At the end of the day, have you completely lost track of what you ate? Are you at a loss as to what sweets, culprit carbs or fatty snacks you’ve put in your mouth? Do you wonder why you’re packing on the pounds or feeling sluggish and unfocused?
Well, research shows that if you keep a food journal, you stand a greater chance of losing weight and achieving better health.
Indeed, people who’ve happily peeled off the weight
— “Highly Successful Losers™,” as I call them — report that one of
their Smart Diet Habits™ is to “Keep Track of Your Favorite Lab Rat™.
In other
words, watch yourself as if you were lovingly monitoring the intake of your ailing beloved pet.
When
you Keep Track of Your Favorite Lab Rat™, you don’t mindlessly shove nutrient-lacking non-foods into your mouth.
You begin to think before you eat, because you know you’ll be writing down whatever you put into your mouth — and will preferably (I hope, for your benefit) share it with an accountability partner.
To help you out, I’m sharing a food diary that I’ve created.
Feel
free to share The Soul-Searching Food Journal™ with your friends,
co-workers, gym buddies, bosses, hairdressers, fitness trainers, loved
ones and even frustrating frenemies. In short, spread the link love, as
some like to say. (Of course, please provide the proper credit though,
as indicated below.)
The Soul-Searching Food Journal™ — © Copyright – Connie Bennett, Smart Habits Coach & Author, SUGAR SHOCK!
Name ________________________________________
Date _________________________________________
Record the following information for each time segment:
What did I eat and drink? (On the first line, state what you ate. Be specific. Any
sugary foods or drinks? Any refined carbs? Any artificial sweeteners?
Any foods with gluten? How much salt?)
How did I I feel? Was I
physically or emotionally hungry? (On the 2nd line, jot down how you felt both physically or emotionally. Were you tired, famished, angry, edgy,
frustrated, furious, stressed out, etc.?)
7 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
7 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
8 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
8 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
9 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
9 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
10 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
10 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
11 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
11 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
12 noon _______________________________________________________________
12 noon _______________________________________________________________
1 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
1 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
2 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
2 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
3 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
3 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
4 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
4 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
5 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
5 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
6 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
6 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
7 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
7 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
‘8 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
8 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
9 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
9 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
10 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
10 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
11 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
11 p.m. _______________________________________________________________
12 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
12 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
1 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
1 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
2 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
2 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
3 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
3 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
4 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
4 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
5 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
5 a.m. _______________________________________________________________
6 a.m. _________________________________________________________________
6 a.m. _________________________________________________________________
Review
What low nutrient (unhealthy) foods and drinks (with sugar, refined carbs, salt, artificial sweeteners) did I have today?____________________________________________________________________
How
many times today did I have these low-caliber non-foods? ______________________________________________________________________________
How did I feel afterward? ___________________________________________________________
What were the most healthy foods and drinks I had today?________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
How did I feel immediately afterward? ________________________________________________
How did I feel 2 hours later?________________________________________________________
How did I feel 4 hours later?________________________________________________________
How much water did I have today? __________________________________________________
When were my low points of the day (what time?) _______________________________________
What were my high points? ________________________________________________________
What
exercise did I do today?
- Aerobic (What kind and how
long?)______________________________________ - Resistance Training (What kinds and how
long?) ___________________________ - Any other exercise ___________________________________________________
When did I feel best today? Why? ______________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
When did I feel worst today? Why? _____________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What were my physical symptoms, if any? (Headaches, low energy, difficulty concentrating, etc.?) _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What were my main emotions? How did I feel emotionally? (Sad, frustrated, lonely, angry, etc.?) _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Did I ever eat when I wasn’t hungry? When? Why? _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
How did I get along with my loved ones and co-workers? Explain.
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Did
I embarrass myself today or behave in a way I was not proud – in other
words, was I moody, crabby, angry, irrational, short-fused, etc? Specify. (You’re just watching yourself compassionately. So know that It’s OK you acted these ways — knowing how food
affects you is the first step to becoming more calm.)
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Was I a zombie at any time today? What did I do to pep myself up?
____________________________________________________________________________
What trends did I notice as to which certain foods affect me? ____________________________
What new healthy foods did I try today? _____________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Were
there any trigger situations in which I found myself?
______________________________________________________________________________
Was
I trapped in any situations by saboteurs (whether intentional or not?)
What happened?
_______________________________________________________________________________
What
are my biggest obstacles today to my leading a clean, sugar-free,
artificial-sweetener-free, low-salt life?
___________________________________________________________________________
Did I feel deprived today? How so? ____________________________________________________
If I ate sugar or refined carbs: What did that do for me? _____________________________________
Did it really work? (Honesty!) __________________________________________________________
What
is my tricky time of day? Why? Where am
I?__________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
How
did I bring sweetness into my life today? In other words, did treat myself in non-sugar way(s) today?
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
How can I treat myself tomorrow in non-food ways? _________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
What food(s) agreed with me least? _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
What food(s) agreed with me most? _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
What can I do differently tomorrow? ______________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
How can I put a positive spin on what I did today? What’s are today’s 2 or 3 most important lessons/blessings?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Copyright, Connie Bennett & Stop Sugar Shock, 2010. The Soul
Searching Food Journal™ . Feel free to share this with others, but please
include this entire entry and the fact that it first appeared on the
Sugar Shock Blog. Join me the Facebook page for Smart Habits Fans and share your experience using this. (http://www.Facebook.com/SmartHabitsFans)