Failing to Keep My Calories Below 3,000 a Day, But Still Losing Weight

To get my weight down from my current 230 to 210, I started keeping a daily food journal with the intent of not letting my daily calories intake rise above 3,000. First the good news. A week since I started recording everything I eat, I’ve lost 4 pounds. Now the bad news. Not once have I kept my calories at 3,000 or lower.  For the last seven days, the range has been between 3,200 and 3,500. In spite of the pep talk I had with myself in which I said that keeping my daily intake at 3,000 or lower was “easy,” I’ve thus far proven that it’s not easy. Food is everywhere and I’m constantly hungry. What’s so easy about that?

But the fact remains, I’ve lost 4 pounds. This weight-loss suggests two things: I must have been eating close to 4,000 calories a day without the scrutiny that accompanies writing down every morsel of food that enters my mouth. Knowing what I’m eating results in less eating. The research supports my individual success. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine published a study that shows that dieters who keep a daily journal lose twice as much weight as those who only keep a weekly journal. Being mindful of what one eats is a huge difference-maker.

I don’t mind the hassle so much, but I wouldn’t want to be on vacation in Miami or some place and have strangers observe me writing down my food intake.  I’m not particularly keen on being perceived as a narcissist or someone who needs a crutch like a daily food journal, but it’s worth the price if I can get to my target weight of 210.

The second thing my weight-loss suggests is that, hopefully, I can lose weight around the 3,200 calorie mark. Those extra 200 calories are huge for a man who’s constantly hungry. Perhaps my 5 to 6 days a week of power yoga with the high-rep medicine ball and dumbbell exercises is burning enough calories for this small calorie bonus.

 But still I like the idea of keeping my calories under 3,000. That number has become a boundary, a symbol of discipline and control in a world of reckless excess. My goal to stay under 3,000 therefore must remain.

 

Comments

[kr]

okay, jeff old internet buddy, i'm going to emulate you and start writing everything down i eat.. especially now that we are going into fall in a month or two, with less physical activity outside. thanks for the push!

[jeffrey McMahon]

The American Journal study shows that the mere act of writing everything down resulted in losing 13 pounds in six months. Because I exercise vigorously, I'm hoping for 20 pounds shed.

Best luck to you. I'm going to do the food journal for a year.

[Cyril]

Good luck with your weight loss and congratulations for getting already 20% of your goal in the first week.

Wrt food journal, I hear that the mere fact of having to write down everything often deters from eating.

Although for somebody who likes writing this may actually work the other way! ;-)

[jeffrey McMahon]

The journal helps and a major study supports that claim. Thanks for the encouragement.