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Many diet and fitness experts, even my favorite running coach, advise keeping a health journal to log your daily food intake and exercise. Tracking your daily regimen helps you see the gaps, problems and successes, plus your journal can help you stay motivated on your personal journeys.
I've kept one on and off, and noticed that I do much better on my training or weight management program if I stick with it. Plus, I can track my own trendlines - find consistencies in when I fall off the wagon and determine the contributing factors.
Do you keep a health journal? If not currently, have you tried? If so, have you found a particularly good one that you like?
For example, I found one at Hallmark that is nice, and small enough to toss into my bag, but doesn't have enough space for recording what I eat during the day.
Here's a free template from CNN.con Specials: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2004/resolution/
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I keep a exercise/running log, and it really does help! I find that if I track my exercise plus food, that it is too much to keep up with, and I don't write anything down after a week.
However, I have had success writing when I exercise...and this, consequently, helps me eat better on the days I'm active (so I don't have to keep a food log!).
I have tried many different journals, but found the one I keep most is on my computer...for free! I actually schedule my workouts, runs, walks with toddler (anything active for more than 30 minutes) on my calendar in purple as a meeting, a week in advance. Then, at the end of the day when I'm checking my email, I change the "meeting" to what I actually did. I have a space for what type of exercise, location, miles (or time, if walking) and notes. I love entering what I actually did to exercise...it's great to see how many times, how many miles or which parks I went to for the week!
May 3, 2008 - 7:10pmThis Comment
Alysia, No, I don't keep a health journal but I should. I think if I was responsible for actually writing down my food intake, I would be less inclined to dip into the Rum Raisin ice cream. If I had a journal, those calories would then appear in two places. Yikes! I'd be interested in learning about the other types of journals women are using. Has anyone found a journal they really like?
May 3, 2008 - 7:29amThis Comment