Do You Keep Track of Your Fitness?

Studies show that people who keep track of what they eat or how much exercise they get are more successful in weight reduction and other health goals such as diabetic control and cholesterol reduction.

I have generally avoided the homework aspect of writing down calories, reading labels and such but have recently discovered an online helper that may make it easier and kind of fun.

I went to www.fitday.com and registered a user name and password to start using their free calorie counter and diet journal. FitDay is an online commercial site with promotional ads and offers for advanced weight loss software. However you can use their free logs and keep track of calories, fat, carbohydrates and protein in your diet.

A word of caution is needed here. Commercial sites such as FitDay may advertise quick weight-loss programs that you are well-advised to avoid. What comes off quickly will probably not stay off and some can be harmful. Check with your health care provider before starting an advertised weight-reduction program.

I clicked on FitDay’s Free Calorie Counter and Diet Journal and entered what I ate for breakfast this morning. I simply entered each food item in their food search and it automatically added the calories, fat, carbs and protein in an easy-to-read table with totals at the bottom. I learned that eating a half banana, one egg, and two pancakes with two tablespoons of syrup netted me 328 calories, 9 grams of fat, 56 grams of carbohydrates and 8.9 grams of protein.

Sadly, I fear I have already eaten close to my daily allotment of fat and carbs if I want to reduce my weight and cholesterol. I’d better rethink my taste for pancakes and increase my fruits for sure. Maybe I’ll do better with fat-free vanilla yoghurt topped with high-fiber cereal and a whole banana tomorrow.

Another feature of the site I like is a weight tracker. I entered my desired weight loss figuring myhealthvillage’s recommended 5% reduction over six months and can now log in my weight each month or so to see how I’m doing. My fitness log will be easy to locate in my favorites list whenever I turn on my computer.

I probably won’t need to continually track what I eat once I learn the various components of the foods I now eat. As I log in my food journal I’ll learn what kinds and amounts of food I can keep on my menu, which ones I should limit and which ones I should increase.

Wish this carbohydrate junkie good luck.