Working Towards Your Weight Loss Goal

I know a few of us are probably working towards a certain weight loss goal. My position on weight loss is slow and steady is ideal. Weight loss of as little as 1/2 to 2 pounds per week is realistic and sustainable. The best weight loss programs include healthy diet, physical activity and behavior therapy.

What is a healthy diet? There are tons of diets proclaiming fast and easy solutions that will melt away fat and build muscle. The best diet for you is going to be different than the best diet for me. Your diet needs to include foods you love and enjoy or else you will not stick to it. It will include a variety of foods from each food group. It will also included a thing called moderation. However, sometimes what you eat is not nearly as important as how you eat and why you eat, so that's why examining your behavior will also be important. Most people do not have a healthy relationship with food or with their own body.

I've always loved these versus from D&C 59: 16-20. They give us some good insight into why God created this Earth and how He hopes we use and feel about it.

16 Verily I say, that inasmuch as ye do this, the fulness of the earth is yours, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and that which climbeth upon the trees and walketh upon the earth;
17 Yea, and the herb, and the good things which come of the earth, whether for food or for raiment, or for houses, or for barns, or for orchards, or for gardens, or for vineyards;
18 Yea, all things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the benefit and the use of man, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart;
19 Yea, for food and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul.
20 And it pleaseth God that he hath given all these things unto man; for unto this end were they made to be used, with judgment, not to excess, neither by extortion.

I will try to start making posts about various aspects of healthy weight loss and diet. Today's post is about record keeping!

Do you want to know how you can improve your diet and eating habits? Do you want to lose weight? Research shows that people who keep a food diary are more likely to lose weight. Why do you think Weight Watchers asks you to track your diet? Because it helps! Here's why:

1- Raises awareness
I'll tell you this up front...I'm not an advocate of counting calorie for the rest of your life! That is not a healthy relationship to have with food. However, I am an advocate of gaining information and assessing yourself. Look at this as an exercise in researching your eating habits. Do you currently have any idea how many calories you are consuming daily? Do you have any idea how many servings of vegetables you eat on an average day? This record will help you (and I... if you would like me to look over your records I'm happy to!) see areas for improvement and target priorities.

The more information you add to your record the better. At minimum it should include food and amount eaten. But, other useful information are the circumstances surrounding your eating such as time of day, level of hunger, were you alone or with others, feelings (ie. bored, stressed, guilty), multitasking activities (ie. driving, watching tv). Information on these circumstances will help you in examining the how and why of your eating.

2- Forces you to think twice
If you commit to keeping a record a few things will happen. You will be forced to record any and all food you eat. You will have to be accountable for what you eat so you'll think twice about what you put into your mouth! This might cause you to start thinking twice about having to record or enter each and every little snack you consume between meals.

You can keep a record in various ways. Grab a good old fashioned pen and notebook and start jotting things down. Or for the more high tech-ies, there are many great and free tools on the internet.
Here are links to a couple:
www.loseit.com
http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/

You don't have to keep a record every day. If you have the desire, go for it! But, my challenge for you is to record 2 days in the next week as a start. Then let me know if you learned anything about yourself from this exercise in self assessment!