FitSugar

Calorie Counting Tip: Photo Food Journal

Jenny Sugar — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 01:41:47 PDT

One of the most effective and proven ways to stay on track with healthy food choices is by keeping a food journal because it allows you to examine your diet and be accountable for every bite you eat. If you don't have time to write down your meals and snacks throughout your day, it can be impossible to remember everything you ate once you sit down with your food journal at night.

Here's a helpful tip: take photos of all your meals and snacks right before you enjoy them. Don't forget to snap a shot of the three Hershey's Kisses you grabbed from your co-worker's desk - those count too. Click a pic of your beverages as well. Then when you get home, you can peruse your photos and accurately write down every morsel. Keeping track of your daily diet through photos will not only help you see how many calories you're consuming, but it might also make you think twice about reaching for that second cookie.

Source: Flickr User primalprogress

Get Fit For Summer: Challenge 4, Food Journal For a Day

FitSugar — Wed, 04 May 2011 20:36:46 PDT

We know that bikini season is right around the corner, and to help you get fit for Summer we've created a series of weekly fitness and health challenges. To add a little incentive, throughout the rest of Spring we'll be awarding a weekly prize of a $100 New Balance gift card to participating readers. To be eligible to win, create a post in the Get Fit For Summer community group as each challenge comes up.

This week's challenge: Keep a food journal for a day in our Get Fit For Summer community group. Better yet, take photos of your meals (and snacks) and make a gallery. You can download and use our printable food journal to help you keep track of all the food you eat. It's always helpful to see just how many calories you're consuming in a day to help you keep on track.

Remember, by completing this challenge you will be entered into a random drawing for a $100 gift card from New Balance. Just be sure to complete the challenge by 11:59 p.m. PDT May 8 to enter. Need to know more? See the official rules here. Now show us what you're eating!

Get Fit For Summer Challenge 4: One Reader's Food Journal For a Day

Fit Community — Tue, 03 May 2011 14:22:19 PDT

Doesn't this breakfast smoothie from FitSugar reader eatingbirdfood look delicious? She shared her daily food journal with the Get Fit For Summer community group as part of the fourth challenge in the Get Fit For Summer giveaway. By doing so, she's eligible to win a $100 New Balance gift card!

See her daily food journal when you read more!

A Reader Says, "Let's Do a . . . Light Lunch!"

Fit Community — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 10:20:19 PST

FitSugar reader kelliechio shared a photo of her light lunch for the second challenge of our Get Fit For 2011 giveaway.

After my morning workout, I sat down to a light and healthy lunch of a tuna sandwich . . . cherry tomatoes . . . carrots . . . a little parm cheese . . . and strawberry yogurt!

Be sure to post a day of your food journal, or a photo of a meal, in our Get Fit For 2011 group to enter our weekly giveaway of a $100 Nike gift card and a chance to win our grand prize - a four-day fitness boot camp in LA!

Get Fit For 2011 Giveaway: Challenge 2, Food Journal

FitSugar — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 21:40:13 PST

This is your year to get healthy and fit and we're here to help with weekly challenges for our Get Fit For 2011 giveaway.

This week's challenge: keep a food journal by writing a blog post in the Get Fit For 2011 community group of all you eat in an entire day. But why just write it down when you can show us your meals and snacks in photos?

If you're trying to lose weight, food journaling helps you keep track of the calories you're consuming, and if you want to healthy you can track your fruit and veggie intake too. By meeting this challenge, you will be automatically entered for a chance to win our weekly prize - a $100 Nike gift card.

At the end of three months, we will pick a grand prize winner at random from all of the entries in all of the weekly challenges. Remember, the more you participate, the more chances you have to win the grand prize: a Get Fit Boot Camp in Los Angeles that includes a round-trip flight to Los Angeles, a four-night stay at the W Hollywood, a personal training session with celebrity trainer Jeanette Jenkins, a nutrition consultation with C & J Nutrition, and four workout sessions with our very own FitSugar editors that will be featured on PopSugar Living TV.

If you're ready to join the fun and feel the community support, log in and head directly to Get Fit For 2011. Need a little help making a blog post? Here are tips on posting in our group.

You have until 11:59 p.m. PST on Sunday, Jan. 23, to complete your second challenge. Ready. Set. Start journaling! I just stared mine. Check out my photo food journal here.

Challenge 2: Danielle's Food Journal, Tuesday, Jan. 18, Part 1

Fit Community — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 11:15:46 PST

FitSugar reader dpauline shared her food journal in photos for the second challenge of our Get Fit For 2011 giveaway.

Well here's all my food for the day

Romaine lettuce
Apple
Blueberries
Cucumber
Chickpeas
Spinach
Artichoke Hearts
Celery
Sprouts
Sprouted Bread
Apple Sauce
Almonds
Oatmeal
4oz of Last night's Chicken dish - thanks Rob!
Vanilla Pudding Cup
Water and Coffee (not pictured)

Sometimes it helps to get all the food out and organized.

Learn the secrets of Danielle's green breakfast smoothie from her food journal in the Get Fit Group. Be sure to post a day of your food journal in the group to enter our weekly giveaway of a $100 Nike gift card and a chance to win our grand prize - a four-day fitness boot camp in LA!

Do You Measure Your Portions?

FitSugar — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 04:30:00 PDT

If losing pounds is on your mind, counting calories and keeping a food journal are great ways to stay on track and see results. In order to figure out how much you're eating, it helps to measure your food rather than eyeball amounts. I know I used to pour "one cup of cereal" into my bowl in the morning, but one day I measured and realized I was eating almost twice that amount. If weight loss is your goal, overestimating portion sizes is one reason you may not see the scale budge.

Some people find comfort in measuring and weighing everything from salad dressing, to chicken, to peanut butter, so tell me . . .

Food Journaling: Write Down What You Resist, Too

FitSugar — Mon, 03 May 2010 03:47:07 PDT

Keeping a food journal to track what you eat each day can be a great weight loss tool. It helps prevent mindless eating and ensures you're getting all the nutrients you need; here's one to print out to get you started.

But even the best healthy eating intentions can be sabotaged by intense food cravings - especially when they're tied to PMS. So lately, I'm also writing down the foods I don't eat - specifically, the cravings I manage to resist.

Reading back on my journals, I've noticed a pattern. I'll often be grappling with a food craving so intense, it feels like indulging it (even just a little) is the only solution. But I'll fight back with a food-craving killer like eating something healthy instead, and I'll proudly record my success, along with how I felt afterward.

Hours later, when I read back on the note, it seems silly that the craving, now passed, was causing me such grief. It's a good reminder that sometimes those really intense cravings can indeed be fended off.

Food Journals Fail You? Try Sharing With a Group

FitSugar — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:00:37 PST

If you're trying to lose weight by counting calories and watching your portion sizes, monitoring your daily intake by writing it down in a food journal is really effective. The only problem is, if you're doing it on your own it can get boring, and you're more likely to get out of the habit.

If you've tried food journaling before and never got into it, try food journaling with a group of people. Every night, email your fellow food journalers your daily menu, and they'll email you theirs. You can share comments and questions, so not only will you learn a lot about proper daily nutrition, but you'll also get ideas for snacks and meals. I also find that it makes you more accountable for your choices, and less likely to forget to write down that handful of M&Ms, or mid-afternoon mocha muffin. You can update each other on the pounds you've lost, which will inspire the entire group to stick with it.

Tell me, have any of you tried group food journaling before? Why not start one in the Weight Loss Support Group?

Enter Our Get Fit For 2010 Giveaway: Challenge 3, Food Journal

FitSugar — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:21:58 PST

Last week your Get Fit For 2010 challenge was assess your fitness level with three tests then write a blog post of the results, and you received an extra entry if you also wrote a blog post of your body measurements. Now it's time to talk food.

This week's challenge: keep a food journal by writing a blog post in the Get Fit For 2010 community group of all you eat in an entire day. Don't forget to add photos of your food. To help you, we've created an easy to use printable food journal. Just download the PDF, print it out, and start tracking your food intake. Not only is this a good way to keep track of the calories you're consuming when trying to lose or maintain your weight, it is great to track your fruit and veggie intake too (one of my goals is to eat five to seven servings of produce daily). By meeting this challenge, you will be automatically entered for a chance to win our weekly prize - a $100 Nike gift card.

At the end of three months, we will pick a grand prize winner at random from all of the entries in all of the weekly challenges. The more you participate, the more chances you have to win the grand prize: a $1,000 gift card from Nike; a year of personalized nutrition plans by nutritionist Alexa Fishback, plus a copy of her book; a year membership to 24 Hour Fitness for you and a friend; and two Bodybuggs.

If you're not already a member of the PopSugar Community, register here now. Click here for the official rules.

You have until 11:59 p.m. PST on Sunday, Jan. 31, to complete your third challenge. Ready. Set. Start journaling!