Journals

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-29-2004
Journals
1
Sun, 08-01-2004 - 1:34pm
I am starting my new "life style" tomorrow, and I am reading everything i can here on the message boards to get educated and I am really excited (scared and a little confused too) about begining my weight loss. I see alot of people on here have journals and i was just wondering if some of you wouldn't mind sharing how you have yours set up, so i can get a better idea of how to start mine. I know it is important to write down your exercise times and water intake, but i would like to know what would be best: fat intake or calories or both? I tried the carb thing (atkins diet) and i about killed myself (couldn't get out of the bed for 3 days! ouch!) Also what would be other things that are good to keep track of? Hope this question is not too goofy. I'm just looking for a little help to get me started. Thank you to all who reply! ^v^Christie^v^
Avatar for jess9802
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-02-2003
In reply to: aydynsmommy
Sun, 08-01-2004 - 2:31pm
I set up my journal in Microsoft Excel. It's just a simple spreadsheet. I enter the food I ate, the calories per serving, and the servings I ate. The spreadsheet does all the math.

I don't think it's crucial to keep track of your exercise time or water intake (remember: the rules on how much water you need to drink have changed! You can get a lot of your daily water requirements from the foods you eat, and pop, coffee, and tea count as well. Seriously.).

You need to keep track of your calories. Counting fat grams alone won't help you lose weight, because it's possible to eat very little fat but lots of calories. I only count my calories, and don't worry at all about the fat in the foods I eat. By reducing my caloriic intake I've found that I generally get the right amount of fat in my diet. Usually.

The only other thing I can think of that might be helpful for you to track would be your fiber intake. Most of us don't get enough, and it really makes a difference in how full you feel after a meal. When I make a sandwich out of my high fiber bread (5g per slice) I can barely finish the darn thing, and I'm not hungry for a long time afterwards.

Good luck!