START A FOOD JOURNAL
Keeping a food journal leads to better health, increased awareness, and successful weight management. Numerous studies show that we are so distracted these days that most of us severely underestimate our daily caloric intake and fail to be aware of what it is we gobble down on a regular basis. Surprise, surprise...
Keeping a food journal doesn’t have to be complicated (so don’t make it) and it will give you a great deal of insight into why you eat what you do and when. Since half the battle to changing your behavior is awareness, I see food journaling as a much needed activity if your goal is to lose weight and feel healthier inside and out.
To truly benefit from food journaling you don’t just want to jot down what you eat and when. You’ll also want to capture quantities, who you were with when you were munching, (your hubby, your boss, your mother…) how you felt before, during and after munching, as well as what happened just before you decided to munch (for example, did your boss just call and say he wanted to “see you in his office IMMEDIATELY”).
By capturing as much info as you can about your eating habits you will start to notice trends in your behavior that will empower you to change what isn’t beneficial. Look for specific triggers that crop up often in your life and what cause you to want to devour an entire pizza in two seconds flat as opposed to calmly and mindfully munching on a breast of chicken and a salad.
According to the “experts”, food journaling helps weight watchers cut their caloric intake but up to 500-1000 calories per day. Not that I’m an advocate for calorie counting mind you but it is an interesting point to note.
