I keep a text file, but it's only visible as root and its name doesn't make it seem like a text file. Furthermore, within it I never actually spell out my passwords, just a couple of characters to remember my sequence. I used to do the same for the system for which it applied, but then I found that I would forget my clever-at-the-time abbreviations for those (that leaky brain problem you mentioned...). I think that's sufficient obfuscation for now.

(Caveat: Are you sure this program isn't part of a research study? If so, most of this discussion is moot.)

I'm referring to the tinfoil hat, not the heart-rate monitor. ;) Two things...

1. You right to be concerned about a program that, although it might be well-intentioned, has clear potential to be misused by a health-insurance company down the road. With that sort of concern, I hope you're for health-care reform.

2. Heart-rate monitors are red herrings. You don't need one to know if you're exercising hard. Trust me, you'll know because you want to get it to be over with and collapse onto the floor. Their value is primarily to endurance athletes trying to tune a specific pace. There many, many other athletes whose sports are of shorter duration who don't benefit much from a heart-rate monitor. Even more importantly, kids shouldn't focus on their heart rate at this stage. They should focus on having fun while exercising and playing, trying different sports, developing motor skills and learning correct for foundational functional movements (e.g., don't round your back in a deadlift).

150 burpees for time requires no equipment and humbles most everyone. (Note to original poster: don't try this full-bore immediately...scale down extensively)

This parent is correct. First, confirm that your concept of "staying in shape" is in line with what CrossFit can do for you: you'll get stronger, faster, and more powerful. You won't develop a bodybuilder's physique, which is very different from how CrossFit defines fitness. It will not be easy, because being truly fit is not easy. As many have stated before, CrossFit is for anyone, but it is not for everyone. Take it easy at first. Although some CrossFit workouts are relatively short (if you're very powerful), which suits the original poster's goals, don't neglect warm-ups and skill exercises. Get a 5' length of PVC pipe and bring it into your office to practice various barbell lifts. Watch some videos, practice, video yourself, practice some more.

The original poster mentioned that, regardless of what he ate, he gained weight when not exercising. Diet must be addressed to produce meaningful results. I've made excellent progress with the Paleo/Caveman/hunter-gatherer diet (the name is easy to make fun of but the results are impossible to ignore). Many others follow Paleo also with Zone ratios.

The truth is out there.

Up front: I agree with all of your listed strengths for LaTeX. However...

The problem that arises with an academic manuscript (that isn't your thesis) is that you have collaborators, and probably some who aren't local. These collaborators will likely need to make useful comments on your manuscript drafts. They might even know how to use LaTeX (most of mine do). But sharing a raw .tex file with them to solicit comments, or even the typesetted pdf? Forget it!

With the .tex file, they'll mash it all up, it won't compile again, and you'll waste a lot of time "collaborating." With the .pdf, Acrobat Reader's commenting feature is too cumbersome and inherently not interactive (if the pdf is even commentable). In my experience, Word's "track changes" feature is the only way to go. It enforces some critical ground rules (only one way to comment; *every* edit is recorded, etc.) that your time-starved colleagues can't ignore, and it favors "show, don't tell" attitudes with corrections.

Word itself is, of course, erratic, but as I recently discovered for a proposal, it can do a lot of things reasonably well (if not as beautifully and perfectly as LaTeX). Section numbers come to mind.