One of my goals for this little column is to help you wade through the massive piles of junk out there claiming to be the “best” or “only” way to get fit. I can get behind some science as much as the next guy, but at some point, even I get bored. Somehow when it comes to fitness-related science, specifically diets; it seems that you can find science to support almost any diet. Take the Cotton Ball diet, for example, this diet is simple”¦why take up precious room in your belly with pesky food when you can just stuff a little cotton in there instead. Not enough flavor for you? Dip your cotton ball in some hot sauce, it’s delicious!

Obviously that diet is insane. There are no questions about it. However, if you Google long enough you will find the science that says it is not all that terrible. The Cotton Ball Diet is the extreme end of the spectrum. The gray area comes when the more realistic diets begin to enter the picture. Trying a diet can be costly, confusing, and worst of all, totally ineffective. The problem is that most science agrees that the right diet can contribute to your health way more than exercise can. When I started to get healthy I knew the first thing I needed to do was change my eating habits. I’m not a scientist, so I won’t pretend to babble on about what is healthy and what isn’t. I will tell you what I have tried, and what has worked for me. Everyone is different and not everything I have tried will work for you. Still, the way I found the right diet was by trying stuff that worked for other people. I now have a pretty easy diet to follow that doesn’t require a lot of sacrificing what I like.

In the inaugural post of the Geek Fit series I may have painted a slightly misleading picture of “the geek.” I was an overweight couch potato, but obviously not all geeks are. I once had a discussion with some friends via Twitter regarding the modern day definition of the word “geek.” We came to the conclusion that geeks are not just people who read comic books, adore gadgetry, have at least 5 level 80 characters residing in Azeroth, and know the words to every Rush song ever. Instead we agreed that a geek today is anyone who has a passion for something that leads them to near-obsessive and sometimes annoying level of fandom or appreciation for a particular subject. It is at the nexus of this definition and the classic stereotype where this series exists.

That said, I believe I gave the impression that this series would only be beneficial to people that were in my particular situation (overweight and sedentary). The fact is that the vast majority of my friends who were (and are) geeks are all variety of shapes and size. I have had the privilege of working out with and learning from a variety of different individuals. You see, part of what made getting in shape possible for me was that I truly geeked out about it. I became passionate and as such wanted to learn as much as I could about fitness and getting in shape. I would take learning directly from someone else’s experiences rather than just reading books and so I began to really pry into the fitness habits of my friends and colleagues.

I love all variety of gadgets. I tend to jump on the bandwagon being pulled behind any new and interesting technology as fast as my wallet will let me. Sometimes I am rewarded, sometimes I’m disappointed, but I always enjoy the thrill that comes from experiencing vast leaps forward in technology. When Jawbone introduced the UP, I was in the middle of my fitness revolution and was immediately excited to try it out.

Not only does this little bracelet count your steps like a standard little pedometer, but it also tracks your sleep cycles. Jawbone promises that the UP’s gentle vibrations would wake you up at the optimum time in your sleep cycle to ensure a pleasant waking experience every day. Combine all of this with a colorful, fun iPhone app and you’ve got me hook, line, and sinker! I picked up this cool little device as soon as it hit the shelves of my local Target (Target always has all the coolest stuff).

The Wonderland Alphabet
Verse by Alethea Kontis
Illustrations by Janet K. Lee
Characters inspired by Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll
Archaia Entertainment
Release Date: June 20, 2012
Cover Price: $11.95

Lewis Carroll has long captured my imagination with his imaginative tales of Alice and her journeys into the rabbit hole. Being a dad, I have looked forward to the day when I can share these books with my daughter. Thanks to Archaia Entertainment I don’t have to wait as long as I suspected.

The Wonderland Alphabet is a simple, but beautiful retelling of the story of Alice. New York Times bestselling author Alethea Kontis has compressed the stories of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass into a format that is fun for the entire family without losing the imagination or enjoyment of the original stories. Starting with the letter “A” and working through the alphabet, each page retells the story of Alice using beautiful poetic language that perfectly captures the magic of the works this book is based on. Naturally Alice graces the first page at the letter “A,” but other favorite characters aren’t far behind with the Cheshire Cat at “C” and my personal favorite, the Jabberwocky at “J.”

There is one universal truth that I have discovered in my short existence on this planet and that is, if it isn’t fun, then I am likely not going to be able to do it very long. It’s a weakness that, in truth, has probably cost me quite a few opportunities throughout life. Boring teachers meant failed classes, not being handed a sword on the first day of Karate led to me giving up my ninja aspirations, and fitness was most certainly never something I was interested in. I have come to recognize this flaw and that allows me to properly prepare myself for all variety of scenarios. For example, when I made my decision to get healthy I knew it would have to be accomplished in a way that was fun and provided me results.