Use Your Tools- Food Journals

Hey Y'All Divas. I'm down 6.8 pounds so far!!!!! Wooo Hoooo!!!!

I must admit using tools to help and having a plan sure does relieve some of the anxiety and stress that go with trying to lose weight. So far we've had several discussions that have worked to lay some sort of foundation.

We've been doing a lot of home remodeling recently so I'm probably going to sound more like a contractor here when I start going on and on about tools. You can't build a house if you don't have any tools. Just think....how can we get the 2x4's to even stand up if we don't have a hammer? Well the same goes for trying to lose weight. We need a plan just like a builder needs blueprints. The plan tells us what to do, which tools to use and when.

One of my favorite tools is the food journal. I read a very good article in Good Housekeeping online over the weekend. Here is the link http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/advice/food-diary-diet-success

It states that most people who don't journal until the end of the day or not all, but just by recall, are missing up to 38% of their calories consumed. This can put you waaaayyyyy off course and delay your progress greatly. It would be like taking one step forwards and 1/2 step back every day. It will take you soooooo much longer to get where you are going if you are not completely accurate in your journaling. One of my favorite sayings is, "If you bite it, you write it." This is true. Also ladies.... let's be honest here, some us live in a whip cream bowl filled with denial. IF YOU BITE IT, YOU WRITE IT!!!!! YES that means if you eat 3 peanuts at Texas Roadhouse, you write it. YES if you finish your 3 yr old's orange juice box, you write it. YES if you eat one of your kid's chicken nuggets because you felt bad throwing it in the trash when they were done, you write it! Yes you write down everything.

I know this seems cumbersome having to carry around a journal and write EVERY L-I-T-T-L-E thing you pop into your mouth but hey...if that's what it takes for us to finally achieve success then I'm all for it. Especially with all the cool and neat little toys out there to help us. If you can afford it Divas I highly recommend treating yourself to an i-Phone. There are dozens of applications out there for the i-Phone that can help you journal. They range from simple journals to Weight Watchers and other online services that sync up with your phone and allow you online access as well.

My personal favorite is "Food Scanner" and "Daily Burn". You can get them through the i-tunes store. They both work hand in hand on the i-Phone and all you have to do when preparing foods or eating is use your camera and scan the bar code on the package. Then wha-la (choirs of angels singing), your phone pops ups with all the nutritional info you need to record accurately. If the food you eat does not have a bar code such as an apple, then you can just look up the food by doing a search on the phone and it will pull it up. It's AWESOME!!!!! I just love, love, love my i-Phone.

Anyways.....I'll try to keep this one short today. The article in Good Housekeeping was great, tools are AWESOME, i-Phone are Heaven Sent. Now go build yourself a new body and do it right!!! Remember.... IF YOU BITE IT, YOU WRITE IT!!!!

Happy Journaling ladies.