Wednesday fitness fun fact

Think eating at a sit down restaurant is always better than fast food? Think again! Sit-down chains don't want you to know that their food is actually considerably worse for you than the often-maligned fast-food fare. In fact, our menu analysis of 24 national chains revealed that the average entree at a sit-down restaurant contains 867 calories, compared with 522 calories in the average fast-food entree. And that's before appetizers, sides, or desserts—selections that can easily double your total calorie intake. An example you ask? An order of Outback's Aussie Cheese Fries has 2,900 calories, and its Ayers Rock Strip has 60 grams of fat. Mens Health Magazine 

Boner I got a question.... Ok I know you prefer the open road and little leather seats....but when you do a stationary bike..at what speed do you go...( I know all the intensities are different) ... I go at 22 mph for 40-60 min (that's at lever 2-3 which I knw does not mean anything really) russ

I can tell you , that is a pretty good clip , but it also depends on how much  enegery you are putting into it ( aka watts of enegery )       Nick

thanks nick

Russ, Nick hit the nail on the head when he said the quality of a cycling workout is all about the watts (power) you generate. Watts are determined by cadence (rpm) and resistance. Watts are the only true way to compare workouts. In other words, it's a lot tougher going up a mountain at 20 mph than it is going 20 mph on a flat. Both riders might be spinning at 75 rpm but the resistance going up the mountain is higher thus more watts are being generated.  Personally, I don't enjoy nor do I benefit that much physically (as indicated by my average heart rate) just sitting on a stationary bike spinning away for an hour at a low resistance. I prefer to do intervals much like they do in spinning classes. For example, I will spin for 4 minutes at resistance level 20 at 75 rpm which puts me at 300 watts and 20 mph. I will recover for 1 minute at resistance level 10 at 75 rpm then go 3 minutes at resistance level 15 at 100 rpm which produces 275 watts and 20 mph. Then I start all over again. If I can average 140+ average heart rate for 30-60 minutes doing this, I've had a good workout.   Boner

Thanks guys... I do not think my old machine has watts on it....but i do the Random setting...so it is up and down on the pressure....same on the eliptical... If I get on a machine that counts the pulse...I get in about 135 HR for the time i'm on there...it takes about 9 mins to get that high.. russ

Yepper, measuring the old ticker is the best way to determine if you're getting in a good workout. Next best is the tried and true "sweat bucket" measure.  Way to kick ass, Russ!! Boner

I started tracking my intake and exercise at dailyplate.com back at the first of the year, and one of the things I like about it is that every thing I've eaten at a national chain or even regional chain resturant is in their data base. I usually don't plan ahead well enough to know what I'm getting  before I go, but at least I can track the damage after I get home and adjust the next day's input and/or exercise accordingly.