Is journaling the secret to meeting your weight loss and fitness goals? I read an article through an online news site where one student talked about the success she had after taking a basic English course where she was required to journal her daily activities including what she ate and drank. She said it was amazing to recognize what she was and wasn't eating right and where she needed to make corrections.

People Don't Want to Know

I've kept a journal of what I eat, drink and the amount of activity I've performed. It's pretty tough to do because if you do it right, you have to face exactly how many calories you consume versus how many you burn. You have to really look at your choices and you can't just forget those pair of Oreo Double Stuff Chocolate cookies you snuck in earlier or that the daily mocha from Starbuck's with its 300+ calories is not so easy over look. In fact, at one point, I was drinking three to four of those a day and journaling made me take a long hard look at that and needless to say, I dialed it back.

Good Housekeeping magazine reported that most people who see what they are eating feel more accountable and will consciously make better choices. I know that journaling at the holidays helps me to keep track of not going back for that third or fourth helping while we sit around, laughing and talking all day.

Several years ago, we hosted a Christmas with over a dozen people in attendance. I was making food for days in preparation, breads, pies, cakes, and then of course the huge Christmas dinner that I served Christmas Eve. We were swimming in food. I made a point of writing down every bite I took to keep from nibbling through the preparations and overeating. It was hard and sometimes it made me feel more than a little ashamed of myself because I would go back again and again and I wasn't really hungry, I was just going for it because it was there.

Being Accountable

It's amazing what a little bit of accountability can do for your overall fitness. So, do you think journaling your calorie intake and outtake could make a difference in your fitness? Are you willing to give it a shot? Starting August 1st, I'm going to take the hard road and journal every meal, every exercise session; everything and I'll post it here. I'm going to use those 31 days of August to take a long hard look at my personal choices.

Are you up for the challenge?

Last night's 'So You Think You Can Dance' featured a closing number that had me back in my office and looking up the dance style called 'bollywood.' If you didn't see the performance (shame on you - just kidding), but you can see it here on You Tube.

Evolution of Bollywood

If you haven't heard of 'Bollywood' before it's a coined term that refers to the Indian film industry. The industry is booming and produces more than 900 films per year. Bollywood dance comes from the song and dance sequences in many of the Bollywood films. Think back to the great musical features of the 40s and 50s, now flash forward to the 21st century in Bombay, India and you have a dance style that evolves that mixes the elements of traditional dance with film magic.

Bollywood dance mingles jazz, modern, oriental, hip and even Russian step dancing with classical Indian style to really light up the performances. While on the surface, these dances look utterly simple, they require stern muscle control and flair to make them look so effortless. As demonstrated by dance pair Katie and Joshua last night, the wonderfully athletic dance is a real crowd pleaser.

Mia Michaels, a contemporary choreographer and sometime judge for the show, remarked that she was delighted to see world dances lighting up the stage. Their movements were so precise and effortless, yet performed with control. The success of marrying so many dance forms into one style will hopefully continue the trend not only on the show, but also for dance options here in the United States.

If you're interested in dressing up your own home workout routines, I found a couple of great Bollywood dance style workout DVDs that I'm going to be ordering from Netflix to check out. Let me know what you think.

• The Bollywood Dance Workout With Hemalayaa (2007)
• Bollywood Burn

The life of a writer is great, we get up in the morning, we sit down at the computer and we start typing. But anyone who writes a great deal sits in a chair, their shoulders hunched forward, their back is slightly arched and their arms are tucked closer to their body. This is not a natural position for the body to remain in for hours at a time. You don't really think about the stress this puts on your back, your neck and even your shoulders and your legs.

Get Out of the Chair

So when you spend a lot of time writing for a living, you also need to take the time to notice the unnatural way you are forcing your body to sit in for hours at a time and accommodate that. So here's my list of key things that I do every day to alleviate the stress on my back, my neck and my legs.

The Bum

Sitting in a chair for hours can actually be very painful on your derriere. Numbness is a real issue for me and I don't know if the chair I'm sitting in is too hard (yet a cushioned chair has the same effect) or if it's just like when you lay on your arm when you're asleep, the bum goes to sleep. I use my cell phone to set an alarm and every hour I get up from the chair and walk around. I walk around the house. I walk around the office. I get up and I move. Movement, loosens up the muscles, increases the circulation and helps reduce the numb sensation in the bum.

The Legs

Getting up and moving around is also good for your legs. If you sit too long in the same position, you may experience mild to moderate swelling in the legs. This is a noticeable effect of gravity combined by body position that allows water to settle on the lower extremities. When I flew to London a couple of months ago, 11 hours of sitting in those cramped chairs was just brutal on the legs. It actually took quite a bit of walking to get the circulation to relieve that pressure and discomfort.

Work tip: Consider every time you get on the phone for any reason, that you should get up and walk. This is another way I manage to do two things at once whether I'm talking for a short period or an extended period of time; I get up out of the chair and keep walking.

Come back tomorrow for more tips on back support and neck tension. Remember, when we talk about exercise for writers, we're not just talking about brainstorming ideas for you to write on. How do you take care of yourself after hours at the computer?

Dana Torres is a swimmer. She participated in the swimming trials for the U.S. Olympic team in Nebraska over the weekend, securing not only her place on the Olympic swim team, but setting a new American record in the 50-meter freestyle.

So Who is Dana Torres?

Flashback to 1984 when Dana, then just 16 years old competed in the Los Angeles Olympic Games and winning a gold medal in the 4x100 freestyle relay. In 1988, she competed in the Seoul Olympics where she earned a silver and a bronze medal. Torres initially retired in 1989, but then dove back into the pool to compete in the Barcelona Games of 1992 and won another gold for the 4x100 free relay. Then for the second time, at the age of 25, she decided to retire from competitive swimming.

7 years later in 1999, now age 32, a friend's nudge sent Torres back into the competition. She not only got back into training, she entered in the Sydney Games in 2000 and won not won gold medal, but two as well as three bronze medals.

When Dana became pregnant in 2005, she continued swimming to keep herself in shape. Her daughter was born in April of 2006 and Dana began training once again for the 2008 Olympics. This weekend, she has secured her position on the Olympic swim team at the age of 41 and she is the first American swimmer to compete in five Olympic games.

Wow.

Hats off to Dana Torres! I've always been a firm believer that physical fitness is about more than just working out, it's about being mentally and emotionally fit. Dana Torres demonstrates that growing older doesn't mean that you can't stay in top form, compete well and out swim kids half your age. I can't wait to see how she does in Beijing in August! Good luck!

Monday mornings! I've never been a fan of Monday mornings. I spent my 4th of July weekend sick and in bed for the most part. Our plans were tabled for me, though I sent the husband and daughter out to have a good time. I got to enjoy their stories and their wonder at the fireworks and much more. But here it is, the long weekend is over and we are approaching the halfway mark of summer. July also marked the beginning of the back half of the year. Not to make you look at the calendar, but school starting is not that far away and the holiday rush begins in just three short months.

Fast Fitness Tips

So let's take the ticking clock as our motivation to dive into some fast fitness tips for beginning or maintaining your fitness regimen. Fair warning, some of these are a little intimidating when you think about it too long, but they are pretty effective.

• Get out the camera and take a picture of yourself - use it to maintain your motivation whether that is to get the workout started or keep at it. Refresh that picture every month
• Write yourself some motivational messages, consider the things you would tell a good friend to encourage them and then encourage yourself
• Use your cell phone to set an exercise alarm - this is actually one of my favorite methods because I get up in the morning and set the alarm for every two hours to make sure I get up and move - it's really important for those who spend a lot of time working at their desk
• Calendar notes - note the days you're working out and the days of rest so that you can stay on target
• Partner fitness - get a buddy, your dog, your daughter, your husband or your neighbor to keep you on your toes and working out
• Buy an outfit that is at least one size too small - if your goal is to lose weight, put that outfit up somewhere you can see it and work towards fitting in it - and remember the day that you can, take yourself out for a treat

These are just a few of the ways you can keep your fitness plan in line. Join us this week as we talk about fitness for writers (yes, writers need some specific exercise tips), more mom fitness articles and water park fitness and safety for the kids.