Why Do I Need to Track What I Eat?
My clients say I sound like a broken record, but it really is important to track your food. Why? Because it forces you to come face to face with what is going in to your body and the reality of calories and nutrition (or lack thereof) that you ingest.
8 Helpful Hints to Keep in Mind When Tracking What You Eat
– Use a tracking program. I tried paper food diaries with several of my clients, and it did not work well for most. The biggest reason is that you aren’t faced with the actual serving size or how many calories you’re eating. Most online programs, like Lifestyle Family Fitness LifeWorks tool, will have a giant food database with most common brands and restaurants. If you cannot find the exact food, there is usually something comparable listed or you can create a custom food and input the nutritional information yourself.
– Measure your food. Until you have a real idea of what “3 oz of meat” or a “cup of cereal” or any other food measurement really looks like, measure your food. As a society, our servings tend to be way too large. Once you have been measuring your food for a while, you will be able to eyeball a correct serving size. For example, “3oz of meat” is the size of a deck of cards (thickness, too). A cup is the size of a tennis ball. If you want to eat 2 servings of something, make sure you note that correctly in your food diary.
– Burn more calories than you eat to lose fat (a.k.a. calorie deficit). Just because you worked out today, DOES NOT mean you can overeat later. This is a common mistake people make when they begin an exercise program. You can completely undo all your hard work by overeating.
– Add it up — calories come down to math. Calories taken in (what you eat) must be less than calories out (what you expend to maintain your body and exercising). There is no cheating — eating too much or not exercising enough will hinder reaching your goals.
– Reaching a fat loss goal is 75% food choice. This means you can work out like an exercise fiend, but you will not reach your fat loss goal without the proper nutrition.
– Aim high — everyone underreports to a certain degree. On average, people tend to underreport their calories by 11%. Large meals are underestimated by an average of 40%, restaurant meals by 50% and small healthy meals by 5%. Err on the side of caution—assume you ate a little more, not less, to be accurate.
– Don’t go too low on the calories. Most women should not go below 1200 calories per day, and most men should not go below 1800 calories per day. Your body is an energy conserving machine. If you go too far below on calories to maintain your current weight, your body will turn the thermostat down to conserve energy and you will not lose weight. Try to stick to your target calorie goal for best results.
– Exercise — it’s still very important.
• Adds to your calorie deficit, resulting in faster fat loss.
• Builds muscle, so you burn more calories while resting.
• Builds stronger bones, so you have less risk of osteoporosis (men and women).
• Gives muscle tone so when you lose fat, you look fit.
• Increases strength and endurance so you can do what you want without wearing out.
• Builds a healthy heart, so you have less risk of cardiovascular issues.
Calories and portion size do matter! Remember, write down every meal, snack and beverage to stay on track to meet your weight loss goals.
About this LFF Blogger — Amy Alexander is an ACSM certified Personal Trainer and RPM instructor at the North Meridian Lifestyle Family Fitness in Indianapolis, IN. Ask Amy a question at aalexander1@lff.com.
Topics: Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition Tips | 2 Comments »
July 11th, 2011 at 1:45 pm
Amy I am a major weight loss loser and I have never been able to gt this question answered. I am also a senior citizen. I work out every day for 2 hrs doing spin, body punp, step, zumba,
total tone, a nice mix. I know I am developing lots of muscle and also creating lots of loose skin. My skin does not have elasticity anymore and I have gone from size 8 to size 12 because of muscle in my legs and arms. I do not want to get any bigger nor do I want to lose strength or work out less. What should I do? I would be thrilled to lose about 10 lbs. I am concerned about more
baggy skin so I feel I am stuck. I recently had a total workup with my doctor, and everything is perfect, no meds. H owever, I am close to osteoperosis. My diet is questionable.
July 27th, 2011 at 9:05 am
Hi Anne,
My first question is where are you falling as far as your calorie intake goes vs your calorie burn? To lose weight, it is generally recommended to set a calorie goal food-wise that is 500 calories (kcal) below what it takes to maintain you, then add in exercise so that your average daily calorie deficit is in the 500-1000 calorie range, which would have you losing 1-2 lbs per week (1 lb of fat=3500 calories (kcal)).
If your calorie intake is too low, your body will go into starvation mode. You won’t lose weight, in fact you may gain some and you will retain fat in your abdominal area.
As a woman, unless your testosterone levels are way off (your doctor would have told you if they were after your recent workup, plus you would have other signs like having more body hair), you really can’t bulk up. You can get definition, but you have to get the fat on top off first. If you have a good amount of loose skin, you may not see the definition as well, but you also should not be going up in size. I used to be 85 lbs heavier and also have a good amount of loose skin. Unfortunately, the only cure to take off the loose skin once you’ve given it some time is surgery.
First step – track your food and exercise. You can do this on http://www.lff.com (log in as a member) or on sites like http://www.livestrong.com under “My Plate”. Make sure you are not going too low or too high on your calories. Another idea might be to get a Body Bugg – it is the most accurate tool to measure calorie burn (www.myapex.com).
Next step since you have already had a workup with your doctor – find a good Dietician/Nutritionist to sit down with and make a plan. If you are in the Indianapolis area, let me know. I have a great one I can refer you to. Otherwise, talk to your General Practitioner to see who they would suggest.
Hopefully this helps!