Write it Down
Your Food: If you have a fitness or weight-related goal in mind, the first thing any good personal trainer or nutritionist will tell you is to keep a food log. As in, write down every single thing that you eat and drink…right down to the very last nibble. I’ll be honest here: I do not always keep a food log. If I did, I would drive myself completely batty. But I do keep one every few months for a week or two, just to keep me on track.
I promise you, no matter how many times you’ve done this, you will be shocked either at the sheer quantity of food you are consuming OR at the cruddy food choices you are making. A food journal is very beneficial for pinpointing the times of day where you tend to be most tempted to eat too much or eat poorly, as well as giving you a ballpark figure of the number of calories you eat in a typical day. For me, every time I keep a food log, it also helps me stop popping little bites of this and that in my mouth, because I get sick of having to write it all down.
I’m all old-school with the legal pad and pencil, but I’m sure there are some cool apps for your smart phone or I-Pad. Yes, I have a smart phone. And no, I have no idea how to use it yet.
Your Exercise: Here’s me: I tend to underestimate what I’m eating and overestimate how much I exercise. Then I wonder why I'm not losing weight. I'm sure I'm the only one who does this.
Much like the food log, an exercise log really keeps me honest. I probably get a little more detailed with my exercise log than the average person. I write down exactly what I did (how many repetitions, how much weight, how far, etc), what time of the day I did it and how I felt when I was finished. This helps in tremendously in future workouts, mainly in setting and surpassing future goals, and knowing what weights to grab when I get started. It shows me areas of weakness, so I can work harder on those. And when I compare it with my food log, it helps me pinpoint the best foods to eat before and after my workouts to perform and recover well.
Your Measurements: We talked about measurements on Day 6. But I just want to emphasize here the importance of keeping an on-going log of your weight and your measurements.
With these three logs on hand, you should be able to look over exactly what you are doing and how it’s working, so you can tweak where necessary. It’s also a very helpful tool to have should you go to a personal trainer, a nutritionist or a doctor. They will totally love you when you show up and say, “this is what I eat, this is what I do, and this is how it's been working...or not.”
When they tell you how awesome you are, you can take all the credit for looking so smart and thorough.
Do you keep a food or exercise log? What tips can you pass along?
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When I put myself on a diet in 2008 (which resulted in a 30 lb weight loss) I kept a food journal. I had never been able to get past 3 days but I kept to it for 3 months. I am not as detailed in my workouts. I keep up w/my runs with my Garmin watch (mileage/lap pace/overall time) and I log into daily mile. Since I really like to log into daily mile, that is a great motivation for me.
ReplyDeleteGREAT ADVICE, i do much better when i log EVERYTHING! thanks for posting! xoxoxo
ReplyDeleteI go back and forth with the food log. I find myself getting very legalistic (is that possible with a food/water journal?)?) about calories, etc. and drive myself crazy if I have eaten something that I don't have the exact "stats" on. But, on the other hand, I feel when I don't write it down I overconsume. And then sometimes when I get to the end of the day and I try to fill in what I've forgotten to write I will just be vague and write "lots of snacks."
ReplyDeleteI have a feeling I would do well with some sort of "techie" type system, but who has the time to learn?!?!
The exercise journal is a great idea - haven't really tried it but sounds like a good tool.