Food is Fuel...A Reminder - Blog #5 - SBN Samantha

Earlier in the test, we talked about the idea of food as fuel.  At its most basic level, that's exactly what it is, and it should be easy to treat it that way, right?  You only eat what you need to fuel activities such as work, school, exercise, etc.  If only it were that easy...  Like many other people, I really love eating for enjoyment, and I also stress eat, so eating only what my body needs is a constant battle.

Last week, we were asked to keep a food journal, and it definitely helped me see that I'm letting things slide more than I thought.  For example, I'm trying to cut out added sugars, but I realized that I sometimes have 2 chai and nutmilk drinks a day (as opposed to coffee), which has a small amount of added sugar in the chai mix.  While I'm getting the extra protein from the nutmilk, I'm also consuming more sugar than I really want.  Also, I still don't eat enough vegetables every day; it's more than I used to eat, but I know that eating 3-5 servings a day would be better than the 1-2 servings I'm currently getting, so I'm going to change things up to try and get the 3 servings as a minimum.

The insight I'm getting out of the food journal activity is that keeping a food journal every few weeks is a really good way to evaluate whether you are on track with nutrition goals.  Since March, I have lost 10 pounds and 3% body fat, which is a great accomplishment.  However, I still have 6.5% to go before I hit my goal of 30%.  The food journal has helped me realize where I need to make some changes to get closer to that goal.

At this point, I'm not sure if I'll get to 30% by the end of the test, as losing body fat gets harder as you have less of it, but I do know that I will be closer than I am now...as long as I make some more changes and stay focused.