Stop fooling yourself and start tracking!

Just because you eat “healthy foods”, it doesn’t mean that you have the right to eat as much as you want—take it from me, “Queen of Healthy Foods”!  After slowly packing on about 20 pounds in a year, I finally get it and I can say without a doubt that it’s not just my underactive thyroid gland that’s causing all of the problems!  During the end of 2009, I realized that I have to take control and stop leaning on the “my-thyroid-is-screwed-up crutch”; and make some real hard core changes to help balance out my underperforming thyroid gland.  One of the biggest changes was I started back tracking the foods that I consumed on a daily bases.  You know the saying, “calories in equal calories out.”  Just in case math isn’t your thing, this means that the more calories you eat, the more weight you gain or lose because for every 3,500 calories you will either gain or lose 1 pound!

3,500 calories = 1 pound

So, there’s no trick or special secrets to losing weight, it’s just simple mathematics (along with exercise)!  No matter whether you are on the Jenny Craig®, Weight Watchers®, or Biggest Loser plan, or just working with your own personal trainer, they all follow this one simple principle, a controlled diet with proper exercise will result in weight loss and a healthy body.  So, if you don’t have the opportunity to try those programs, then you can achieve your weight loss goals with just a cellphone or a computer!  That’s right, it’s just that simple.

There are a plethora of online tracking tools that are FREE!  Some are better than others, but for the most part they all do the same things.  I recently started using MyFitnessPal to track my daily diary and it is awesome!  What I like about this tool is that it has an extensive database that includes lots of foods and remembers my most frequently eaten foods to make it easy to add those foods again in my log.  Also, I can track trends to see my progress over a specified time period for calories, exercise, and weight loss.  However, what really made me excited about this tool is that it has an awesome iPhone App that automatically syncs with the online account and maintains all of that information that was posted online!  This helps me because sometimes I am not at the computer, but I ALWAYS have my phone!

So whether you use MyFitnessPal.com or some other food tracking tool, just start tracking.  This, along with proper exercise, is the BEST way to help you achieve your weight loss goals.  In just 2 weeks I have lost 2 pounds, and I am definitely happy for that!

A sample of my food dairy log on Jan 29th (myfitnesspal.com)

PDF Print version of my food diary (myfitnesspal.com)

My 2-week calorie trend chart (myfitnesspal.com)

Gadget of the Week: Escali Primo Digital Scales

At one point in my life, I refused to measure anything that I cooked.  I was so sure that I had enough control and good eating habits to eat without measuring.  Well, those were the “before age 30 days”—the days when everything you ate actually burned off even without exercising!  Now that I moved past those memorable days, I have found that I have to work harder in order to stay healthy and look good, which means that I now have to start watching my portion sizes.  URGH! 

 

In order to keep me on track, I purchased a digital simple and inexpensive digital scale that I use daily! I know that many of you may be thinking that this is not necessary for you because you’re in control, well good for you.  But, for my friends out there who struggle with their weight and overeating, then you really need to make this small investment.  There are a variety of digital scales on the market that ranges from $25 – $100.  I recommend that you start with the less expensive scales.  However, if you want the scale that has all of the programs in it, then expect to pay over $60 for it.  You can purchase a digital scale at any department/kitchen store, as well as on Amazon.com (free shipping for orders over $25).

 

Click this link to learn more or to purchase the
Escali Primo Digital Multifunctional Scale.