Being Aware of Your Diet
In a follow up to a previous post on the rising numbers of overweight and obese residents in Missoula where diet was highlighted as the major cause of the problem, it might be helpful to take a closer look at how people’s awareness of what they’re eating and drinking factors into the equation. That’s because when you look at it from an objective standpoint, it appears a lot of good can be gained from being more aware of what is being consumed on a daily basis.
But how do you become more aware of what you’re eating? That’s the main question we’ll be considering in this installment as we look at ways to make it easier to identify where some people are going wrong and to offer a healthier and more positive alternative to the problem.
Write it All Down
One of the most powerful ways of raising awareness of the things that you are consuming every day is to write down in a notepad every single thing that passes your lips every day for a week or longer if possible. The best way to do this is to keep a notepad and pen handy with you at all times and simply jot down what it is you eat and drink every time throughout each day.
Don’t go back and review it at the end of each day or even at any frequency, but just keep a daily record of your food and drinks consumption. You can review it all at the end of the week.
Using the Information
After the first week of keeping a daily diary of your food intake, you should then spend some time going back through the diary and looking at what you have written down. You may begin to see patterns in your eating habits where you are perhaps snacking between meals on high calorie sweet or savory things and maybe drinking a can of soda here and there.
Once you can see the obvious big calorie spikes throughout each day, you can take that information forward and look for ways to stamp them out. The best way to do that if you don’t think you have the will power to go cold turkey is to find alternatives.
Replacing the Bad with the Good
This can really make a difference to your weight if you can start replacing the high calorie snacks with other options and get into the habit of doing it every day. You will have identified the worst offenders through your daily food diary, so start by tackling those first.
If there is a slice of pie with a coffee or a can of soda mid morning for instance, then replace it with something else you like to eat that is much lower in calories and healthier, such as an apple or other piece of fresh fruit and swap the soda for a glass of plain water. It might seem strange at first, but do it anyway and after a while you’ll really get into enjoying it a whole lot more.
Go through your day systematically replacing bad foods with good ones and before too long, your reduced calorie intake will have a marked effect on your body weight as it drops steadily. You can read more about diet awareness and how it can help you manage your weight by visiting this website: www.dietawareness.com and taking some time to read the articles there that expand on this practice in more detail.