A nationwide study of over 1500 people, who were overweight and obese, consisted of a half year of 30 minutes of exercise a day, a low-fat diet that had plenty of fruits and veggies. It was also recommended that they write in a journal how much they ate and how much they exercised. This part was not mandatory, but for those who did keep the journal, the result was worth it. They loss twice as much weight. Two thirds of the participants did not keep a journal, and they lost around 9 pounds on average. Those who did use the journal and faithfully kept by it, lost a average weight of 20 pounds. The study was performed by Kaiser Permanente Care Management Institute's Weight Management Initiative.
This should not come as a shock, for weight loss experts at major universities have always extolled the value of journaling, keeping track of food in and exercise out. Many plans that are recommended involve counting out the calories and once your daily limit is reached, you stop. One case involved a woman where over the case of a year, she lost 46 pounds. Another case saw a reduction of 18 pounds over 6 months.
Why does it work? It works because it eliminates mindless eating, the one thing that dooms any weight loss plan. Grabbing candy from a guest tray, samples at the supermarket, and misconceptions about portion size are all items that don't get noticed. When every single crumb and sprinkle is kept track of, you become fully aware of the eating you do, and you become less likely to go for that snack. Even if its post its, emails or a text message. The important part is the self reflection on what is eaten and becoming cognizant of your habits.
The process need not be costly or formal. Several journals exist in the market, but even these are overkill. A simple notebook or text file on the PC. The Internet is full of sites which keep track of food, automating the task of researching calories, and tallying the day's totals. That said, a calorie counter is another valuable tool, and there are plenty of books and websites. The act of filling out your journal is a daily reflection, helping you to remember about your eating habits and learn the values of the foods you eat most often.
Adding onto the program, a small food scale will go a long way towards your goals, as you will develop an intuition of what constitutes an ounce of meat or grain. Keeping track of your exercise is also important, as weight loss is a deficit of calories. The recommendation is 30 minutes a day at a moderate intensity.
So when you start to attack your resolution to lose weight and become fit, the first thing you should do is to grab a notebook and write it all down. It will help you along with your goals, and will help to make sure you see maximal effects.
Originally posted 2009-03-04 06:37:10. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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1 comment so far ↓
The journal is a great tip, as it really helped me lose weight. Somehow, when you know you have to write it down later, you will just eat less. Although you might have no problem eating a candy bar on it’s own, if you know you have to “fess” up and write about it later, you’ll often avoid it.
- Dave
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