Write Your Way to Weight Loss

Did you know that writing down in a journal what you eat can greatly increase your chances of losing weight?  According to Everyday Health’s website,, a study was done on 1,700 overweight men and women. The study showed that those who kept a regular food and exercise journal, followed a low calorie meal plan and exercised at least 30 minutes a day, lost 18 pounds in under five months. Compared to their non-journaling peers who only lost nine pounds.

Food Journal Benefits
So what are the benefits of keeping a Food and Exercise Journal? Well, according to many researchers the list keeps growing, but here are a few:

• Journaling keeps you on track (keeps you from slipping back into old patterns that caused weight gain in the first place).
• Food journals make you accountable for yourself and for your food and lifestyle choices.
• Food journals help you to identify where and when the extra calories sneak into your diet.
• Food journals can act as a deterrent (for example: if you know you have to write down that you ate a second serving of ice cream cake, you may think twice before eating it).
• Food journal provide a record of your weight loss success.
• Food journals keep you from emotional eating when you are not hungry (for example, when you write down how you feel before eating, you may choose an alternative to eating such as talking a walk).
• Food journal helps your holistic nutritionist (me!) keep you motivated and on track.

What to write on Food Journal
So what do you put in your food journal? Those who have worked with me long enough, know that on a regular basis I ask them to write down everything that they eat or drink, including snacks and water. I even ask them to write down how they felt before eating and after eating the meal. This helps to keep track of emotional and unconscious eating.

Other things to write down:

• Portion sizes of foods and liquids (juices have calories too!)
• Write down your eating experience (where you ate, who you were with, and how you were feeling emotionally at that time)
• Your start weight and weight goal
• Minutes of exercise and where

So keeping a journal is a great way to be a conscious eater. Eating consciously leads to wellness and abundance. For more information on Holistic Nutrition and how it can help you, contact Mandisa Fabris, C.N.E for holistic nutrition support.