Usually, my New Year's resolutions have been long disregarded by August.
And a vow to shed some pounds only lasted a few weeks this year.
But after seeing some eye-opening vacation photos, I decided to get serious about losing weight again.
Since the start of July, I've lost about 15 pounds by simply counting calories using the free app "MyFitnessPal" (pardon the infomercial tone).
It really is a great tool for those wanting to drop a little weight and become healthier.
Basically, you record what you eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks as well as any cardiovascular or strength exercises.
The app keeps track of how many calories you consume and lets you know how many you have remaining before meeting the goal limit, which is determined by how much you want to lose in a particular period of time.
For precise totals, it has an option to scan in the food barcodes; users can search for the item in the database as well.
The app also compares how much fat, cholesterol, sodium, vitamins, etc. that you are consuming with what it considers healthy totals.
It makes you accountable for what you eat and causes you to think twice about those late night snack cakes and cookies.
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I've been surprised at how many calories are in certain foods.
Just a tablespoon of regular mayonnaise has 90-100 calories. One fast-food fried chicken salad with toast is 765 calories. Add in another 200 calories for dressing and that approaches the limit in a 1,400-calorie diet.
A couple of slices of pepperoni pizza is 670 and one fast-food company's large sweet tea is 220 calories.
My wife's homemade lasagna is 521 calories per cup and bread sticks are another 100-140 apiece.
Chips and dip have been my weakness; they go so well with Cardinal games -- or any athletic event, for that matter.
The salsa is only 10 calories or so for 2 tablespoons; it's the chips that get you. Some chips are as much as 140 for seven. And who can eat only seven chips?
Losing weight takes discipline, but it's amazing how much better you feel by simply changing your eating habits.
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With football season nearing, limiting snacks will be difficult. Preseason football is already upon us with the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins opening the NFL's preseason on Sunday in the 2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game.
High school fall practices begin next week as well.
Some workouts and 7-on-7 games have been disrupted by unusual weather this summer and I'm sure the local coaching staffs are anxious to get going.
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This summer has been one of the wettest in recent years.
Normally on Aug. 1, we're praying for rain, and local fields and lawns are being constantly irrigated. This year has been a different story.
We've had about 6.3 inches of rain in June and July; that's more than the previous two Junes and Julys combined.
In June and July of 2012, we had about 4 inches of rain, while in those same months in 2011 the total was an anemic 1.3 inches. The June/July 2010 figure wasn't much better -- about 2.6 inches.
During those months in 2009, we had about 11 inches of rain, after getting about six inches over that span in 2008.
When thinking of the dry summers of the past, it's hard to complain about rain this time of the year, even if it dampens plans from time to time.
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com