One Easy Step to Weight Loss
Keeping a food diary is an extremely powerful tool in optimising your diet and changing your life for the better. It is a task that can initially seem arduous and monotonous but can deliver outstanding results in a short space of time.
The first question we must ask ourselves is ‘what is a food diary?’
A food diary is used to record everything you eat and drink.
It should include the following information about what you consume:
1. The type of food/drink
2. The amount of food/ drink
3. The calories of food/ drink
4. The activities carried out while eating/ drinking
5. Your thoughts and feelings before eating/drinking
The last two points are very important in identifying certain behaviours or habits when eating. After utilising a food diary it may become apparent that you eat too much when watching TV or that you eat a lot of foods high in sugar when you are tired. Look for patterns that are present that lead to the intake of too much food or the intake of unhealthy foods. For example, if you find that you are eating a chocolate bar regularly at 4 pm because you are tired, replace this with a food that is healthier and will provide better energy, i.e. an apple.
Constructing a food diary is easy. Just purchase a cheap exercise book and copy in these headings across the top of the page: Food Eaten, Amount Eaten, CaloriesActivities while Eating, Thoughts & Feelings
It is really this simple! Tally up your total calories at the end of everyday and check that this is a healthy amount for your age, height, weight and dietary goals. If more specific information is needed on your calorie intake, then contact us.
Now if you are really diligent, you can also add protein, carbohydrates and fat columns and record the breakdown of the food in these columns. This is a great way of checking that you are getting the correct nutritional breakdown.
The food diary will provide some great realisations. You will quickly become aware if you eat too much, or you too little vegetables or if your morning teas are full of sugar, etc.
Accountability is key to making the food diary work; show your food diary regularly to someone you trust. Let them know what foods you’re aiming to eat and what you’re avoiding. This will give you good motivation and ensure you keep your food diary regularly.
