Individuals that have long-running issues with weight management are usually quite industrious in their ongoing search for the latest diet fad promising quick results. The situation presents itself to become easily fixated with food and calorie choices based solely upon weight loss, while the area of physical activity to manage and maintain a healthy weight go unexplored. The reason for this may be due to personal perceptions of physical exercise and activity and the work and sweat that are associated with them. Psychologically, the path of least resistance to govern weight management is through dieting and guarding fat and caloric intake. It is because of this confined view of weight management that so many people are dismayed at their personal results – rather than attacking the issue with all of the tools available, it becomes a one dimensional attack.
The importance of physical activity to weight management is not usually fully understood by those concerned with weight issues, but regardless some type of activity needs to be incorporated into a weight management program if there is any hope of success. The concept of of utilizing physical activity to manage weight is very basic and does not require extensive knowledge of physical fitness and nutrition, just good old fashioned common sense. With proper diet and activity more calories and fat are used than are ingested, and weight loss results with no need for extraordinary measures. The beauty of the theory lies in notion that there is little or no self-deprivation of life's enjoyments – eat an ice cream cone, spend an extra 20 minutes on the exercise bike or walking. Diet and exercise become conjoined in a person's intellect, rather than the usual mad dash to count every calorie.
The form of physical activity is the choice of the individual, and should be something that is at least tolerable if not actually enjoyable. In choosing a reasonably pleasant activity, the chances of obtaining positive results are enhanced greatly, and an individual may find a routine that they can keep for a lifetime. The characteristics of a particular physical activity should match the ability of the individual, and need not necessarily be extreme in effort or endurance to show excellent results. Any physical activity that uses calories, burns fat and tones muscles is useful in managing weight.
Perhaps the easiest and most successful form of using physical activity to manage weight is split up a day's desired activity into ten minute segments, performed 3 to 5 times daily. In this manner, an individual can get the activity they require while still being able to enjoy their life.
Having been to numerous Econsultancy Roundtables in London, I was
chuffed (very pleased) that my schedule allowed me to participate in
Econsultancy’s Measurement & Metrics Roundtable at the New World
Headquarters in New York last Thursday.
It was quite different from
those I'd attended in London…
Instead of coffee and tea, there was only coffee. Instead of biscuits (small cookies with no flavor) there were enormous, freshly baked cookies that threatened us all. Instead of a view of the Thames, we were in an office converted into a garage. Yes, I should have taken a photo.
Being from California, I am accustomed to being in garages converted into offices that this was a bit surreal – a conference room with garage doors to the common areas and one in the middle to divide the room into smaller rooms. Clever but disorienting.
Instead of a variety of accents from around Great Britain, everybody spoke your basic American, except for one individual from Mexico City.
I was the only one wearing a necktie.
Beyond that, things were very much the same on this side of the Pond as in Old Blighty starting with Chatham House Rules: comments are not to be attributed to any individual or organization and there is nothing published based on the discussions.
So, while I can summarize, extrapolate and compare, I cannot reveal who was there except to say that the participants were diverse, the level of conversation extremely advanced and that there were several people there with more measurement and metrics experience and insight than one could hope for. The rest were from large brands, publishers, broadcasters, business to business companies and business to consumer companies.
There were agency people and ad sales people. And, of course, the redoubtable Rebecca Lieb and the quiet but insightful Meghan Keane from Econsultancy. (It's alright to reveal your presence, yes??)
The conversation meandered across vast stretches of measurement issues and dove deeply into specific areas of concern. It is such a pleasure to be in a group that small enough (we all fit at one conference table and had one conversation) to really get into the subject instead of glossing over everything. It wasn't just question and answer, it was question and, “Yes, but what I really meant was…” and “Yes, but in my case, my manager's manager actually said…”
Now you see why Chatham House Rules are so near and dear. While I can't tell you the inside stories, the things that made us laugh, cry and rush out into the night for a stiff drink, I can say that the main concerns on everybody's minds are similar in the Colonies as they are at the seat of the British Empire:
- Multi Channel Metrics
- Mobile Metrics
- Social Media Metrics
- Advertising Attribution
- Testing Best Practices
- Integrated Marketing
- Predictive Analytics
- Convincing Upper Management
- and then some
Throughout the entire conversation, the “experts” in the room kept beating the same drum of logic and common sense. It is so refreshing to sit with really smart people who have really serious problems and listen to other really smart people dish out really straight forward advice. No sales pitches, no “as I wrote in my book,” no proselytizing about one method to rule them all.
The downside was the reality that there are no silver bullets, no magic pills, no slam-dunk technologies and no way to make upper management more intelligent overnight. There is only logic and common sense.
- If you want to retire rich, spend less and save more.
- If you want a good relationship, talk less and listen more.
- If you want good online marketing results, report less and analyze more.
- If you want to lose weight, eat less and exercise more. Now if it weren't for those damned cookies…
Many thanks to those who participated (and you know who you are) and to Econsultancy and Rebecca for including me. Always a treat and I live in hopes that my calendar is free for the next one and my participation was civil enough to have earned an invitation to return.
If you get the chance to participate in any of Econsultancy's Roundtables, I recommend them without hesitation.
The top priority for the Milwaukee Brewers' front office this winter was to improve the worst pitching staff in the National League. By re-signing Trevor Hoffman and bringing in free agents Randy Wolf, Doug Davis, and LaTroy Hawkins, there is little doubt that the rotation and bullpen will not have similar results in 2010.
The moves have been received well by the fanbase. The Brewers have already sold 1 million tickets for the upcoming season, the second-fastest time in team history to get to that mark.
In the eyes of the fans, the most pressing need seems to be trying to lock up Prince Fielder to a long-term deal. While many feel it's a mortal lock that Fielder will bolt Milwaukee after the 2011 season, when taking a closer look, one can begin to see a way that the organization can keep the mammoth slugger for the next several years.
Fielder is entering the final year of a two-year, $18 million deal signed prior to last season. Should he put up numbers similar to the past couple of seasons, he'll be in line to make $15 million to $18 million for the 2011 season.
This won't be a problem for the Brewers to pay such a salary. The contracts of Jeff Suppan and Bill Hall come off the books after this year, giving the team more than $20 million in freed-up money.
If Fielder were the only big-name hitter in free agency that season, it would be almost impossible for the Brewers to re-sign him. The Brewers catch a break because he could enter free agency with fellow sluggers Albert Pujols, Ryan Howard, and Adrian Gonzalez.
The biggest advantage going for Fielder is his age. Pujols and Howard will be in their 30s, while Gonzalez will turn 30 in the 2012 season. Fielder won't turn 30 until May 9 in the 2014 season.
Most believe Pujols will remain in St. Louis, but nothing is set in stone until a contract is signed. It's hard to imagine his talent falling off so much in the next two years that he won't be the top prize for every team in baseball.
All would be a great fit for the middle of any lineup. Each will face different questions as teams will try to cut the best deal for themselves.
Fielder's weight will be an issue, but he has proven that he can maintain it during the last few seasons and not gain any significant amount. Regardless, he will likely always have questions about his long-term playing ability because of the size of his waist.
Beginning in 2012, only Wolf and Ryan Braun are under contract. Fielder will still be only 27 and likely ask for a seven- or eight-year deal. There's no doubt the Brewers would be taking a risk, but it's a risk they need to make.
The team offered CC Sabathia a five-year, $100 million contract after the 2008 season. No one in baseball thought he would sign it, but management was at least able to tell the fanbase it offered a player $20 million a season.
Sabathia ended up signing for just a bit more than $20 million a season, but the Yankees offered three extra years—something the Brewers weren't willing to do.
Milwaukee needs to step up and do more than offer a contract that can be spun by the front office as a positive public relations move. They have already signed one star, Braun, to a long-term deal, and they must do the same with Fielder to be taken seriously as a legitimate franchise.
Braun may be the face of the franchise from the front office's point of view, but Fielder is the reason fans come to the ballpark and watch games. Fielder is a clubhouse leader, while several media outlets have reported that Braun is more of a “me” type of guy.
The duo already makes up one of the top hitting combos in all of baseball. If the two were locked up for several more seasons, the Brewers would have a legitimate shot at the playoffs every year.
The Brewers could also sign Fielder long term, then trade Braun. He is under contract through 2015 with a limited no-trade clause the last few seasons.
It is reasonable to keep both players for a few extra seasons. Braun will only make $6 million in 2012, $8 million in 2013, and $10 million in 2014.
Having two players make up a third of the payroll is a dangerous idea, but the Brewers will likely have several young players under team control making very low salaries. Angel Salome, Jonathan Lucroy, Mat Gamel, Alcides Escobar, Carlos Gomez, and Lorenzo Cain are just a few of the position players likely to see prominent roles in the next few years.
Should Fielder decide to leave Milwaukee, it would be the biggest loss to the franchise since Paul Molitor left for Toronto after the 1992 season. Even with Braun, it would be hard for the team to compete and draw the type of crowds it has for the past few seasons.
Would an eight-year, $180 million contract be enough to keep Fielder in Milwaukee? Maybe, maybe not. That's a deal very similar to what Mark Teixeira signed last winter. It would also serve as the most lucrative deal in Brewers' history by more than $130 million.
Some say no player is worth that amount of money—especially one with concerns over his weight.
Fielder has proven to be an elite power hitter and has significantly improved his play in the field. Most importantly, he is the major reason why fans come to Miller Park in droves every summer, as well as spend their money on merchandise.
Losing Fielder won't kill the franchise, but it will set it back several years in trying to build a consistent winner. The Brewers can't afford to go back to the days of drawing less than 2 million at Miller Park.
No matter the cost, Mark Attanasio and Doug Melvin need to lock up Fielder for the majority of his career to remain a Brewer. He's a once-in-a-generation player, and no franchise—even small-market Milwaukee—can afford to let a player like that leave.
To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here.
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