Health and Medical Information

Do you log your food? If not you should be! A recent study from the American Journal of Preventive Medicine concluded that those who kept a food journal diary of everything they consumed lost twice the weight as those who did not. So staying aware of the amount of calories and types of food you are eating will help you to eat healthier. So start any program with a food log.

Many people find that keeping a log of the food they eat helps them to stay focused on the calories, carbohydrates, proteins and fats they consume. Many of my own clients have logged their foods and it changed what they ate and really opened their eyes to what was in the foods they were choosing. By logging your diet into a journal you can stay on top of your healthy eating, track your progress, and also go back and review your log to get a good idea of when you started to feel better, had more energy and yes, even lost weight.

Keeping a food journal diary does not have to be an overly time consuming task and may be easier than you think. You have to stay on top of it by having your log available at all times, so each time you eat you can add it to the list. So keep you food diary with you at all times. If you wait until later in the day or even the next day it’s easy to forget everything you consumed, especially that chocolate candy there and that cookie there. Those little things add up, so don’t leave them out. There are many reference books and online resources that can be used to calculate proteins, carbs, fats, and calories of foods. Also, you can determine what you’re eating by simply looking at the nutrition labels on the package.

Reaching your goals is really a simple formula:

To lose weight you must eat fewer calories than you burn.

To gain weight you must eat more calories than you burn.

To maintain your weight you must eat the same number of calories you burn.

So by tracking your calories and keeping a food journal diary it’s easier to make sure you’re eating just the right amount to reach your goals. This is the only way you will be able to lose weight and keep it off. Your metabolism is one of the main ways of burning fat to keep you from gaining weight. If you keep it high by eating healthier meals, less calories and smaller meals you will burn excess fat and help in the quest to lose weight.