Journal of course… How can you make changes or move forward if you don’t know what you’ve done or more so… what you have eaten?? Yikes!!! I’ve kept journals for a while now and find them extremely helpful in my health and fitness journey, especially when I feel the need to make some changes. I could be going along doing my thing, thinking I’m doing a great job and then find I’m not getting the results I’d hoped for – hmmmm…Time to go back to review my journals to see if I can figure out what is going on… and yup – just as I thought, there is it as plain as day.
Until I stopped and really looked at what I was doing I was stuck at 147…. Now that may not be a big number to some, but it didn’t feel good on me… Everyone’s personal journey is about them, but for me that 147 represented a heavy feeling in my body, my clothes being uncomfortably tight and not feeling very pretty. So what was I doing wrong?? I was working out everyday, counting calories and eating pretty good – so I thought…. this is what I was actually doing – ready? But first let me say to those of you who know me and know that my husband Mark is a personal trainer – this was all my own doing people, no one can tell you what or how much to eat – these are all choices we make on our own, and as you will see, my choices were not great.
Monday:
- Toast / Jelly (160),
- south beach bar, (140),
- pear (100),
- Spaghetti and sauce (350),
- snack (70),
- Chicken, corn, carrots, potato (300)
ok – so let’s take a look at this 1120 cal day…. when I look at this now I cringe…. breakfast toast and Jelly?? – all carbs and no protein, not a great way to start my day – the rest of the day shows a lot of things on the higher side of the glycemic chart – corn and white potato use to be a staple in my diet… not so much now, still love my spaghetti and sauce but only have it once a week, and I use quinoa pasta and turkey meat in the sauce. Bars of any kind are only good in an emergency, my “snack” above was 5 dark baker choc wafers – I use to eat with a handful of walnuts… I’m still not sure why I thought that was a good snack..
Here is another day:
- Toast / Jelly (160),
- cheese and crackers (140),
- chicken and rice (260),
- pear (100),
- Mac and cheese and a hamburger (880)
what the hell was I thinking? There was a time that I had myself convinced that 1/2 cup of coffee yogurt, with fat-free hot fudge and a few walnuts was ok, oh! and that a few peanut m&m’s wouldn’t hurt….. are you starting to see a pattern here?? If I didn’t journal, I would have never seen it. Again I “thought” I was eating pretty good.
Today here is a typical day of food for me:
- Breakfast – oatmeal and egg whites,
- AM snack: a green smoothie,
- Lunch – 2 cups of Salad, 5 Jumbo Shrimp and a whole grain pita bread,
- PM snack- apple and 1 oz of almonds,
- Dinner – 4 oz of chicken, 1 cup of salad and 1 cup of green beans….
Probably about the same calories wise, but a whole lot healthier, a lot lower on the glycemic index, and each meal has a protein with it. Still can’t believe I thought toast and jelly for breakfast was ok??
So what is this glycemic index I’ve been talking about?? The Glycemic Index (GI) is a numerical rating system originally created for diabetics to help them keep their blood sugar in check. In short – this helps to keep your appetite under control (it’s the sharp rise and fall of blood glucose levels that stimulate the hunger sensation) and helps to stabilize your energy levels. This is extremely important for successful weight loss – if we can avoid feeling hungry all the time, we will have a much better chance of sticking to the plan.
Journaling is also a great way to track your workouts and measurements too. You can look back and see what you ate and did for workouts, how it affected your body, and how long it took for your body to change. For me workouts were never really a problem, it was the “calories in” part… and no matter how many ways you slice it, you just CAN NOT out train a bad diet. After years of trying, I finally started seeing changes to my body once I really looked at my diet and made changes to it – oh and got a pair of valslides 😉
I do have a Body Transformation 101 Journal that I’ll send you for joining my mailing list. This mainly allows you to receive an email notification each time I publish a new blog, nothing more, promise. (it’s over on the right about 1/2 way down the page). Then all you have to do is print it out, put it in a binder and whala – off to journaling to a better, healthier, fitter you!
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