Why should I be keeping a food diary?
Good question and I’m glad you asked! Keeping track of what you consume on a daily basis is a step—no, let me rephrase that—a huge leap in the direction towards figuring out why you eat the way you do, what you eat, and why you are carrying around too much weight.
It will help you pinpoint problem areas and best of all, will help you create an eating plan that best fits your lifestyle and weight loss goals.
It sounds like a lot of work!
Yes and no—it depends on what kind of journal you want to keep and what information you want to track. When I am really on target, I keep track of calories, fat grams, carbs, exercise, water intake, and notes about the why’s and how’s of my eating day.
These are some of the things you might want to consider tracking:
~keep track of the type of foods you are eating (well balanced)
~total calories consumed daily
~track one or more of the following: fat grams, carbs, fiber, protein, sodium, etc.
~a way to record emotions/feelings that relate to your eating habits
~identify hunger vs. cravings
~identify trouble areas regarding eating
~track what time of the day you eat
~the amount of water you consume
~daily vitamin
~exercise in relation to how much you eat
~discover why you eat for reasons other than hunger
The very first step in keeping a food diary is to decide how you will log your information.
Begin by asking yourself the following questions…
A. Am I a paper and pencil
B. Do I like to work on the computer?
C. Do I consider myself to be a private person?
D. Do I think that sharing the information with others will help keep me on track?
If you answered A or A& C, you might want to consider purchasing a diary or notebook that you can use to hand write all of your daily information. You also might want to pick something small that will fit into your purse or bag, so you will always have it with you.
I highly suggest purchasing a pocket nutritional guide
If you answered B or B & D, you have several options available to you. You can keep track of your food intake by using a table, a spreadsheet, or a word document if you want more of a diary format.
If you like the idea of sharing your food diary with the world, you can start a blog and post what you eat online. Some people also take pictures of what they eat and post that as well. If you chose this format, you can use the Calorie King website when you need to look up nutritional information.
There are two truths I know about keeping a food diary and they are quite simple…
Truth #1 When I keep track of what I eat and how much I exercise…I lose weight.
Truth #2 When I don’t keep a food diary…I gain weight.
Simple, huh?
My Food Diary Example:
On this particular day everything was going well–in other words–I was on track until my friend called and invited us out to dinner. I abandoned my plans, accepted the invitation, and went a bit overboard with my calorie intake. Because of my food diary I was able to see I didn’t stay on track and I readjusted my eating the following day.
When I first started keeping a food diary, I simply wrote down everything I ate. I didn’t look up calories or fat grams and I certainly didn’t analyze it.
When I got used to the habit of writing down everything I ate—and I mean everything—I started looking up the nutritional information. Each day I tried to learn something about myself and apply it to my eating habits the following day.
It’s important to decide how much time and energy you want to devote to keeping a food journal.
There were times when I spent so much time writing, graphing, and analyzing my food journal that it actually kept me from going to the gym or taking a walk. (Yes, I tend to obsess) I finally settled on keeping a little notepad with me during the day, in which I scribbled down what I ate, how much I ate, and when I ate.
Then in the evenings when it was time to relax, I logged my notes onto the computer and tracked my results. It worked for me…in fact, it worked really well for me and I lost lots of weight.
Being honest with yourself plays a huge roll in your food diary success. Remember the old saying, “if you bite it…write it!” Bites, licks, and tastes add up, as they all contain calories. If you don’t write it, you are only fooling yourself.
Be honest with yourself and you will love the rewards!
I think the most important thing I learned from keeping a food diary was the day to day control that I developed when I was able to study what I was eating, how much I was eating, and why I was eating.
The real key to keeping a food journal is not only writing down what you eat, but making changes when you discover something about yourself and your eating habits.
5 Tips for Food Journal Success:
1. Have nutritional information available to you at all times.
2. Be honest with yourself.
3. If you mess up—start over and don’t quit! Always remember that tomorrow is another day!
4. Write down EVERYTHING you eat
5. Set goals for yourself and keep moving forward.
Keeping a food diary is easy and you WILL lose weight! Start one today!
Keeping a Food Diary–>Lose Belly Fat
