Jax...do I love thee?

Sandradee (among others) has asked me a couple of times whether I think Jax (my Body Bugg) has been worth it. The cost of the device plus the display device was around $300.

I will say up front that I am extremely blessed. I have a wonderful job and since I'm single with no kids and relatively no responsibilities, I'm able to spend my money however I see fit without worrying about anyone else. So spending $300 for me is not the same as say my friend who is a married stay at home mother of three or another friend who is a single working mother of two.

That being said, I'm very glad that I got it. I have NEVER been one to log my food. I would try to commit myself to it, but I would lose interest in a day or two. Something about having your calories burned to offset calories consumed has helped to motivate me. I have been going strong for 3 weeks and I don't have the mindset that it is a chore. I actually enjoy logging in each night after dinner to make my updates.

One thing that I have noticed is that I think more before I just eat something. For instance, on Monday after lunch, my work group stopped and got a cookie from the Nestle Toll House Cookie Store. I LOVE Nestle Toll House cookies. I bought one and brought it back to the office with me. I looked up the nutritional information and I plugged it in my online food journal. Since I was working out that day, I determined that I could eat the cookie if I had a lighter dinner than I originally planned. I enjoyed the heck out of that cookie and savored EVERY bite. Later that night, I chose the lower calorie dinner and all was well.

I will say that I think that most of the benefit comes from logging my food. So, if you are already very good at that, I don't know if it would be worth it or not. To me, it has changed how I operate entirely!

Also, I am very conservative with my food counts. Meaning, I always try to pad my estimates. For instance, if I have a couple bites of mashed potatoes, I would probably log 1/4 cup as opposed to 2 T. I have read that we tend to underestimate what we eat by 20-40(!)% Wow! I figure that no matter how hard I try, I will not remember (or know) everything that is in what I'm eating (especially when I eat out) so if I pad a little, hopefully I will have enough counted to cover anything I miss. Interestingly, even with that padding, Jax tells me that I only lose 1/2 of what I calculate that I should lose. And I definitely don't lose it when I'm "supposed" to. But that's okay, as I collect data about myself, I learn more and more and it helps me to be less frustrated.

So for me, for my needs, for my circumstances, Jax is worth it! I committed to logging food for 4 weeks and wearing Jax for 8 weeks. I realize now that I need to do both and will now commit to doing both. I feel sure though that I will continue long past 8 weeks. I feel that way now...I will get back to you in about 5 weeks! :thumbup:

Just wanted to give you a couple of quick updates:

Eating steak: I did okay with the steak. I had to cut it into the smallest of pieces and I was only able to eat about an ounce. Last night at home, I had the leftovers and ate bigger bites, but would spit out the fat (tendons that wouldn't chew down) instead of swallowing it. Sounds kind of gross, but it worked. I don't think I like steak enough to work that hard. HA!

Jazzercise: our friends came to class with us last night. They had a lot of fun supporting my BFF by it really isn't their cup of tea. One is a runner, but the other doesn't work out much and I hope that she finds some sort of activity that she enjoys. My arm ached a little from the tetanus shot (it still does!) but I'm glad I got in the extra work out. Something funny...as I was cleaning up after class, I picked up some 5 pound weights that someone had forgotten to put away. They felt so light to me that I almost threw them in the air. It made me feel like The Hulk!! :wink2:

Have a super day everyone! Tomorrow is Friday!