Using a Food Diary for Healthier Eating

Nutrition Cooking and Lifestyle for Healthy Weight Loss

While many of us plan to improve our diets, it’s often easier said than done. The biggest sticking point can be that we don’t actually know what the problem is that stops us from losing weight. Here  is a simple yet effective way to get to the root of the problem.

Many people who want to lose weight will begin with a food diary or journal.  A food diary is a great way to see and see just what you are eating everyday. In fact, once you get the hang of using it on a day to day basis, you may be surprised by what you learn. Your will easily see where you need to concentrate your diet efforts.

A food diary has several uses. First of all, it will help you see just everything you eat each day. If you are systematic about recording what you eat, you will see how many cookies or how many rolls you ate, which will give you a good idea about how much you need to cut back as far as your diet goes.

Another value of using a food diary is that it may help you control your portions. If you see that on a particular day you ate three slices of pizza, you will soon realize that you are nibbling way more than your body needs. This is an effective tool for any dieter. Of course you must be honest with yourself!

Yet another advantage of attempting to keep a food diary is that you will be able to tell why you eat. Many people do not eat simply because they are hungry. People eat for a variety of reasons. You may eat when you are bored, or miserable or stressed. When you keep a food diary, you will be able to see these patterns and work to do something to make a healthy improvement.

Here are a number of quick tips for starting and maintaining your food journal.

You will need to have something to record everything that you eat. You can use basically anything, however if you are on the go, you might want to think about a little notebook or binder that you can keep in your purse or desk. If it is portable, you are more likely to keep up with it.

Then, you will want to get in the practice of using it each time you eat. You need to take note of each and every snack, nibble and taste. Be sure you write down the date, the time and the place. This is useful so that you can go back and notice your own diet trends.

If you see that you eat a candy bar everyday at 3 p.m., then you can use this knowledge to make a change. You know that you need to work through your afternoon slump by eating something much healthier than a sugary snack bar.

You may also want to buy a book that will help you learn the fat grams and calories of the meals you eat. This is helpful when you need to be aware of the total amount of fat and calories you eat every day. You can also record your serving size such as “three chocolate kisses”. Each evening, check over the helpings of every food group, your combined fat intake and your total calorie intake. This will show you an effective idea of where you need to go with your diet.

If you persevere, I am sure you will soon see good results from using a food diary for healthier eating.