Your second challenge is…
Start and keep a food journal
Record everything that you eat and drink for 1 week
Our Reasoning
Many times when people come to the studio looking for advice on how they can change their body, they are looking to lose weight (mostly lose weight, sometimes gain). My first question is always, “What are you eating now?”. Most people reply along the lines of “Ummm, I try to eat healthy, salads and stuff like that” but when I ask them to actually write down everything they eat, the list is more than they expected.
We all lead busy lives, I get it. In a world where multitasking is coveted like a badge of honor, we are always trying to get as much done as possible. Sadly this can cause us to combine our meals with a screen.
“Where did my Tacos go?”
Have you ever sat down to eat, turned on the Voice or Netflix and completely missed your meal? “Where did all my tacos go?” The fact of the matter is that many of us sleepwalk our way through meals. Part of this is because we are so enthralled with whatever is on our phone or TV that we will clean our plates without even realizing. This can actually cause us to overeat, or eat when we aren’t hungry. But don’t take my word for it, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a study that showed that:
1) Distracted eating lead to overeating
2) Attentive eating lead to a decrease in hunger after the meal
I’m not saying I’m any better. If there is something for me to snack on when I’m working on my computer or relaxing watching TV, you bet I’ll be eating. The problem comes with the mindless snacks find their way into the rest of our day. For instance, if I have to stop and get gas for my car, without thinking I buy a snack. Am I hungry? Maybe. Did I establish this habit sometime during my life? Most likely. Only after taking an inventory of my eating did I realize this habit.
Your Challenge this week is to keep a food journal for 1 week. This can either be a small notepad you keep in your car or purse, it can also be your smartphone. An easy way to catalog your food is to take a picture of everything you eat before you eat it, then put the phone away while you eat.
After keeping a journal for a week look back over your choices. How did you do? Did you eat as many vegetables as you thought? Did some additional seemingly innocuous snacks find their way in (I’m looking at you mini Cadbury eggs) Record everything, even those chips you may not want to include, don’t be too hard on yourself. Take an inventory of your week and see if you notice any habit patterns that could be adjusted.
Side Note: There is always a possibility that you are eating too little. That’s right, you could not be eating enough for the level of exercise or lifestyle that you live. This can be even worse due to malnourishment and the potential damage it can cause to your metabolism. More on that later. If you feel that you are not eating enough or too much please feel free to reach out to us and well be happy to point you in the right direction. Send us a Message
Share your progress
If you accept our challenge be sure to check in every time you complete a challenge on our Facebook and use the hashtags #HealthyHabitsChallenge #Trackyourfood and #StudioFitnessVT
Bring a Friend
If there is someone you know who could benefit from a few extra healthy habits, challenge them! Share this page or a specific challenge page and challenge them to participate with you. There’s strength in numbers and we want as many people as possible to live healthy, happy lifestyles.