eat a 6" sub, most go for the footlong (Five Dollar Footlong, anyone?). Doubling those numbers puts those subs within the range of the oh-so-horrible Moons Over My Hammy (2580 mgs). How about the 6" feast sub? It alone has 2610 mgs of sodium. Again, double that for the inevitable footlong and you end up with a whopping 5220 mgs of sodium! That's a lot worse than Denny's worst sodium offender - the double cheeseburger which weighs in with 3880 mgs. Even McDonalds, that stalwart of excellent health, has at worst 2260 mgs of sodium in its Deluxe breakfast with a large size biscuit w/o syrup and margarine. So why, then, isn't the CSPI going after Subway? Maybe it's because of the lawsuit's plaintiff, Nick DeBenedetto. Straight from the article, here is a description of the guy:

"That sandwich is one of the items that lawsuit plaintiff Nick DeBenedetto, a 48-year-old New Jersey man with hypertension (high blood pressure), said was one of his favorite Denny's meals over the past 20 years.

In the news conference, DeBenedetto said he tried to live a healthy lifestyle and that he was "astonished and shocked" to learn how much sodium was in the Denny's items he typically ordered. "I wouldn't have selected these items if I'd known the extreme amount of sodium in this food," DeBenedetto said."

Nick was trying to live a healthy lifestyle and he ate at Denny's frequently? Now, the article doesn't say he ate there often, but honestly, you can't sue a restaurant if you only ate there once a year. My guess is Mr. DeBenneto ate there at least once a week, and ate out often, which guess what? It's probably the reason why he has high blood pressure. The defense for his ignorance is this:

"Jacobson says that although Denny's has posted sodium and other nutritional information online, that information should go on the menu. "If you drop into a Denny's, you're not going to the web. It's a totally inadequate means of informing consumers," Jacobson said."

If you are truly concerned about your health, you will seek the appropriate information out. It is not like Denny's hides its nutritional info on its website by making you jump through hoops. At the very least, he should have asked the wait staff for low salt options - which I'm sure they would have gladly listed for him. Are we now going to force restaurants to have you sign a document stating the nutritional information of the things you've ordered before you can get them? How about a little something called self-responsibility?

Denny's official response?

"Denny's believes the lawsuit filed by CSPI is frivolous and without merit, and the company will fight it aggressively in court. With hundreds of items on the menu, Denny's offers a wide variety of choices for consumers with different lifestyles, understanding that many have special dietary needs. In June 2009, the company launched Better for You items, allowing guests to replace favorites with lower-sodium and fat alternatives. Additionally, earlier this month, Denny's launched a Better for You kids menu. All nutrition information is available online at www.dennys.com."

I have to agree with Denny's. This should be thrown out just like the case when people were trying to blame fast food restaurants for their being obese. Or maybe we should all be fed pre-rationed meals as determined by the government...

Just sign on the dotted line!

Comment on Training on the somewhat cheap

Ktales of lifting underground left the following helpful comment:

"perhaps I'm tired or so, but I'd also look into gyms that are going out of business. A friend of mine was able to furbish an entire gym for 2000.00 - the only thing the equipment needed was a fresh coat of paint.

A little bit more expensive, but the deals are out there."

This is a great idea, and definitely one to look into if you're in the market for used fitness equipment.

Training on the Somewhat Cheap

In my last post, I went over some cheap methods to build your own equipment or use items you already have laying around. But what if you're not sure of your DIY skills? The route I have the most experience in is Craigslist, but before I go through that, I will introduce some other options. But before that, let's go over some basics.

1. Make sure you know what your goals are
If you want to bench 300 pounds, buying a pair of adjustable dumbbells that go up to 50 pounds may help, but they won't even get you halfway to your goal. Also keep an eye on the future. If your current goal is to squat 100 pounds, one of those cement sets might seem to fit the bill, but if you see yourself breaking that barrier it might be worth it to make a larger initial investment so you won't have to spend money again.

2. Take stock of your current situation
Do you already have a treadmill or bench that you're not already using? How much room will you have for your home gym? How tall are the ceilings where you're going to work out? Are there any obstructions you will have to take into account?

3. Investigate your options
Now that you know what you want to do and how much room you've got to do it in, you need to figure out what kinds of equipment can fulfill your needs. There are plenty of resources on the web that can help you out. I also recommend checking out the Men's Fitness Home Gym Bible. They do a decent job walking you through your options and their advantages and disadvantages.

4. Safety, safety, safety
This should go with #3, but I think it's so important that it needs its own section. When you work out at a gym, the owners are responsible for making sure the machines and equipment are kept up, and are safe for you to use. Furthermore, if you get stuck under the bar, there will probably be someone there who can help you out. Neither of those cases is true for home gyms. Make sure whatever you buy has some safety features such as bar catches so you can dump the weight if you can't finish the rep. If you don't want to use bulkier equipment like a squat rack or power cage, consider using dumbbells instead. Check out reviews on equipment and brands to get a feel for what stuff is more durable, and make sure to check for any recalls.

5. Pricing
Hopefully by now you've got a good idea of what you're looking for. You should also price out how much it might cost you to buy a similar setup at retail. Compare that against how much you're willing to spend. Depending on the circumstances, I would not pay more than 50% retail for used goods, regardless of how good the condition is. If you're patient, you can pay much less than that.

Now that you know what you're looking to get, how safe it is, and how much you're willing to pay for it, it's time to start looking!

1. Garage/Estate Sales
This time of year is garage sale season, and especially with the state of the economy, people are looking to get rid of things they don't use. Unfortunately for most people (but fortunate for you), one of the things they don't use is exercise equipment. One potential big advantage of going to garage sales is that you can find some things really cheap, especially if the person who did the pricing doesn't know any better - such as a divorced spouse who didn't actually purchase the equipment. The downsides of garage sales? You don't have any time to do research on whether the equipment is good or recalled, and it can be tough to take a step back when a great "deal" is sitting right in front of you. Before you go out, make sure to have a good grasp on the average cost of what you're looking for so you can spot the real deals.

2. Family and Friends
Chances are you know someone who has exercise equipment being used as a clothes rack or just sitting in their garage. Depending on your relationship with them, ask them politely if you could purchase it or possibly even get it for free. If you don't know anyone with unused equipment or they're not willing to part with their dust collectors, ask them to check with the people in their social network. Word of mouth can be very powerful.

3. Used Sporting Goods Stores
A potential plus for these stores is variety. They probably carry multiple sets of treadmills, benches, weights, etc. The downside? You'll probably end up paying more for the equipment than if you were to buy it from an individual.

4. Craigslist
Craigslist is a great resource for getting used items. If you haven't used it before, play around and do some searches for stuff you're looking for to get a feel for how people are wording their listings. You may find that searching for olympic weight bench is too restrictive, or that searching for weights returns too many results. In my experience, it's better not to specify a minimum or maximum price. Not everyone specifies the price in the field Craigslist provides. Once you've got a good grasp on what search words give you the results you want, you can setup rss feeds for those searches so you will be notified when a new posting it put up. A few important things to keep in mind:

*Great bargains are snapped up quickly.
If you're looking to get the most bang for your buck, you will probably need to check craigslist at least twice a day. The more frequently you check, the more likely it will be that you are the first person to respond and get the item. For example, I saw a posting on my lunch break but decided to wait until after work to call the guy. When I called, he had already sold it.

*People don't always follow ettiquette.
Not everyone removes or updates their posting once the equipment has been sold, and they don't always respond promptly. If you see multiple bargains, throw your chip in for all of them. It's better to tell someone that you're no longer interested instead of losing out on a deal because you were waiting for someone else to respond before contacting the other prospect.

*Don't expect any response to a posting about what you're looking for.
From what I've seen, most people would rather someone come to them versus seeking out a buyer for their used goods. While it won't hurt to post what you want, don't neglect searching on your own.

*Safety.
Try to arrange a meeting in a neutral place like a parking lot. This probably won't happen in most cases since workout equipment tends to be bulky, but give it a shot. If you can't meet in a neutral location, bring someone along and let other people know where you're going.

*Negotiate when appropriate
Some posters specifically state they are willing to negotiate, but unless they state that the prices are firm, you can try your hand at negotiation. Make sure there's good rationale behind why you're offering a lower price. Don't be a jerk, though. There's no reason to try to squeeze a good deal into a great deal, unless you'd like to chance them selling to someone else who thought the price was fair.

*Be Patient
Assuming you don't have a specific date that you absolutely have to get something done by, be prepared to wait for the right bargain to show up. It's not a bad idea to check craigslist for about a week to get a feel for what people are asking for various things. What I saw most frequently were ok-priced deals, then over-priced deals, and most rarely great deals. I almost got impatient and bit on some ok-priced deals because I really wanted to start hitting some iron, but am pleased (as is my wallet) that I waited.

*Don't be too patient
While you need to be patient, avoid the trap of waiting for the perfect bargain to pop up. When you think you've found a good deal, go for it. You don't want to let it pass, only to realize a few weeks later that you haven't seen anything even coming close to it.

*When you're done, you're done.
Once you've bought all the equipment you need, stop searching craigslist. It can be heartbreaking to see what you bought for $100 less, but pointless to know. You have what you wanted, move on.

I won't drag you through my experiences, but I will tell you that it took me about two months and dealing with some jerks to get everything pictured below. On my first purchase, I bought a weight bench, curl bar, a weight tree, and a 300 pound olympic set for $100. My last purchase was a set of nautilus equipment that included a squat rack, adjustable bench, lat pulldown attachment + various handles, leg curl/extension attachment, two olympic dumbbell handles, and a 350 pound olympic set. This deal set me back $250 (the adjustable bench alone would cost $350 new). So, for $350, I ended up with a pretty nice home gym that will fulfill my needs for quite a while. That comes out to a little less than $30 a month, which is less than or comparable to a standard gym membership. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Treadmill - free from father-in-law

Squat rack and bench

Lat pulldown, leg extenstion/curl attachments

Another weight bench

Weight tree, olympic dumbbell handles, and ez curl bar