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Food diaries are an excellent self-monitoring method for those who like to be in control of their weight loss. For seven days, stick to your usual pattern of eating. Each day, enter everything that’s passed your lips, however small. Then you’ll have a good idea of what needs modifying and by how much.

Patently if your record shows a higher consumption of alcohol or fatty foods than you’d realised, you might begin by reducing those initially. Maybe your diet looks pretty good. But if you’re too heavy then you’re probably eating too much of it. Whether it’s the first or the second situation, you’ll be able to see how to adjust your intake from the entries in the diary.

Write down an Action Plan for the next week. On a blank page, write down detailed notes to cover the following: With regard to food, note what you can’t eat, and what you’ll only eat occasionally. Then make a list of food that you can eat freely.

Next comes drink – which often contains more calories than people imagine. Restrict alcoholic beverages to four small drinks a week, and write down the days you will have them. Rule out all sweet carbonated drinks. You’ll need to commit to a fitness regime, so next write in your diary which days you plan to exercise and how.

Get on the scales just before you’re about to start your program. Then repeat the process each week. If necessary, modify parts of the plan for better results. Don’t be tempted to weigh yourself too often – once every week at the same time is sufficient.

You’re in the driving seat with a regime like this. Little illustrations of what’s gone well and what hasn’t will encourage and remind you once you’re several weeks in. Tick off each day you successfully complete your exercise plan. You’ll notice the difference it makes once everything is committed to the diary.

Do keep your expectations reasonable though. At first, it seems to be all effort and no reward! Patience and perseverance are everything. Keeping up your motivation is sometimes tough, so try to dwell on the end result and the joy it will bring!

If you do get demoralised with your results, analyse what’s been happening. It’s possible your programme needs some adjusting. Exercising more regularly can do a lot for your metabolism. Why not take a twenty minute walk every lunch time, and increase the pace each day?

Recognise your successes. Dieting is much more motivating when you quantify your results and reward yourself for your efforts. Clothes shopping isn’t appropriate ’til you’ve reached your target weight. However, there’s nothing wrong with a theatre trip to celebrate a milestone.

(C) Scott Edwards. Try WeightLossDietWar.com for the best diet advice on diet weight and weight loss stories.

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