How Do I Stay on Track With Eating Healthy?

The Tracking Trick That Worked

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Jenny Sugar

I needed a way to keep myself accountable, and that's when a fellow CrossFitting buddy gave me a tip: track your food the night before. It sounded so simple. I've tracked my food during the day before, but that never worked for a few reasons: I'd just end up noshing on food without plugging it in, or I'd accidentally consume my daily calories by 3 p.m. (and still end up eating dinner). Other times, I'd ~~conveniently~~ forget to log what I ate because I often wouldn't write it down until that night (oops, forgot about that postlunch brownie!). I thought it couldn't hurt to try this method of tracking my food before I ate it.

So that evening, I opened up the MyFitnessPal app and planned out what I was going to eat the next day. I logged my lunchtime kale, tofu, chickpea, and avocado salad, my maple cumin lentils over spaghetti squash dinner, and a couple of snacks.

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Why It Worked

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Jenny Sugar

Knowing what I was going to eat all day offered me the accountability I needed. It not only helped me stay on track with the meals I had planned, but it also helped prevent me from reaching for unplanned foods or eating more than I said I would.

I was able to choose the healthy foods I was truly excited about eating, and that helped me feel more freedom and joy, instead of just eating the random leftovers in the fridge just because they were there. Keeping my day more balanced was also a result, because I could see ahead of time if I was getting enough protein or not enough fiber.

I was inspired to measure out my foods for accuracy, which made me realize I was eating way more peanut butter on my apple than I thought I was (all those little extra bites add up!). I felt this comforting sense of control over my cravings and my hunger, and it helped me eat more mindfully. It also made me feel good about treats because they were planned out.

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Will I Keep Doing It?

Image Source: Getty / martin-dm

I tracked my food the night before for two weeks, and now it's become part of my nighttime routine. It's way easier to track it all at once, and being big into plans and routines, I love having all my meals and snacks already mapped out. So not only is my lunch already made, but I can also start prepping for tomorrow's dinner.

Tracking my food the night before takes the guesswork out of figuring out my daily calories and macros on the fly. It just simplifies my eating in a way that has improved my relationship with food. I actually find that I think about food less often throughout the day and stress less about what to eat or what not to eat.

Science backs this up, too, as a recent study shows tracking your food can help lead to weight loss. They recommend tracking throughout the day, which adds up to about 23 minutes, but I found if I took under 10 minutes each night, that was enough! If you have issues with overeating or constantly fall off your healthy eating plan, this little tracking tip could be just the thing you need.

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