Food Diary of a French Girl (& why you should use a food diary too)

Have you always wondered:

"What do French Women eat?"

First of all, you have to know that my diet has changed A LOT since living outside of France. Portions in Australia are significantly larger than in France. Also eating habits, type of cuisine and food available are different (read my post about the French paradox for more information on the French Diet).

While I was trying to lose a few kilos, back in November/December 2011, I started recording my food intake in a diary.

Why keeping a food diary?

A food diary is a very effective tool, because you can use it to help you determine if your current eating habits are healthy. A food diary will help you understand where your diet goes wrong. It can also help you know if you are eating enough fruits, vegetables, whole grains and healthy proteins each day and help you keep your carb-fat-protein ratios in healthy proportions.

Benefits of keeping a food diary

- Accountability: Writing everything down and seeing your daily intake increases your perception of how much you actually eat.
- Helps to truly portion out your foods: When individuals are asked to keep a food diary, they often must measure all their food for the most accurate assessment. Once individuals use more accurate methods of measurement, they have a better understanding of their overall portion distortion.

- Ties in the connections to stress, emotion, timing and location: if you record your food choices and amounts but also the time of day, location and emotional level during your meal or snack, this can help you assess how stress may be controlling your food choices.

Mademoiselle Slimalcious Food diary

I found recording everything I ate & drink in a food diary (including alcohol & caffeine consumption, as well as exercise type and duration done during the day) very useful.

My focus was to slightly diminish my dinner portion and to reduce my carbs intake on the evening. To help me keep motivated in filling out my food diary, I got into the habit of taking a photo of my daily dinner.

  

 

 

  

I eat heaps of vegetables and only small amount of meat or fish. Nutritionists advice is that your piece of meat shouldn't be bigger than the palm of your hand.

Carbs are probably my weakness, I love pasta and bread! I've switched to wholemeal to make sure I get more nutriments and fiber.  

Also you should know that:

1. I NEVER drink soft drinks type Coke, lemonade etc. I'd have a Coke Zero or Diet Coke on very rare occasions (less than once a month).
2. I consume 2 to 3 litres of water a day (as a minimum)
3. I drink several cups of green tea and peppermint tea during the day (unsweetened, no milk).
4. I drink alcohol only occasionally. While I enjoy a glass of wine with dinner, I watch out for the hidden alcohol calories!

If you have any questions or want to know more about my current diet and the results I had so far, leave me a comment!

And remember:

You don't need a personal dietitian to start a food log, all you need is the time and commitment to track everything you put in your mouth.


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