[Jennelle]

I've been tracking my food intake religiously for two weeks. After the first week of my diet, I lost two pounds. After the second week, I gained a half-pound. I knew some of my choices were less-than-fab, so I decided to take a good look at what I ate that week. I picked out my not-so-great choices and listed them. Here's what I got:
My not-so-great choices last week:

Thurs 8/4
McD breakfast burrito and fruit/walnut salad – should have had either/or
---The salad: 310 calories vs. 300 for burrito, but salad has less fat and sodium. Would have saved 300 cal.

2" sq. lemon cake – should have foregone (about 100 cal)
dinner roll w/1 tsp. honey butter – should have forgone (about 160 cal)

Fri 8/5
2 sl. white toast and grits – should have chosen either/or
---get rid of toast with butter, save about 250 calories

Sat. 8/6
cheddar cheese Combos – should have forgone (about 150 cal)
lo mein and fried rice – should have chosen either/or (no lo mein would have saved about 450 cal.)
chocolate dipped ice cream cone – should have forgone (about 360 cal.)

Sun 8/7
1/2 c. ice cream and frosted sugar cookie – should have forgone (would have saved about 350 cal)

Mon. 8/8
1/2 c. red beans and rice and biscuit – should have chosen either/or (chuck the red beans and rice at 340 cal)

Tues. 8/9
good choices all day! go me!

Wed 8/10
1 c. brown rice and 1/2 c. corn – should have chosen either/or (chuck the rice, save 220 cal)
chocolate dipped ice cream cone – should have forgone (about 360 cal.)

While day by day they weren't horrible choices (well, maybe except for the ice cream!), over a week they really added up. Had I followed my hindsight advice, I would have saved about 3,040 calories. It takes 3,500 extra calories to make a pound. There's my half-pound.

I learned more from this 10 minute exercise than I have in 30 years of food obsession!

[alphabetsoup]

OH, that is interesting! I think it's great that you did that. I've done it before - just in my head, just to say..."Next time, I'm only gonna have a half cup of rice, I don't need a whole cup..."

It really helps, for me, to be "prepared" about my eating so that next time I'm up against a challenge - I know what I want to do instead of just mindlessly eating.

Good for you!

[funniegrrl]

That is an EXCELLENT exercise, good for you for being so diligent in recording and in taking a serious look at each choice.

I would suggest that you look more closely at the overall nutrition of some of the things you say you'd do without next time. In the choice between corn and brown rice, the brown rice would probably be the better choice. Red beans & rice vs. a biscuit, the beans & rice would provide much more nutrition. Just a thought.

[Gardenwife]

Good point!

Howie and I keep daily food logs....The good, the bad and the ugly. Equally important to how many calories you eat is how you consume them.

I notice that a large part of your log consists of starchy foods. One thing we learned recently is how various foods effect the body and how long we feel full. There's a lot of brain chemistry involved - it's pretty cool.

Lots of processed carbohydrates without sufficient protein gives you a quick flash of energy, but then you crash. You also don't stay satisfied as long. This article is excellent in explaining the chemistry and how foods affect our moods and mental abilities.

If you make choices that will give you the most bang for your calorie buck, you'll feel full longer, your body will get the nutrients you need, and you'll feel better overall. Feed the machine!

[alphabetsoup]

Oh, funniegrrl and Kimberley have some good points!

If you find that you really are craving ice cream - maybe try having it just once a week or having it without the chocolate dipping instead of cutting it out completely. I know, for me, that if I deny myself something, it's not pretty. (I was going to say this before, I forgot )