Nutritionists and dieters have always known it, but now one of the largest and longest-running weight loss trials ever conducted proves it: food diaries work. Big time. The trial, known as the Weight Loss Maintenance trial, compared different approaches to maintaining weight loss over a period of 30 months, and found that subjects who kept a daily food diary lost twice as much weight as those who didn't.
If you want to reap the benefits of a food diary and you're following the LIFE Diet online, all you need to do is click on Food Log in the My Tools section. You will be able to add your meals and snacks automatically, and the Food Log will keep track of it all for you.
Otherwise, you can buy a small blank book, or create a spreadsheet on your computer. After a few weeks of tracking all that you eat and how you're feeling when you do so, you might start to see some negative patterns emerge. That's a good thing because awareness is the first step toward change.
If you notice, for instance, that your hunger level is exceedingly high after you've gone for a long stretch between meals, you should consider making sure that you eat every four to five hours.
If your food records reveal that you eat even when you're not hungry, chances are you were bored, stressed, angry, or unhappy. If so, make every effort to get at the underlying problem instead of trying to distract yourself with food. If that's too overwhelming a task, you can always try a healthier diversion than turning to food — such as taking a walk, reading a book, watching TV, or talking to a friend.
