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The fitness gear and tech that will make me strong and skinny in 2016

Chris Abraham fitness new years resolution commitment through tech

fitbit surgeOK, I am not so naïve as to assume that all the fitness apps we have we’ve strapped to our wrists, clipped to our shirts, and filling up our iPhones and Androids — but it’s not far from the truth. Over the last three months I have been so busy with actual work that I have put a pin in the obsessive calorie-counting, the obsessive step-step-stepping, the recording of anything even remotely resembling a workout onto a GPS watch, a fitness tracker, or a smartphone.

chrisfit at crossfit south arlingtonI was wondering why I was doing it for all these years now — until I stopped and quickly added 20-pounds over the holidays.  So, my obsession with Fitbit, Runkeeper, and MyFitnessPal has been an absolutely essential part of my essential weight management and health maintenance program.

And, after doing that obsessively, the secret to losing weight is painfully simple: calories in versus calories out on one hand; and, I also believe that the body processes different foods differently:

paleo chicken and broccoliPaleo, vegan, cutting out processed foods and sugars and carbs and gluten.  And I have been terrible at such things, always finding a caveat, exception, situation, or opportunity to break the fast.

That said, now that it’s time to act on all of our collective new years resolution, I am looking forward to activating all of the systems I have put into play: Runkeeper, Runtastic, Strava, Fitbit, MyFitnessPal, a Fitbit Surge sleep-, fitness-, and GPS-tracker.

fitbit work week hustle challengeThen, there’s the obvious next step: accountability.

As part of my rich fitness ecosystem of accountability and shame, I have retained a virtual trainer from DailyBurn, Melinda Harvey, and I have connected my fitness apps and my Fitbit to as many friends as possible.

One of the most amazing communities I am part of is the Fitbit Challenge community I highlighted here a year ago in Getting Lithe With a Little help from My FitBit Friends.

23685569579_c4df7c83f3_oNow, this is where I jump back into the bandwagon with both feet — and it’s been going pretty well.  I have been running pretty regularly, walking a lot, I have started going to Spin at Biker Barre in DC, and now I am lined up to start CrossFit at CrossFit South Arlington and, and maybe even some workouts at 9Round Fitness if I feel inspired.

And then there’s my daily bread: Concept2 rowing and Concept2 Challenges and the obsessive swinging of kettlebells at home.

2015 concept2 holiday challengeBut even these are communities, both online and off.  Right now, I am rowing with my Team Grotto virtual team in the 2016 Virtual Team Challenge sponsored by Concept2.

And, if you’re trying to get started running, reddit is an endless source of motivation for both Couch to 5k, running, and even general fitness and body weight exercises. And, oddly enough, there’s very little to no fat shaming no matter what you’ve heard about rampant reddit bullying.

crossfit south arlingtonMy CrossFit god friend, Dan Krueger, is logging a lot of his workouts on an app called the Wendler Log and then sharing it out on Facebook — and that’s one of the biggest component for vigorous accountability with a side order of shaming: sharing your workouts — and lack thereof — on Facebook and Twitter.

I have even started using IFTTT to share every detail or my Fitbit data, including total steps, floors climbed, calories burned, feet elevation gained, miles traveled, sedentary minutes, lightly active minutes, fairly active minutes and very active minutes — and this is published automagically every single night thanks to an IFTTT script.

RNNR - Fake It Till You Make ItI have even started a brand-spanking-new health and fitness blog called RNNR – Fake It Till You Make It in an attempt to . . . fake it ’til I make it.  And, on that note:

WARNING: you’ll probably spend more time being a hyper-sedentary geek than actually putting a couple hours of activity in every day, at least 10,000 steps onto the Fitbit, and at least 30-minutes of high-intensity activity every single day getting your sweat on (if you can go for more than a day without showering, you’re either really gross or you’re not sweating nearly enough on a daily basis).

fitBit IFTTT Data

redditFitnessOK, let’s bring this back to business: I guarantee you that if you spend at least a demiheure every day really sweating to the oldies you will surely be able scrub some stress from your life, boil out the frustrations, and armor your back against the inevitable Oy! My lumbago!

Become the tiger you are, tiger! Go git ’em!

Got Git Em Tiger on Biznology

Chris Abraham

Chris Abraham, digital strategist and technologist, is a leading expert in digital: search engine optimization (SEO), online relationship management (ORM), Internet privacy, Wikipedia curationsocial media strategy, and online public relations with a focus on blogger outreachinfluencer engagement, and Internet crisis response, with the digital PR and social media marketing agency Gerris digital. [Feel free to self-schedule a 15-minute call, a 30-minute call, or a 60-minute call with me] A pioneer in online social networks and publishing, with a natural facility for anticipating the next big thing, Chris is an Internet analyst, web strategy consultant and adviser to the industries' leading firms. Chris Abraham specializes in web technologies, including content marketing, online collaboration, blogging, and consumer generated media.  Chris Abraham was named a Top 50 Social Media Power Influencer by Forbes, #1 PR2.0 Influencer by Traackr, and top-10 social media influencers by Marketwire; and, for what it’s worth, Chris has a Klout of 79 the last time he looked. Chris Abraham started doing web development back in 1994, SEO in 1998, blogging in 1999, influencer engagement in 2003, social media strategy in 2005, blogger outreach in 2006, and Wikipedia curation in 2007. Feel free to self-schedule a 15-minute call, a 30-minute call, or a 60-minute call. If you want to know the services that Chris offers check out Services If you want to work with Chris use the Contact Form You're welcome to follow me via Social Media You can learn more about Chris over in About Chris writes a lot so check out the Blog Chris offers webinars so check Events

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