Being overweight or obese is the fifth leading risk for global deaths. At least 2.8 million adults die each year as a result of being overweight or obese. Overall, more than one in ten of the world’s adult population is obese.

Shouldn't these statistics give you cause for concern?

If they don't, then you're either crazy or have a great body, but then again what if you're completely sane and are indeed concerned about the repercussions of obesity.

There's not other option other than working out regularly to get back into shape, if only to prevent several diseases for which obesity is the root cause.

So where does the World Wide Web fit it in all of this?

For those people who aren't power internet users, the things you can do with simply conducting Google searches is just amazing! To say the least, you can use it to find the best deals, listen to music, watch videos and even download free software even if it pertains to health & fitness.

Yes, we're talking about weight loss software here.

Almost any fitness enthusiast will tell you that if you want to lose weight, you'll have to workout regularly, and most importantly track your progress from time to time no matter whether it is a meal plan that you would like to stick to or even a strict exercise regimen that you would like to follow.

But there's much more, and so, here is a list of the most popular software that is being used to track weight loss and more.

Weight Loss Software – Most Popular Options

#1: Fitday

Almost 5.1 million members track different aspects of their health such as their diet and exercise, weight loss and even their personal goals by means of an online journal of sorts.

As soon as you populate with numbers that are related to your weight loss regimen, you can get several readings such as your daily calorie count and other indicators of progress when it comes to weight loss and fitness.

#2: Nutridiary

This online weight loss tool is no different from the first option since it not only helps you to track your weight loss but also helps you to maintain a diet and exercise routine by simply signing up for a free account. Of course, the objective at the end of its all is to take the "guesswork out of dieting".

#3: ExRx

This website has something for everyone right from the beginner to the advanced health enthusiast who want to track their weight loss through keeping a check on their diet and exercise routine.

Not only can you find a wide variety of exercises for different types of training equipment but thanks to the animation, you can learn the correct way to execute a particular exercise. Interestingly, this website also provides you with excel sheets that you can use to track your diet and exercise routine for weight loss as well.

Some of the other options that are available to the fitness enthusiast are PEERtrainer, Sparkpeople and CaloriesPerHour as well. You can also find a whole bunch of free tools at Freedieting as well.

In Closing

Of course, since health is an ongoing process, you should feel free to use these tools anyways in order to ensure that you do stay healthy! Yes, before you begin to get concerned all over again…

Introduction

Steven Paul Jobs remains my greatest hero even till today at least when it comes to the world of computers . If one has watched the 2005 Stanford Commencement Address that he made, urging graduates to find "opportunity" in everything – even in death!

What makes for interesting reading is his rise and fall when it came to his "baby", Apple Computers that is now known as Apple Inc. In reading up on the lives of men who changed the way we live our lives, we can understand what their drive in life was to succeed.

Perhaps, the geniuses of the computer world do understand what the meaning of change has been, as they have not only adapted their technology to the World Wide Web but have also sought to ride the wave of the internet for greater visibility – and thus, greater profitability.

Almost everything that you can find in the real world is found over the internet, and with its objective to make things easier for everyone involved, the software that you can download (or use) for nothing can help you with any conceivable problem that you can imagine.

Finding Software over the World Wide Web

Take for example, software to edit audio and video files, for translation, for producing a a cartoon caricature of yourself using a photo and even weight loss software.

You can find several options that are free with a simple Google search!

Weight Loss Software

When it comes to finding software that can help you calculate a weight loss meal plan to tracking a complete diet and exercise program to even calculating your Body Mass Index and other measurements that are normally a part of fitness.

So here are a list of popular (and most importantly, free) software that is used for weight loss and in general, for fitness purposes:

1) Fitday

With over 5.1 million members tracking aspects of their health such as the food, exercises, weight loss, and their personal goals by means of a free online diet journal.

As soon as you enter all the information, the system calculates your Daily Calorie Count, weight loss among a whole lot of detailed information that relates to nutrition and exercise.

2) Nutridiary

With a punchline which says "take the guesswork out of dieting", this online food and exercise diet tool will help you track weight loss, build muscle or just even be in control of your health.

All you have to do just like the previous tool mentioned, is open an online account (which is free) and you can work towards improving your health.

3) ExRx

This is an excellent site which has everything for the beginner to the person who is in the advanced stage of exercise and diet. With animations (like no other) that describes the exercises, this is one of the best sites to use if you are not sure about how any exercise (if found) is executed the 'right way'. It also provides your with excel sheets (as a diet and exercise tool) that you can use to track your health.

Apart from these three very useful sites with information that is very useful for those who are serious about their health, some of the other sites that one use are SparkPeople, PEERTrainer, CaloriesPerHour and a whole bunch of tools at Freedieting as well.

In Closing

With the Web 2.0 has kicked off, I'm sure that even the most far-sighted people in the IT industry wouldn't have even imagined such progress. But the truth is that Steve Jobs (and Bill Gates) have changed our lives – in finally, putting a personal computer in almost everyone's home.

After posting her pics here on FitBuff for the last few weeks, Alley decided to start her own website, so her progress pics and stats on now on her new health and fitness blog here:

Here are this week's progress pictures and measurements for me…

Height: 6'3"
Weight: 173.2 pounds (+0.8 lb from last week)
Waist: 31.25 inches (+0.05" from last week)

How to Get Abs

My eating was a lot cleaner this week, though still not perfect.

I managed to gain almost a pound, and my workouts are now officially ingrained in my daily schedule again after passing the one-month mark.

We're gearing up to go on vacation this Friday, first to Myrtle Beach for 6 days, then Disney World for 4 days, so it will be challenging to stay relatively healthy, as far as eating while we're gone, but we're definitely going to try to limit an all-out setback, because 10 days is a long time.

After posting her pics here on FitBuff for the last few weeks, Alley decided to start her own website, so her progress pics and stats on now on her new health and fitness blog here:

Here are this week's progress pictures and measurements for me…

Height: 6'3"
Weight: 172.4 pounds (-0.4lb from last measurement)
Waist: 31.2 inches (-0.5" from last measurement)

How to Get Abs Progress Pics

Things have been relatively consistent over the last few weeks, and while I haven't really gained much of my weight back that I lost during mono, I've at least evened out.

I also reintroduced small portions of meat back into my diet, but only 100% organic and only about a fist-sized portion per day.

I'd like to find the balance of getting the benefits associated with small amounts of organic meat, while avoiding all the potential problems.

One great thing is that I've finally started working out every single day again, and I'm on 24 consecutive days now.

They've all been relatively quick workouts, but getting back into the habit was the most important thing.

After posting her pics here on FitBuff for the last few weeks, Alley decided to start her own website, so her progress pics and stats on now on her new health and fitness blog here:

Here are this week's progress pictures and measurements for me…

Weight: 172.8 pounds (+0.8lb from last measurement)
Waist: 31.7 inches (-0.0" from last week)

Finally, an actual increase in weight, even if it is less than a pound, haha.

At least the bleeding has stopped, and I'm not going to drop into the dreaded 160's!

I expect this trend to continue as I keep packing back on healthy weight.

After posting her pics here on FitBuff for the last few weeks, Alley decided to start her own website, so her progress pics and stats on now on her new health and fitness blog here:

Here are this week's progress pictures and measurements for me…

Weight: 172.0 pounds (-3.0lb from last measurement)
Waist: 31.7 inches (-0.3" from last week)

I'm still battling the after effects of mono and trying to regain the weight I lost, but doing so in a healthy manner. After my jaw surgery a couple of years ago, I piled it back on by eating everything in sight, which definitely put weight back on, but not healthy weight.

I figure now, at my thinnest in years, it's a good starting point to build lean mass, since I can't have much fat left at all. I've still be taking it easy from working out, because I definitely don't want a relapse, but it's been over a month now, so I should be completely safe to start this week.

I'm sure that will help a lot, and I've missed it so much.

After posting her pics here on FitBuff for the last few weeks, Alley decided to start her own website, so her progress pics and stats on now on her new health and fitness blog here:

Here are this week's progress pictures and measurements for me…

Weight: 175.4 pounds (-7.0lb from last measurement)
Waist: 32.0 inches (-1.0" from last week)

Well, I finally figured out what that throat sickness I mentioned last time was… mononucleosis.

Needless to say, it was awful, and my throat was so sore that I could barely eat for days. Thanks to my body's uncanny ability to return myself to the stick-figure shape I had before working out, I dropped a whopping 17 pounds in two weeks!

Yes, I've heard the, "Then I wish I had mono," jokes, but I didn't really have the extra 17 pounds to lose, so now I'm trying to put it back on, slowly but surely and using as many healthy and organic options as I can, instead of just loading up on junky, fatty foods.

I'm cleared for working out again this week, so I'm going to start off very slowly. One of the things about mono is your spleen swells, and though it's very rare, intense exercise or strenuous activity can cause the spleen to rupture. They say to give it a full 4 weeks to be safe, and it's been just about that long now.

Has anyone else out there had mono? How much weight did you lose?

Introduction

Recently, a friend of mine asked me to give him my opinion about the Norse Valkyrie tattoo that is apparently a rage amongst those who love body art, and most of these folks are also the types who think that their body is a wonderland. Oh wonder where's poor Alice is gone now?

Anyways, in reading up on a bit of Norse mythology, one will get acquainted with the blue-eyed devils – Vikings who had their own philosophy about life, death and the afterlife with a common underlying theme – war.

Wonder if they ever thought about weight loss?

But then we live in different times, I suppose, where people find more reasons to sink into inactivity (forget the grand-daddy of them all – war) rather than get up and get the day rolling…

Slacking off, it seems, is the order of the day, and then we wonder why we don't lose weight… and even if we've tried, and don't see results… lethargy sets, and we wish to go back to our old ways.

Wonder if there was a time when these Vikings sat down because they lost a 'war', and decided to never fight again! And you can bet your life that they always got up to fight another day, with more aggression and desire to conquer…

If anyone knew how to live life, these people did, they lived with passion and gusto that some of us lazy jackasses can learn something from… even if it means working out more often with no excuses, no B.S and most of all, no escapist tendencies! Stand and fight, I say… and stay the course!

Tracking Weight Loss

Perhaps one of the popular methods by which one will continue working out to lose weight is by tracking weight loss. Some folks use the mirror to check on themselves periodically, and some take pics to track progress at provocative angles with little hearts (hint hint) to blur out the unmentionable areas (winky wink!).

This is all wonderful and all, but if your aim is to lose weight… man, you'll have to set your aim much higher – much much higher! And for that one needs a vision – with very high goals. And you can find several practical ones…

Women read magazines that often cause them to get up and do something about changing the way they are, and often that works as great motivation. This one (a pic of Ryan Reynolds) worked for me being a guy from Mars and all that jazz at the beginning, after I met a close friend who's got that Spartan/ beast-like bod that makes you want to do much more!

However, the aforementioned magazine pictures aspired to are of women who are of the 'Bo Derek' variety leaving one discouraged sooner if not later, and so the motivation behind 'working out' needs to be altered. It's not about JUST looking good, but taking care of your health and most all, staying competitive which keeps us alive.

My ancestors (as in Hindu philosophy) believed that mental and bodily exercise is a duty that one must perform regardless everyday… and no, it's not some fad nonsense just so that one gets to look good or is looked as cool…

If you drill this ideology into your head, then the business of tracking weight (which can work as great motivation as well) won't contribute as heavily to the motivation to working out.It's become a natural part of your life!

Performing a duty to your body means you love and respect it as well, and are doing it to improve the quality of your life. See how simple it is! So, just get up and workout…

In Closing

For best results, go the military way (our modern day Vikings) – it's a joy to see them work so hard while serving their country. Now that's what I mean by setting your goals high… go for it because there's nothing you can't do!

Introduction

Albert Einstein once said that if you want to live a happier life then tie it to a goal, and not to people or things. For the most part of our lives, the reason why most people wander is because they aren't sure of what they want to do with their lives, and even if they do, they do not know how to get there.

So, perhaps, it is imperative that one enjoys the journey instead of waiting eagerly for the destination whether it is about losing weight or exploring a new profession through study or anything else…

Goal Setting

Goal setting is not so tough, really. Although there's been a lot of talk about how one should set goals, there's no one way to do that but perhaps one widely used goal-setting technique (also known as the SMART goal-setting technique) can be used… but before we explore this one, let's talk about a couple of other things that are important, and touch on the human aspect of reaching a goal.

1. Visualize your goal

Use your imagination to visualize how you want to look.

If you are not so imaginative (but competitive), use a picture of the fittest looking model that you admire to help you better visualize how you want to look, and better still as a 'live' goal for you to work towards. For men, a picture of Ryan Reynolds should be enough… trust me!

2. Be open to any workout style that offers real results

A closed mind is, indeed, a dangerous one. So, one should be open to trying different types of workout programs, as some might work better for you than it might for others. You never know…

3. Measure Progress

Even though we will talk about this in detail when we come to the SMART technique, with every milestone of fitness obtained, your thoughts drastically change from 'Will I ever lose weight?' to the far-more appealing 'It's only a matter of time.' of which the latter is motivating!

4. Moderate your expectations

A tree doesn't grow overnight. It takes time. So all things do take their time. One cannot get six-pack abs in one week… oh please! Almost every person who has reached an enviable level of fitness knows that they've had to 'earn' by busting themselves day in and out over an extended period of time. So you might as well enjoy the 'journey' until you get to your destination rather than trying to hurry it up…

5. Giving up is out of the question, pal!

We all want to give up. Yes, we're human and life is tough. However, the art of winning lies in the ability to persist even though we would like to do otherwise. Thus the saying, winners never quit, and quitters never win…

Take a break… but don't QUIT!

6. Using the SMART Technique

If you really want to achieve a goal, then this method can be virtually used for anything in your life, whether it is to achieve the fitness levels that you've wanted or anything else. Check this link for more information on the SMART technique.

You can find examples of how to use this technique over the internet, so Google away!

In Closing

From a personal standpoint, much like life, one should not be so focused on the goal that one forgets to take in the experience of a new day. Enjoy each workout. Tell yourself that you love yourself, and that's why you are taking time to take care of yourself. Consider it a 'spiritual experience' for your body as it develops and grows slowly everyday. Feel the flow, and enjoy every moment of it… as that is what Life is about!

After posting her pics here on FitBuff for the last few weeks, Alley decided to start her own website, so her progress pics and stats on now on her new health and fitness blog here:

Here are this week's progress pictures and measurements for me…

Weight: 182.4 pounds (-4.2lb from last measurement)
Waist: 33.0 inches (+0.25" from last week)

It's been several weeks since our last progress update, as things have been pretty hectic: traveling, opening a new business, raising two fast-growing and powerful puppies, and more…

Things have finally settled down enough to get back on track health and fitness-wise, just in time for both of us to come down with some type of head and throat sickness.

In fact, that was part of our wake-up call that we need to start focusing on our bodies and health again, since I can't even remember the last time I was this sick.

I'm just coming out of it now, but I lost several pounds, since I couldn't eat many solid foods with such a sore throat.

It should only take another day or two of R&R, then we'll be easing back into full workouts, and we've already cleaned up our eating over the last several days, since that got out of hand with all of the traveling too.