A well-kept nutrition journal remains the best weapon in your health arsenal. Few diet problems exist that can't be somewhat (or altogether) remedied by your journal. Initially, a journal can tell you whether your current eating habits are healthy. Once you've adjusted your diet as necessary, a journal helps you to personalize your diet. If your body adapts, your lifestyle changes or your diet comes up short, you can turn to the journal to see what went wrong.
Here's how to get started:
1. Purchase a diary, a spiral notebook, an online diet journal service or a binder and some notebook paper.
2. Gather measuring cups, a small kitchen scale and measuring spoons.
3. Depending on which journal you purchased, devise a way to track macro-nutrients (protein, fat, carbs) and calories daily.
4. On the first page of your journal, note the date and your weight, your body fat percentage if possible and your specific goals.
5. For each day, note the name and nutritional information for everything you consume. Use the measuring devices for accuracy.
6. If you go out to eat or do not have nutritional information available, visit one of the many databases online that can provide this information.
7. After at least 3 days, but preferably a week, calculate you average daily intakes and create personalized daily intake limits to suit your health and fitness goals.
8. If you wish to lose weight, begin with eating 250 fewer calories a day comprised largely of lean proteins and whole-grain or natural carbohydrates.
9. If you wish to build more muscle, begin with eating 250 more calories daily and stick to lean proteins.
10. Continue to monitor yourself and continue to tweak the calorie and macro-nutrient levels (using the all important diary as a baseline) until you find yourself progressing toward your goal.
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