If you need equipment to exercise you are lost. And you count calories by taking note that if you are gaining weight and excercising you are not exercising enough; if you are losing weight and not eating to halt caloric intake, you are killing yourself. If you are careful with food intake and exercise and remain in a few +/- pounds, you're doing it right.

As an ex-Dietitian (changed careers 25 years ago) ,a runner and fighter for 40 (boxing, martial arts). I feel sorry for todays kids. Our education system has dumbed them down to the point they know very little about nutrition and because it is not PC to discuss getting fat or being fat, they stay ignorant and fat.

Add on top of that many school systems have dropped Physical Education, again for PC reasons (we can't have any kind of competitive sports where one side loses and it hurts their feelings)kids never learn the benefits or need for physical exercise.

Sad, but true.

1. "Calories don't burn": True, but trite. They are a measure of energy contained in carbohydrates which pass through a chemical reaction to convert ADP to ATP, the chemical that energizes muscles.

2. The underlying assumption of the ~~100 kcal/mile is that moving 160 lbs for a distance of 1 mile by use of legs bipedally (walking or running at any speed) takes the same amount of energy. Certainly it is not precise, but just a rule of thumb, somewhat easier than working out in a lab with a team of physiologists taking more precise measurements of one's caloric uptake.

3. If the class leader was wrong about how many calories were used in the spinning class, certainly more were used than sitting at home watching the latest news about Paris Hilton on tv.

4. Any activity that is not injurious is better than no activity for weight control and cardiovascular benefit. A friend of mine used to argue that it was useless to ride his bike to work because it only took 10 minutes, and 20 minutes were needed for aerobic benefit.

5. High intensity is fine. Sometimes exhilarating. But if it is so fatiguing that one is discouraged from exercising the next time, maybe lower intensity would be better.

6. Most importantly, regardless of the validity of the benefits claimed, exercising is important.

A must read for everyone who is overweight or knows someone who is overweight, which is
pretty much absolutely everyone who is above
ground and interested in the TRUTH
ABOUT EXERCISE. Some very interresting and revealing facts and a qucik fast read. HATS
OFF TO THE nyt for a super hot article which
should make the people hawking all these machines with meters around Christmas time
faint.

The exaggeration works in the opposite direction for food. People (even dieticians!) will guess guess something at a 1/3 to 1/2 of the actual calories. People have absolutely no idea how many calories they're consuming.

The amount calories expended during exercise is not really what matters.

What matters is the number of calories expended by the body per hour every day.

Exercise, particularly load bearing exercises that increase muscle mass means that you will burn more calories all of the time - even when sleeping.

It much easier to count and limit the calories you take in.... 6 years ago I was moving into middle age and looking and feeling about 15 years older than I really was. This was a challenge for me because I have a very atheletic background. A series of financial problems and family issues had come between me and my body and I was almost 70lbs overweight. My knees hurt when I ran, I was unhappy, uncomfortable and generally disgusted with myself. I looked a pics of me when I was atheletic, even in my mid30s I was lean...
So I decided to make a change.
I limited myself to 500calories every 12hours, made sure that they were the best 500cals I could find. No bread, no dairy, nothing with more than a third of calories from fat... no pasta - pasta is just like white bread in composition and effect..
I worked out for an hour a day, jogging, working the punching bag whatever but focusing on cardio training, not resistance.
It took about four months and I dumped everything that I didn't need. At that point I started a new activity - in my case it was freediving. I took on a high protien weight gainer, did resistance training with weights and continue to this day.
I eat stir fried green veggies, salads and a very occasional piece of meat.
Since I have been on a simplified diet, nothing that I used to like is appealing and my body reacts strongly and negatively if I step away from my diet for anything "indulgent".
Its been five years and I can see my abs, I have a strong and atheletic build that gives me the performance I need and I look like I am in my mid30s again...
You can do it too, just don't buy into the hype.

Don't know about the equipment - but I love the hairstyles.