When you begin a diet probably the most often heard pieces of advice is to keep a food journal in which you write down every thing you eat during the day. Tracking all of the meals you consume may help you figure out which foods you will be eating as well as which foods you are not eating enough of. For example, after maintaining a food log for a few days, you might see that you are not consuming very many vegetables but that you are consuming lots of sugar and bad carbohydrates. When you write every thing down you can see which parts of your diet must change as well as have a simpler time figuring out what kind and how long of a workout you need to do to shrink your waist line and burn the most calories.
But let's say you write every little thing down but no pounds drop off of you? There is a great way and a sluggish approach to track the food you eat. A food log is a lot more than just a simple list of the foods you eat during a day. You must account for a few other very important information. Here are some tips that you can employ to help your food tracking be more successful.
Be as precise as you can get whenever you write down the things you eat. You have to do more than just write down "salad" into your food record. 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 must also note down just how much of the foods you are eating. "Cereal" is not as good an entry as "one cup Honey Nut Cheerios." Don't forget that the more of something you take in, the more calories you are going to ingest so you need to list out the measurements of what you eat so that you will know just how many calories you take in and will need to burn.
Record the time of day that you eat items. This will help you figure out just what times of day you feel the most hungry, when you usually reach for snacks and then you can figure out how to deal with those times. You'll observe, for example, that even though you eat lunch at the identical time every day, you also--without fail--start to snack as little as an hour later, every day. This will also enable you to identify the times when you start to eat simply to give yourself something to do. This is important because those are moments that you can pick out other things to fill your time with than food.
What sort of feelings are you in when you eat? Write it down! This really helps to explain to you whether or not you turn to food as a response to emotional issues. It also helps you see clearly which foods you tend to choose if you are in certain moods. Lots of us will reach naturally for processed food when we feel disappointed or angry and we are more likely to choose healthy options when we feel happy or content. When you focus on how you eat in the course of your different moods and emotional states, you will be able to keep similar but healthier choices around for when you need those snacks--you might also start talking to someone who can help you figure out why you try to cure your moods with food.
Author Resource:
Jerry Macnamara is an expert in the sports, health and fitness marketplace. His company, Totally Soccer, has over twenty years experience in servicing teams, leagues and clubs. They sell soccer jerseys and soccer uniforms . All kids soccer uniforms include free team logo and number.