The Food Diary: The Write Way to Lose Weight

Psychologists, in fact, tell us that writing down your goals can be the first step to achieving them. It has been demonstrated that individuals who kept a written record of their hunt for employment were more likely to find the job they wanted than those who did not. You 'll be surprised at how the diary works to help you to lose weight.

As a child, you may have kept a diary to record your daily activities, your hopes, and your fears. If you wrote in the diary each day, it might have seemed as if the diary itself had become one of your best friends. As you grew older, the diary might have become a record of your job search, love life, or wedding plans.

It’s not unexpected, then, that some dieticians advocate keeping a food diary or journal if you’re hoping to lose weight. If you’re not accustomed to writing, the idea can seem a bit daunting at first. It’s a valid question; however,
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if you stop to consider just how much time you spend eating, surely you can find the time to write down what you eat.

Keeping a food diary brings about motivation. You have to have a desire to record your food choices. A motivating factor could be to log your daily weight at the beginning of each diary entry. That way, you can see if your dietary choices are having an effect on your weight. If you find that you are shedding pounds, you can affix a gold star next to your entry. The gold star can provide the psychological boost necessary to continue to lose weight.

You might be surprised to find out not only what you’re eating, but also how large the portions are. Next, categorize each food entry. Is it a fruit, vegetable, whole grain, or fat? Such information could be vitally important in determining where your excess pounds are coming from.

You can also use your journal for meal planning. If you think about what you should eat ahead of time, you’ll be less likely to indulge in the wrong foods. Such planning can make you feel more organized and more in control two important elements for losing weight.

It is also important that you write down everything you eat, including fatty foods. Trying to hide your food choices by not writing them down is counter-productive and could lead to feelings of guilt.

If you indulge in comfort food every once in a while, don’t panic. Eating high-calorie foods occasionally can help prevent a feeling of deprivation which can lead to overeating. The key is to eat bad foods in moderation.

Yet another helpful idea is to write down your goal weight each day. This can be an important element of psychological warfare. Knowing what your goal is and mapping out a way to get there can improve your chances of achieving critical milestones.

Also, when possible, try to make your diary experience fun. Do your writing on the patio, by the pool, or in your bathtub. Set the mood by playing some of your favorite music in the background. Decorate your diary by using colored pens or colorful stickers. Whatever you can do to make your diary-keeping chores more interesting will certainly be helpful.

It could take you a while to get into the diary-keeping habit. But, once you see those pounds melt away, you’ll find its well worth the investment of time and energy to use the write way to lose weight