Keeping a weight loss journal is a great way to help keep you motivated. Having to write down what you eat will likely slow you down when you are looking at that snickers bar, because you won't want to face it by putting it in your journal. It might sound a little silly, but it has really worked for me, so I figured I would share.
Here is an example of what my journal looks like.
This is obviously not a real entry since its for a future date, but its the same idea of what I do every day. I made a sample for this post because mine is not so neat. I wanted readers to be able to read it. :)
Date it
I always date it so I can keep track of which days I do good and try to understand why. I know I eat when I'm bored, so days off of work tend to be harder for me to reach my goals. I do believe the journal helps me stay much closer than I would on my own. It's easy to quit counting after you make one mistake and call a day a loss, but if you have to log it down, you get out of that thought process pretty quickly.
Decide your goals
Next, I like to write down the goals. You could just have the same goal every day but if its written down I am less likely to convince myself it can change for the day. If you don't know how many calories you need to consume to lose weight, don't worry. I will add a link to a website that will help you calculate what's right for you. This likely wont be right on, because some days you work harder and need a little more food and vise versa. You will learn in time what number is right for you. Also, you don't need to have the same every day. I have less calories on the weekdays and I up the number a little on the weekends. It's important to be realistic.
Here is that link.
If you have more questions on how to count calories feel free to ask. I will have a post up soon with a few tips on how to count calories and the calories in a lot of common fruits, veggies, and other foods that don't always have a nutrition label to look at.
Motivate yourself
This idea is what makes a journal different than a fitness tracking app. Every night I fill in the next days outline, and the quotes or "notes to self" I find quotes online on sites like Pinterest. I like to add a personal note. Writing something from myself to myself really helps me remember how I felt before there was a bowl of chocolate in front of me.
Log your food.
Now just track your food throughout the day. I find it easiest to write the calorie count down right away for things that have a label that states it, so I don't forget. For foods with out a nutrition label its okay to wait until you can find out later. This is one of many websites that will help you figure nutrition facts. http://nutritiondata.self.com/
This might look like a lot of work, but it gets really easy once you get the basics down. It helps me sooo much. I hope it can do the same for you. Good luck! Id love to hear if you try it and how it works for you! Leave a comment!
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