the log

Did I ever mention that once you decide to start dieting, they say you should log what you eat! I think I have mentioned that eating to me used to be going out or making whatever was available. I ate two meals a day with maybe some snacks. I did not do labels, I did not measure, and I did not count calories! It is just another thing to do. In my mind, the log that I started was pretty good. My eating schedule went from two times a day to sick times a day. That was a hard concept to deal with when I started the log. "They want me to eat more often!" Needless to say, with the log, I saw what I was eating and when. I tracked water intake as well. The time came and I turned in my proud log to my trainer for his review. "Wow! Great!" Is what I was expecting. Well, guess what! He said it was organized, but incomplete. What? How? What was I forgetting now? Since I did not specify the amount of food or calories from labels, it was hard to determine what my caloric intake was. I knew I had reduced my intake from where I was in August. But, did I reduce it too much? Was I suppose to be eating more? Was I suppose to be eating more variety of food?

I guess it boils down to that I do not know how everything works: energy you get from food, lean body mass, muscle breaking down fat, the hormones, the chemicals, the trans fat, the protein, the carbohydrates, the sugars. UUGH!!! If I became a dietitian or nutritionist, I would know all these things. Do I want to know? Well,my trainer feels it is important and explains things when I ask. He has knowledge from what he has read and experienced. I can't take what he knows and use it immediately. It is going to take me a while to digest this whole thing. If I want to change for the better and really watch what I do, I need to start reading. Who ever said that this was going to be easy?