Food journaling can often be looked at as a very time-consuming and tedious task. However, if you are able to be consistent with journaling you can boost your results with any fitness program. While it can be very difficult to maintain a solid food journal it is often a gratifying process by the end of a program.
1. Helps you remember what you have eaten.
People who start food journaling are often very surprised to find out how much they are really eating in a given day. Our eyes can be very deceiving when it comes to what we eat and that is why it is so important that we learn to gauge the amount of food that we eat.
2. Helps you figure out your eating patterns.
By checking your food journal you can easily see some basic eating patterns that you follow. It will help you find out when you are getting hungry so that you can plan your meals accordingly. Additionally, it can help you find your problematic snacking times so that you can prepare healthy snacks for when you get hungry.
3. Helps you realize if you are eating because of boredom or hunger.
Oftentimes, when we are snacking it, is not because we are hungry but it could be a number of other things. Our bodies can misinterpret dehydration signals as hunger signals and have us feel hungry when we are actually thirsty. Also, recording what you were doing and how you were feeling before you eat can also be incredibly helpful to look back on to analyze your trends.
4. The food journal creates a sense of accountability
When we make a bad dietary decision there are often feelings of regret or remorse that cause us to avoid thinking about our decision. We can combat this tendency by tracking the foods in the journal because they are written down and can be looked at later on. This can allow for an objective view of how your week went regarding your diet rather than how you feel it went. It is very eye-opening to look back over your entire week and point out where things went wrong and where things went right.