Secret Weapon

Today I applied to join the National Weight Control Registry. I've been waiting to qualify for a whole year, and now I've finally met the minimum requirements for membership. What is it? Well, it's a long term study of the people who have lost significant amounts of weight and kept it off for a long time. (Hopefully permanently, right?) The idea is to really see what makes the difference between being a yo-yo dieter and someone who is truly successful at maintaining their weight loss.

When I first learned about it, I made it one of my goals to join the registry. After all, if I can qualify for the study, that means that I am officially considered successful at losing weight and keeping it off. The most basic requirement is that you've lost at least 30 pounds, and you've maintained that weight loss for at least a year.

Happy day! I've maintained my weight loss for a year!

Anyway, while on the subject of weight loss, I thought I'd give a shameless plug for one of my most useful tools in this journey of changing my eating. It is one of my twin secret weapons; the heavy cannon in my weight loss arsenal. What is it?

The food diary.

OK, don't roll your eyes. Or maybe you're not rolling your eyes, but I know that back in the day I used to sigh whenever somebody brought up the food diary thing. What a pain to keep track of everything you eat. How impractical when you are a harried mom. How tricky when most of what you eat is made from your own recipes (that lack a nutrition information panel).

Well, it does take a certain amount of effort, but I think it is SO worth it. I have an account on www.myfooddiary.com-- it makes keeping track of what I eat just about as easy as it could be. I've made it a rule that I can't check Facebook unless my food diary is caught up for the day, and that works pretty well as an incentive for me.

Recently, my husband decided to try out the food diary thing too. He has been anti the whole idea ever since I started, repeating in essence all the arguments against it I used to make. But it is working for him like a charm (though I help quite a bit by entering recipes that we eat and such). And so far, just by tracking what he is eating and making sure he is getting exercise, Terence is down about 16 pounds in six weeks. No dieting required. Just awareness of how much he's eating and what his choices really mean. (Isn't that incredible? I never lose weight that fast.) Our food diary subscriptions cost $9/month each, but we think it's worth it, considering what we gain in health and energy. (Not to mention that we probably save far more than that just because Terence doesn't eat out at work that often anymore, not now that he's seen just how many calories are in a fast food burger.)

Well, there's my plug for the day. So many people have asked me what I've done to lose weight, and my answer is just so simple. I've kept a food diary, and I've exercised. Don't get me wrong, it's been a lot of hard work too-- but entirely possible, even for overwhelmed moms of young kids. Just in case you are planning on one of those weight loss resolutions come January. . . .