Have you ever sat down with a bag of chips, swearing to eat just a few and by the end of your favorite movie find that you inhaled the entire bag? Or opened the jar of peanuts to find it mostly empty and you don’t remember where they went?

This happens all too often, mindless eating that fills us with calories and harms our health. And often, it happens beyond our conscious awareness. Scary, huh?

That’s why keeping a food diary can help you learn a lot about yourself in terms of what, and how much, you eat. Tracking the food that you eat helps you avoid unconscious eating and makes you more aware of what you put in your mouth. In fact, research shows that keeping a food diary will help you not only lose weight but keep the weight off once it’s gone!

As you track your meals and snacks, pay attention to the nutritional breakdown of the foods and drinks you’ve eaten each day – including calories, protein, carbohydrates, and fat. It is important to keep track of not only what you eat but also when and how much. In your diary, write down everything you eat throughout the day and record the time of day. And don’t forget to include your beverages. Many a 1,000 calories have been consumed by drink alone. Also keep up with water intake so you can know if you are staying well hydrated, or not. You will likely be surprised how often you find yourself eating –and drinking – something during the day!

It’s also a good idea to jot down your mood at the time that you began eating. Where you stressed out, sad or even happy? Log your mood next to the food items and then start looking for patterns to emerge regarding why you are eating when you do. For example, as you track what and when you eat, you may see that you are snacking out of boredom or habit, even when you are not really hungry.

You can use any type of notebook or diary to track your food consumption. Some people use their calendar as their journal or online software with tracking tools. Remember that it doesn’t have to be anything fancy, it just need to be used routinely. The main thing is that you consciously keep track of everything that goes in your mouth.

And also remember that your weight loss program does not just consist of what, how often and how much you eat. It also requires that you make a conscious choice to change the life-long habits that got you unhealthy to begin with. Keeping a food diary to track your food intake is simply the first step in recognizing what your current eating habits are so that you can course correct as necessary. This will assist you greatly in being successful and in adopting the habits necessary to maintain your amazingly healthy new body for the rest of your life.