Few things are as frustrating as a weight loss plateau. If youโre unsure why weight isnโt moving, it can help to consider the following three questions:
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๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐
๐จ๐จ๐ ๐๐ข๐๐ซ๐ฒ? You probably remember what you ate for breakfast yesterday, but what about lunch 3 days ago? Well, that might be a little harder to recall. We often think we have a good handle on what weโre eating, but itโs hard to be sure unless weโre keeping some kind of record. Perhaps itโs not surprising then that research suggests those who keep food logs are significantly more likely to reach and maintain their weight and health related goals.
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๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ? If you think youโre good at eyeballing portions, think again! Studies show that we consistently underestimate portion by at least 20% and itโs a phenomenon that affects almost everyone. Is that piece of meat four ounces or five? Is the dollop of cream in your coffee one tablespoon or three? These portions are visually very similar yet those small differences can add up to several hundred calories over the course of a day.
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๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ค ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฑ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ฌ? The mayo on your sandwich, the two-bite brownie at work, the specialty coffee in afternoonโฆ While each item individually may seem like a rather insignificant source of calories, they still count. Consider that using one tablespoon of olive oil when cooking will add 120 calories to a meal, and itโs easy to see how these little extras can contribute more than we think. If we donโt track them, weโre likely to wind up with an inaccurate picture of our overall intake.