Hi All,

I've read a lot about how keeping a record of what you eat can be beneficial in weight loss. Can someone explain this and what I should be looking at and for?

Do I relate this to my weight loss or lack thereof in relation to what I ate that week and tweak it for the following week?

HELP!

Katie

Accountability. If you have to write down that chocolate bar or whatever, you may not eat it. Its also helpful in seeing how much food you are eating. You may think you're doing well, but may be eating too much or too little. There is sites too, that you can stick your daily food diary into and it gives you a break up of carbs, protein, fats which could be helpful.. hopefully someone else will stick their nose in here and give up one because I dont really know.

Well since losing weight is all about calories in vs. calories out, tracking exactly what you eat in a given time period can help your weight loss. Instead of 'guessing' you have eaten too little or too much you'll know for certain.
Sites like TheDailyPlate.com will track it for you online very easily.
You can then track your progress weekly and compare that to your caloric intake and tweak your daily calories to meet your weight loss goals.

Katie, tracking my daily food has been such an eyeopener for me, not because of the calories so much but because I realised only then that I didn't get enough protein.

Like Matt said, I was always guessing and I thought I was doing fine. Using a nutrition tracker is very educational if you want to lose weight in a HEALTHY way. It showed me where there was room for improvement and like Sam says, it's a form of being accountable...to yourself at least!

It also helps me to make sure I drink enough water.

Think of it in terms of your body's balance book. Just like you have one at the bank so you can see what's going in and going out, a food tracker does the same for you with the fuel you're giving your body. It also helps you notice the trends, like when I go to dinner with my BFF, I ALWAYS overeat, but if I eat before we hang out I'm fine.

Thanks guys for all of your comments! Much appreciated. So I know this is going to sound really silly but I needs to be asked for my clarity anyway! If I'm keeping a track of what's going in and going out does that mean that the number of calories consumed for lets say today has to be less than the number of calories I would have burned working out tonight? Or do I have to take into consideration other factors? I want to get this clear because I'm eating much better than I was and working out but I'm not seeing any difference in my clothes or on the scales!

Thanks again!

Katie, first you need to figure out your BMR (basal metabolic rate) that is the number of calories your body need to survive, then you can use the harris benedict model (just google it for a calculator) to figure out how many calories you should be consuming to lose, maintain or gain weight. Typically you have to burn 3500 more calories than you intake to lose a pound of fat. It's kinda overwhelming at first but for this stuff, google is awesome.

Woah! I just worked out all of the above and I have to eat 785 calories a day and work out in order to lose 1.2kgs a week so that I reach my goal by Christmas!

Hi katie, I'd just like to say: be careful not to bee too strict. You don't need to starve!!
785 seems a very little calorie amount to me.
Looking to your data I'd say 1400/1500 cal should be ok to reach your goal.

Karen, what do you think?

I'm not Karen, but I agree with Anna. I'm 164 cm too and I probably work out less than you, I'm also a lot older but 1300 average a day is good enough for a pound a week (also average).
Of course I'm not aiming for 1.2 kg a week, because I've done enough crashdiets in my life and please believe me, the results never stick...slow but sure is the only way, Katie!
The only period in my life when I lost weight very gradually (15 kg in a YEAR!) I was able to keep it off for 5 years...

This is what my eating plan has looked like for the past and future few days:

Wednesday
Shake
Mandarin + Apple
Special K Bar
Veggies and Rice
Banana Bread and milk

Thursday
Shake
Apple
Chicken Salad
Fish w/ veggies
Cheese Crackers

Friday
Shake
Yoghurt
Salad
Veggies and Rice

Saturday
Scrambled Eggs w/ toast
Noodles w/ veggies
2 Ryvitas w/ cheese
Yoghurt

So I don't really feel hungry it's more that I'm craving something sweet every now and then.

Oh, shake = protein shake!

Let me know what you think.

I would NEVER recommend dropping below 1200 calories! You need to fuel your body in order for it to be an efficient machine!!!! I would say that you need to do more research on your BMR & BMI before you decide on your diet. When I started dieting I was 173 and cut my calories to 1800, and mad increased my exercise, as I've lost weight I've cut down and cut down until now when I'm 135, I'm at a caloric intake of 1400-1600 depending on the day. I will also say that drastic diets typically backfire into binges.