Keep A Food Journal

At first glance, keeping a food journal doesn't really seem to be a great way to lose weight fast. Writing doesn't burn a lot of calories and it isn't reducing the calories eaten. But let's think about this a little bit more because I would say to you that a food journal is the most effective of all the fast ways to lose weight that I have ever heard.

Can you remember what you ate yesterday? Everything you ate? Are you leaving something out or skipping over how much of something you ate? I bet you are, even if you don't realize it. Now write it down. Take five minutes or so and really think about it. Make sure to include all snacks, meals and drinks throughout the day. Surprised at how big the list is? I know I was the first time I did it. Bet you didn't think you ate that much. Now, look over your list again and write down beside each item how much of each item you ate or drank. Use whatever measurements work for you. Now look at your list again. Mentally picture all that food and drink together on one table. Can you believe you ate all of that yesterday? If you were to repeat your day yesterday, would you now eat and drink everything the same? Probably not because now you are looking at things from the big picture, not just "one little bite".

Keeping a food journal will keep you honest about how much you are eating every day. And you will start to think about it when you are making your food choices. You will stand in front of the vending machine and instead of thinking about that chocolate bar you crave, you will think about having to write down and admit to yourself that you did not have the willpower to resist, again.
Very quickly, you will change your eating habits as you become more aware of what you are putting in your body.

As you become more adept at completing your food journal, your measurements can get more specific. They can include a number of servings to track your consumption, they can include the approximate number of calories consumed. It will also give you an opportunity to plan your diet and what you will eat each day, not only as far as caloric intake but also from an overall health viewpoint - making sure you get all your fruits and vegetables for example.

No other weight loss tool will force you to look at your diet and be honest with yourself like this will. It is free and you can even download programs online to help you monitor your diet. Now get started!