When someone comes to me wanting advice on how to lose weight, one of the first things I tell them is to write down everything they eat and drink for three consecutive weekdays and one day on the weekend. New research supports what I’ve seen hold true in client after client: Food journals can accelerate weight loss.
In a study published in the August issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers from Kaiser Permanente’s Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore., found that keeping a daily diary doubled weight lost among overweight men and women with cardiovascular risk factors (high blood pressure and/or elevated cholesterol).
Diet, food diary, and support groups
Nearly 1,700 patients were enrolled in the study and were put on a heart-healthy D.A.S.H. (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) regimen, which is rich in whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and potassium, and low in sodium. (Incidentally, this is the same diet that my sister followed to lose weight and reduce her blood pressure.)
In addition, subjects attended weekly group sessions and exercised at moderate intensity levels for at least 30 minutes a day. They were also instructed to keep diet and exercise journals. Individuals who did not record what they ate lost about 9 pounds, whereas those who kept daily diaries lost up to 18 pounds in five months. The average weight lost for the entire group was 13 pounds.
“The more food records people kept, the more weight they lost,” says lead researcher Jack Hollis, PhD. “Simply writing down what you eat encourages eating less.”
As one of the largest and longest-running weight-loss-maintenance trials ever conducted, this study gives support to a practice that we dietitians have been using for years. It’s also one of the few studies to recruit a large percentage (44%) of African Americans as participants. African Americans have a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease, conditions that are aggravated by being overweight. In this study, the majority of African American participants lost at least nine pounds, a higher number than in previous studies.
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Comments (11)
Thanks for highlighting this study. Most of my new clients (I have been a personal fitness trainer for 19+ years) are hesitant to start a food log. Everyone is already so busy and they don’t think that they will have the time to consistently enter their meals into the log.
But, in my experience, the ones that work the log see better results, faster. I hope this article will help to convince the non-believers.
On a similar note, this post explains why some people have spare tires while others store their body-fat in their rear end.
http://healthhabits.wordpress.com/2008/06/13/the-science-behind-spare-tires-and-thunder-thighs/
As a dietitian, I appreciate the value of food diaries. Even the National Weight Control Registry with its members and their long-term success in losing weight and keeping it off have proven the effectiveness of food diaries. That’s why I created “Drawing the Line on Calories, Carbs, and Fat.” This “connect-the-dots” approach to tracking food is a very visual and graphic tool where users can see the “picture” of what they’ve eaten by simply drawing lines between dots. It removes a lot of the work involved with a food diary and is far more fun. The reason food diaries work so well is that they act as one’s conscience. If anyone is interested in seeing a more unique approach to food diaries, visit my website at http://www.advantagediets.com.
I woould like to lose 80 pounds from the weight I have now.
Even easier than that is an iPhone application that tracks your nutrition intake!
see for yourself: http://www.allofzero.com
–Derrek
I’m trying to figure out what makes me do crazy things. Like I’ll lose 4 or 5 pounds and then all of asudden it’s like I’ll eat everything in sight. I get so upset. I get back on the diet the next day. I’m not tremendously overweight but would like to do something before I get any worse. I was fine till my Doctor told me I needed to gain 20 pounds because I have Osteoporosis and he said the calcium would not work without fat. I gained the 20 pounds. I didn’t think about my leg being run over when I was a child. Lo and behold my leg started hurting around the clock. Went to my regular Dr. and she says “well you’ve gained 20 pounds, that is why your leg is hurting. Why did you gain weight?” So I told her and she immediately said, that I needed to lose the weight that she had never heard such a thing. Now I am trying to lose it and it is really difficult. I gained the weight 3 years ago and have lost half of it but still need to lose ten pounds. I do lift weights and do aerobics for the Osteoporosis. So exercise is not the problem. I think the problem is purely food. HELP ! ! ! ! If any of you out there have had the same problem tell me how you handled it so you could lose the weight. I think part of it could be emotional but I don’t know how to break that cycle. Thanks so much
To Sandy:
South Beach is the ONLY eating plan that has worked for me. Once I lost the sugar craving (in one week), it was really easy. I was never hungry. Added to your exercise program, it won’t take you long to lose 20 pounds and keep it off.
I attempeted to request some information about “Dr. Suzanne’s” qualifications, training, and medical schools that she has attended. The ONLY two sentences that I got in response to my queries were:
“She is a CHIROPRACTOR” and “She was trained in Georgia”……
Nothing more, quel suprese!! No mention of her credentialing, no mention of her fellowships bestowed upon her, no medical schools mentioned, which to me raises the question “Do they mean the state of Georgia in the United States or Georgia, the republic in Russia?? Gee, to me, that’s a LOT of red flags…..Seems as though “chiropractors” are able to be Gastroenterologists with ABSOLUTELY NO MEDICAL TRAINING OR EXPERTISE IN THAT FIELD, NOR ARE THEY QUALIFIED TO PRACTICE IN THAT AREA OF EXPERTISE. Would you let a “chiropractor” perform surgery, such as an appendectomy on you??
I have tried this ‘journal’ idea before this study even came out, and I can say, with 100% certainty that IT WORKS! I have struggled to lose weight, but after starting writing down what food I eat, and what excercise I do per day, I noticed my rapid weight loss. I lost a total of 13 pounds so far, and I have only 5-10 lbs. left. After I lost all of that weight though, I stopped ‘journaling’. When I did, my weight stopped dropping. So, after reading this, I WILL start it again! It may be hard in the beginning for some, but it wil pay off in the end. Trust me!!
The best food diary I have used is from CalorieKing.com. They’re around $4.00 and can be used for 10 weeks. They have helped record everything, they give u tips and calorie counters. It’s the best for what this article is telling u to do.
Why not just try the free food and physical activity diary on the site http://www.mypyramid.gov? You are already paying for it with your tax dollars.
Super-Duper site! I am loving it!! Will come back again – taking you feeds also, Thanks.