Tracking your diet plan can be as simple as eating prepackaged diet foods three meals a day, or as complex as calculating every calorie and nutrient. Keeping a diet chart has proven benefits. Jack F. Hollis and colleagues found that people who kept a food diary consistently, lost more weight than the people who did not consistently journal their food. You can apply the principles of the August 2008 study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, and make a diet chart to track your food, calories and exercise. (See Reference 1)
Step 1
Decide how to implement your chart. Use either a spreadsheet program or a notebook with lined paper. Either method works. The spreadsheet takes longer to set up, while a notebook system may take longer to enter information into. Divide your chart into sections: Menus for the week, food consumed, calories per food, exercise plans and weight.
Step 2
Sit down and fill out your weekly menu on your chart. Use low-calorie cookbooks to find healthy recipes. Consider your upcoming schedule, and record whether there are times you will eat at a restaurant. Remember to write down menus for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. The more information you journal, the more likely you may be to stay on your program.
Include filling breakfast menus like whole-grain bagels, egg-white omelets, high-fiber cereal with skim milk and fruit smoothies. Lunch might be salads with added protein such as egg or chicken, deli-meat sandwiches or a black bean and rice wrap. Plan dinners that include lower calorie proteins, such as chicken or turkey. Plan to bake, roast or grill your foods rather than fry. (See Reference 2)
Step 3
Fill out an exercise plan for the week. Start slowly if you have not exercised recently. According to MayoClinic.com, walking is an excellent way to begin your program. Write down how many days you will exercise and for how long. Include two days of strength training each week on your chart. Rest at least one day between strength-training workouts, but you can exercise aerobically everyday. (See Reference 3)
Step 4
Track your daily food intake on the food section of the chart. Write down what you eat and how many calories the food contains. Record how many servings of foods from the food pyramid at MyPyramid.gov you eat each day. Eat mainly foods from the grains, vegetable and fruit groups. Choose low-fat dairy and lean proteins like beans and fish. Limit your intake of fat, refined sugar and sodium. Be accurate recording calories. (See Reference 4)
Step 5
Weigh yourself frequently, and record your weight on your chart. The National Institutes of Health says that monitoring your weight-loss progress "will be essential" during your weight-loss and weight maintenance phase. Use graph paper stapled into your paper journal to see the downward movement. Set flexible weight goals for yourself, as losing weight does not generally happen in a straight downward line. (See Reference 5)
Tips and Warnings
- Purchase or use an online diet tracking software, if you do not want to create your own. Increase the minutes per week you exercise as your workouts get easier. Analyze your nutritional goals regularly and make adjustments if needed.
- Consult with your doctor before beginning a weight-loss program.
Things You'll Need
- Spreadsheet program (optional)
- Notebook
- Copy of MyPyramid.gov food pyramid
- Graph paper
- Stapler
References
- American Journal of Preventive Medicine: Weight Loss During the Intensive Intervention Phase of the Weight-Loss Maintenance Trial
- Ohio State University Medical Center: Eating Healthy on a Budget: Shopping Tips and Menu Ideas
- MayoClinic.com: Walking for Fitness: How to Trim Your Waistline, Improve Your Health
- MyPyramid.gov: Inside the Pyramid
- National Institues of Health: Guide to Behavior Change
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