The Importance Of Keeping A Food Log

Just about everyone has some experience with the issue of weight loss.  We all know how easy it is to pack on the pounds, and how difficult it can be to get rid of them.  Today, there seems to be more pressure than ever to be thin, and more ways than ever to achieve this.  With all of the various fad diets, diet books, DVDs, and weight loss professionals offering their help with this process, there is actually one simple thing you can do to give yourself the best chance of achieving your goals.

A food log is one of the best ways to help you work toward your weight loss objectives.  This simple method is free, takes just minutes per day, and gets to the bottom of the number one problem when dieting: not knowing how much you really eat in a day.  The process of keeping a log forces you to stop what you are doing, assess what you are eating, and record it in a manner you can track.  You will be amazed at just how insightful this process can be.

It is estimated that the majority of dieters underestimate how much they really consume per day by as much as twenty-five percent.  For this reason alone, you should keep a food log.  Recording every single thing you put into your mouth allows for a truly accurate representation that you cannot avoid or dispute.  As well as “forgetting” or leaving out food items during the day, most dieters do not count meals they eat out toward their daily consumption.

The unsettling reality about this fact is that most dieters eat at least one meal out per day.  This means that the underestimation factor may really much higher than twenty-five percent and may actually be closer to thirty-eight percent.  Another dieting problem when calculating calories is that most people do not consider portion size either.  Portions, especially when eating out, are often very large.  One restaurant portion may actually be equivalent to three appropriate servings.  All of these factors need to be fully noted in your log in order to really assess your progress.

The process of recording your intake in a food log also encourages you to examine everything you eat, not just your main meals.  Everyone can tell you what they had for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, but almost no one can tell you all of their little nibbles here and there.  Most dieters think that the couple of chips they had while making their child’s lunch does not factor into their diet, and that cookie they grabbed in the break room between meetings does not count or matter.  However, these small little “tastes” really add up and can add several extra calories and fat grams to your day.

Keeping a food log allows you to confront your dieting mistakes head on.  Your log will expose all kinds of information, such as behavioral patterns and stressors.  You will begin to get a better idea of why you eat what you eat and when, and you will able to adjust your behavior.

Finally, when you truly make the commitment to use this system, food logs can yield wonderful results.  An honest log provides you with a clear picture of your overall diet success.  By monitoring this information you can better determine what changes in your life have worked, what else you could be doing, and what changes still need to be made.  Your log will become an an excellent source of self-encouragement.  This type of positive reinforcement is key to sticking with your weight loss goal and achieveing your desired results.