Hi challengers! Kat here, the Dietitian. Just thought Id check in to see how everyones going. I hope everyones smashing the goals you set for yourself at the beginning of the 28 days! If not, theres still time! No better time to start than right now :) A question I get asked fairly often, particularly at challenge time - Whats the point of keeping a food diary (especially if you dont get anyone to check it)? I use food diaries with clients all the time. For me, theyre a great way of capturing what youre actually eating, rather than getting you to try recalling what you ate a week ago, guessing portion sizes and missing out foods and habits that are likely to be the most troublesome! I dont often use them to count up how many calories someone is eating, and certainly dont use them as evidence in a court of food to convict clients of nutrition crimes! But how can keeping a food diary be useful to you when nobodys going over it with a fine-toothed comb? Keeping a record of what youre eating is a great way of increasing mindfulness - something which is really lacking in many peoples eating routine. When you have to write it down, you have to think about and acknowledge everything you put in your mouth. This means youre thinking about portion sizes, meal timing and habits - whether you show them to someone or not doesnt matter because identifying them and being mindful of them is the first step to making any changes. If you include notes about feelings, company and events in your food diary, you can easily pick up on patterns. It can highlight that you maybe eat out a little more often than you realised and that sometimes foods are creeping in a bit more often than sometimes, or that youre a frequent flyer at the vending machine during stressful times at work, or that you always eat way more than you should when you dine with your grandparents. Finally, and I guess most obviously, keeping a food diary is a great way of reflecting on the overall quality of your diet. You dont necessarily need someone else to do this for you, simply start with something like the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating to see how your diet stacks up. eatforhealth.gov.au/ If you need more help after that, have specific questions or need more individually tailored nutrition advice, you have a Dietitian available to give you just that! I can help you not only construct a healthy, well-balanced, enjoyable and nutritious diet, but can also work with you on the skills youre missing and the habits that are standing between you and the results youre after! Head over to my page or pop your head in on a Thursday when Im in the studio to have a chat. https://facebook/katrincoxAPD Just a quick note on counting calories... Counting calories can be a useful way of identifying huge sources of extra energy in your diet and a starting point for making healthy changes, but it can also become a point of frustration and obsession. Id suggest using it purely for educational purposes (if at all), rather than attempting a careful balancing act. Generally, calorie (or kilojoule) content of foods and measurements of calories burnt during exercise are purely estimated or averaged figures, not an exact science. Basically, if it causes more issues than it solves, its best avoided!
Posted on: Fri, 22 Aug 2014 05:48:28 +0000
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