But I found keeping a food diary helped me get a clearer understanding of what I was eating. I also found that I tended to view the weight as a problem, instead of a symptom of the problem. The real issue was/is my lifestyle. That’s what produced my weight gain(s).
Fix the weight, and when you stop dieting, it comes right back. I know I focused on the weight first last time, it doubled back on me. So I don’t do a traditional diet. Fix the lifestyle, the weight should go away. That’s what I am trying now.
Keeping the food diary surprised me that I was actually eating more healthy or less healthy than I believed. It helped me to find a motivation to eat better. Small changes add up, they really do. But again: most diet plans are of the all or nothing type – do the diet or not.
That binary thinking is the root of most failure in dieting or changing our lifestyle. If I didn’t stick to the diet, it means it failed, I failed, I quit the diet. I’m a failure (Nope, not true at all).
Well, no, it doesn’t. It just means that day I didn’t stick to the plan. So what? What about all the other days? They still have a chance, and so do I. Whatever happens today, don’t worry.
But when I look at the diary and review the week or the month, I see what happens every day. Because every day counts far more than today. You can’t gain 1kg from eating ice cream today, but if you are eating ice cream most days, it’s hard NOT to gain 1kg from eating it. A food diary will show that.
There are healthier options in the market place. But they don’t sell as well. However, you can still find them; perhaps you