Weight Loss Journal

By: Nicole Olson

We all have heard of the benefits of journaling in terms of successful weight loss, but does it really help? The answer to this in a big loud B-mod “YES!” Journaling not only holds you accountable for your actions, feeling, and habits, but it also works as a great tracking tool. The question may lie in what to include in the journal and the format to use. Hopefully, by the time you are done reading here today, you will have those questions answered.

What to include

When focusing on weight loss, it is going to be imperative that you include both diet and exercise information in your journal. By listing out your daily food/beverage intake as well as the time and amount that you consume you will be better able to see patterns in your eating over time that may help you prevent binges or overindulging. Below is a sample daily nutrition log entry:

Time	Food Choice	Amount	Feelings	Food Group	Calories
7:00 AM	Raisin Bran Cereal	1 Cup	Awake	1 grain	180
	Low fat yogurt	1/2 Cup		1 dairy	90
	Orange juice	3/4 Cup		1 fruit	100
10:00 AM	Granola bar	1 bar	Hungry	1 grain	110
12:30 AM	Turkey Sandwich	2 slices whole wheat bread, 3 oz. deli turkey, lettuce, tomato, mustard		2 grain, 1 meat, 1 vegetable	300
	Side salad	2 Cups lettuce, cucumbers, sprouts, grape tomatos, fat free dressing		2 vegetable	50
	Fat free milk	1 cup		1 dairy	90
3:00 PM	Apple	1 medium fruit	Tired	1 fruit	90
6:00 PM	Grilled Salmon	5 oz. fillet	Hungry	2 meat	230
	Wild rice	1/3 Cup		1 grain	90
	Mixed vegetable	1 Cup (steamed)		1 vegetable	45
	Fat free milk	1 Cup		1 dairy	90

Dairy	Meat	Fruit	Vegetable	Grain
3	3	2	4	5

Daily Calorie Total = 1366 Cal.

For calorie values of many common foods try www.foodcomputer.com

In the example, I have logged the time of day, the choice of food, the amount eaten, feelings at the time, the food group the food item fell into, and the caloric value. By logging this information on a daily basis or even 3 days per week and a weekend day one can see patterns appear in the eating behavior. Are there times of the day that poor food choices are made due to hunger or feelings? Are there ways to combat those poor choices by being prepared with a healthier option? These questions and more can be answered by the patterns of a nutrition journal.

Also very important when tracking weight loss is tracking activity. Weight loss is a two-part equation of Calories in and Calories out. Without both pieces of information you have no way of knowing if you have the correct balance of Calories consumed and Calories burned to gain, maintain, or lose weight.

Example Activity Chart:

Date: __________

Activity	Length of time	Intensity (speed or distance)	Calories Burned**
walking	30 min	2 miles	159
Water aerobics	45 min	Moderate	191

**Calories burned is dependant on current body weight.

For activity index of hundreds of daily activities see: www.caloriesperhour.com/index_burn.html

By using the two charts together, in combination with your resting metabolic rate (RMR), you can calculate the Caloric deficit you have created by exercising and eating right. Calculate your RMR at: www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com/cooltools/What_is_Your_Resting_Metabolic_Rate.htm
Equation:
Calories consumed – RMR – Calories burned during exercise =

Example:
2000 Cal – 1400 (RMR) – 600 Calories burned during exercise = 0 Cal (maintenance)

Good luck with your journal keeping! The directors at Camp La Jolla are always here to help you! If you would like for one of us to look over your journal for you, we are more than willing to give support and advice in anyway that we can.