Oftentimes we get stymied in our weight loss because we don’t realize how much food we are consuming throughout the day. Using a food diary is an effective way to keep tabs on our diet. Research shows that people who keep a food diary are more likely to lose weight than those who do not.

US researchers working on a study comparing approaches to weight loss, found that keeping a food diary can double weight loss as part of a managed programme; they said that the more food records they kept, the more weight the participants lost.

Also when you write down everything that goes into your mouth, you’ll think twice before reaching into the community candy bowl at work. These subtle changes to your diet will help you to shed the extra weight for good.

Calculate your daily caloric needs to figure out what you need to get to your goal weight. Use this food journal to keep track of your meals.