Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Day 003 Tracking
After reading all the weight watchers' material I decided I will track my food intake. I joined for a month, and e-tools comes with that so I am doing my tracking online. So far so good. According to a Prevention magazine tip they suggest you "pick up a pen after every meal because Mindlessly munching on a bag of chips could result in easily polishing off the whole thing; write down how much you've eaten and you're more likely to practice portion control. Keeping a food log helps control extra calories in two ways: the combination of plain old reality check (I just ate 30 minutes ago!) and awareness that what you're putting in your mouth will soon be recorded for posterity. In a recent study, people who kept a food journal lost twice as much weight as those who didn't. When they combined it with a moderate diet and exercise plan, they lost an average of 13 pounds in 6 months. Journaling also gives you insight on your eating habits, says Lutes. Do you skip meals? Eat the same during the week as on the weekend? Binge when you're feeling stressed? "Knowing your routine helps you figure out what changes are right for you," she adds."
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I agree. Tracking my intake is really helpful for me.
ReplyDeleteThe program I use is probably very similar to yours. It lets me log my food and gives all the nutritional values, percent of RDA, etc. I can enter my mood or keep a comments diary (I don't). I can create all kinds of custom foods, too. And of course, you can track your weight and workouts.
What I love about these software programs is that they let you generate all kinds of charts and graphs, which I find very motivating. Looking at my progress in terms of weight loss or workouts by the week, month or even over a year -- or even longer periods of time -- really gives me sense of what's going on. When I fell discouraged, I can see that plateaus are common for me after two or three months, for example.
And of course, as you say, they are especially helpful in making you mindful of what and how you eat. The food choices we make are so significant.
The foods you get from restaurants, lunch places and coffee shops are so caloric! Those muffins and snacks at Starbucks are 400 - 600 calories! An individual BBQ chicken flatbread pizza at Cosi's is 900 calories!!!
Awareness, mindfulness and information is key.
Beth, thank you for your insightful comment. I only plan on using WW for a short time (I think) I just need the structure to get me going.
ReplyDeleteI did look into fitday.com but found there were too many ads. Which program do you use?
Oh, I don't use the online program. I just use the software on my computer. No ads, and I can customize it and add all the special foods I want. I've been having some bumps so far, though, getting back on track. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteI get it, so far so good for me. I am truly determined this time around. I know you'll do it.
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