MyPlate - Let the Internet help get you into shape...free

My grandfather used to say "if you want to lose weight, push away from the dinner table".  My parents taught me about "calories in/ calories out" and the nutritional value of carbs, proteins, and fats to create a well-balanced diet.  In fact, my Mom was a nutritionist and introduced all kinds of foreign meals to us as a kid.  Have you ever had 'beef heart meatloaf'?  It actually tastes worse than it sounds.

It is ironic that each generation is more informed about nutrition than the last but at the same time each generation is getting fatter especially here in the USA.  Calorie rich food today is more accessible today than ever before.  Yet, while most folks know what good nutritious food is and what is just empty calories, many of us still eat the junk.  Applying what you know to what you do is where it gets hard.  Getting into the mentality that food is fuel not pleasure is even harder.

One thing I have done to keep myself 'honest' about my diet is keep a food journal.  I challenge you to do the same for 1 WEEK and think the results my surprise you as they did me.  The tool I used is "My Plate" which you can sign-up for free at www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate.   Basically, you create a login, answer a few questions, and start entering foods you eat daily into the website.  There are millions of foods to choose from in the database which makes calorie counting easy.  It tracks your progress so you may achieve your goal.  After a few weeks of entries, I made some major changes to my diet and as a result I feel better and have lost some belly fat.  Give it a try!

The more I read about nutrition the less I think I know.  There's a ton of information out there to consume.  Low glycemic index foods are choices that I am into now and have seen some nice results there.  So, if you want to make some changes to your diet, create a journal and look into some new food choices and educate yourself the best you can.  You may be surprised by the results you see in the mirror, on the scale, and how you feel which is the most important thing of all.

How they compare - Verizon 3G/4G Data plan VS. RTC Internet DSL/Fiber

When shopping for high speed Internet service most consider two things:  Price & Bandwidth.  Other factors such as bandwidth caps, throttling, quality of service, reliability, portability, customer service, and a shared vs dedicated connection are considered by some but are more secondary in the decision making process.  However, these secondary considerations have direct impact on the primary concern.  For example, who cares how much bandwidth you can potentially receive if you are always having to share it with others?  Or, if you are saving $5/mo is it really worth it if the internet connection is down when you need it most?

But let’s say none of the above matters to you.  All you care about is how much bandwidth you get and how much you pay for that bandwidth.  Let’s pretend that all ISP providers are the same.  The cable company, the telephone company, and wireless Internet providers provide internet at “x” price.  Which is the better overall value?

In this case, I’ve collected data from 10 real users of Verizon 3G/4G Internet data service.  This is what I found over a 3 month period:
Minimum monthly usage – 21meg of data
Maximum monthly usage – 1,138meg of data (1.138gig)
Average monthly usage (10 user AVG) – 265meg of data
Average bill - $50/mo
Average cost per meg - $.189 cents

Data collected for RTC Internet includes a 60/40 mix of copper DSL subscribers and fiber optic Internet subscribers.  Data was available on a little over 5,000 users given the above mix.  Again, a 3 month period:
Average monthly usage – 22,700meg of data (22.7gig)
Average monthly bill - $47/mo
Average cost per meg - $.002 cents

In sum, the relationship between price and bandwidth is actual usage.  In this case, Verizon is 18cents per meg of usage.  RTC Internet is 0.2cents per meg which is almost 100 times less expensive than Verizon service.

Also, RTC Internet has no bandwidth cap.  So, this is how the bill would compare at various usage levels:

In sum, portability of service is costly outside the home which is the only advantage or Verizon 3G/4G service to RTC Internet.  The best bang for the buck is clear.