If you’ve ever embarked on a weight loss journey, and met with a nutrition or fitness professional, you’ve likely been asked to keep a food journal. It’s a dreaded activity in most peoples opinion. However, if you’ve accepted the challenge to food journal for a few days you’ve likely realized how eye opening and insightful it can be. Journals reveal the source of your calorie consumption. It can also help identify situations or circumstances that cause you to eat too much or to little.
In our modern era it’s easy to use online calorie trackers to help estimate your consumption, but a piece of paper and pen still work just as good for showing the reality of your meal plan. Sometimes people think they’re eating adequate amounts of vegetables and fruit, but once they journal a few days they realize they’re only eating one serving of vegetables a day and over 70% of their calories are coming from carbohydrates or processed foods. The simple act of writing down the foods you consume also makes people more aware of portion control. By measuring the cereal you put in the bowl one can become aware that they might be eating more than they think. If you’ve never been challenged to keep a food journal, consider this your opportunity to try it out. It’s time well spent to improve your health.