Keeping an accurate food log is important for tracking calorie and nutrient intake. The document outlines best practices for food logging, including writing down specific food items and quantities consumed, the time of day eaten, and emotional state while eating. Following these tips helps identify aspects of one's diet that need improvement, such as not eating enough vegetables or snacking at certain times. It can also reveal if emotional eating is occurring and which foods are chosen during different moods.
2. When you begin a diet one of the most often heard
pieces of advice is to keep a food record in which you
write down every thing you eat during the day. Keeping
a food log makes it possible to determine the foods you
are eating as well as the foods you are not eating. For
example, once you keep a food journal for a few days
you might notice that even though you eat lots of fruit,
you almost never eat any vegetables. Having it all
written down will help uou recognize the aspects of your
diet that need to change as well as how much exercise
you need to get to make sure that you burn enough
calories to keep your waistline in check.
3. But let's say you've been writing every little thing down
and still aren't reducing your weight? There is a good
way and a sluggish method to track the food you eat. A
food journal isn't just a list of the items you've eaten
during the day. You must account for some other very
important information. Here are a few of the
suggestions that can enable you to become far more
successful at food tracking.
4. Be as distinct as possible get while you write down the
things you eat. It just isn't enough to simply write down
"salad" on a list. The right way to do it is to note down
all of the ingredients in the salad as well as the kind of
dressing that is used. You need to include the quantity of
the food you consume. "Cereal" is not very good,
however "one cup Shredded Wheat" is. Remember the
more you eat of something the more calories you eat so
it is very important that you list quantities so you know
exactly how much of everything you're eating and how
many calories you need to burn.
5. Write down exactly what time of day it is while you eat.
This allows you to see what times of day you feel the
hungriest, when you're likely to reach for a snack and
the right way to work around those times. You'll notice,
for example, that even though you eat lunch at the very
same time every day, you also--without fail--start to
snack as little as an hour later, every day. This may also
enable you to identify the times when you start to eat
simply to give yourself something to do. This is
incredibly helpful because knowing when you're
vulnerable to snacking will help you fill those times with
other activities that will keep you away from the candy
aisle.
6. Write down your emotions whenever you eat. This will
show you whether you use meals to solve emotional
issues. It also helps you see clearly which foods you tend
to choose when you are in certain moods. There are
many people who look for junk food when they feel
angry or depressed and are just as likely to choose
healthy things when they feel happy and content. Paying
attention to what you reach for while you are upset can
help you stock similar but healthier items in your house
for when you need a snack-you could also begin talking
to someone to figure out why you cure moods with food
(if that is something that you actually do).