Food Journaling: Are You Missing Out on The Best Tool for Healthy Eating?

We get asked a lot about food journaling: should you be doing it, how exactly, how long to do it, what’s it for?  Time to answer all those questions (and more), so you can decide for yourself if food journaling for you.

What is a food journal?

A food journal, or food diary, is a daily log of what you are eating and drinking throughout the day.  It’s a great way for you to reflect back on what you ate and your overall eating patterns over the past few days, weeks, or months. 

It is a very simple tool (we love simple!) for you to use.  Together with the support of your team (hey, it’s me, your dietitian!), the food journal is one of the tools used to help you with healthy eating.  We as dietitians like the food journal or diary method to help us grasp an understanding of not only what you are eating, but when, how much, and why (that’s a big one- the why).

Why might you want to keep a food journal?

There are so many good reasons to keep a food journal.  Let me mention, there is another tool called a Food Recall, where we just talk through the past several days of eating while the client “recalls” what they had, but that relies on memory, and I don’t know if I could tell you what I had for breakfast this morning, let alone the past few days, so it’s not as reliable as a food journal.  The food journal allows you to do it when it’s most convenient for you and is much more detailed and accurate than a food recall. Some examples of those who we have suggested food diaries or journals include clients who want to:

•         Practicing mindful eating– This allows the person to journal not only what- but WHY they are eating and identify patterns.  For example- someone who always has an afternoon snack might be surprised to find that they’re not hungry- they’re stressed and turning to food for comfort- so we can discuss other options to destress that don’t involve food.
•         Gain or lose weight– Portion size is key here, sometimes clients say a “small” handful of nuts when it’s actually closer to ½ a cup (and those calories can add up- in a good way or bad way depending on what you want) or perhaps it’s just a matter of memory- some people don’t realize how often they’re grabbing a handful of M&M’s from the pantry each week, or missing a meal.
•         Identify food sensitivities or intolerances– This is a biggie- and one of the best ways to find what foods bother someone.  We’ll ask the client to write down what they ate and how they felt after.  The quantities and the feelings afterward are what we’re really looking at.  Food sensitivities are a huge thing.  They are NOT an allergy, so the reactions, timing, duration can all vary person to person and writing it down is the best way to spot trends.
•         Increase a specific food group– It’s really great when someone keeps an honest food journal for a week or 2.  If they eat normally (NOT trying to be “good”, that doesn’t help us) we can identify room for improvement, usually in the fruit and veggie category, but it could be protein or healthy fats…. Depends on the person:)
•         Navigating migraines or reflux– Here we’re looking for trigger foods. Similar to food sensitivities, but we already know the symptom we’re looking for- like a migraine or acid reflux.  And reflux is even more interesting, because a lot of people think it’s spicy food, but it’s more likely a food like chocolate, mint, or alcohol.  OR portion size- but this can all be identified through….you guessed it…a food journal!

Where should I keep my food journal?

Food journals can be kept on a sheet of loose leaf on your bedside table, a nice notebook or in an app on your phone.  There really are no rules and should be used in a way that is most convenient to you.  You can write it down after you eat, or wait till the end of the day.  Be sure to be consistent, writing the same information each time, and detailed.  

Is there anything else I should add to my journal besides what I eat and drink?

It’s all in the details!  Depending on why you are keeping a food journal, you might not need to write down every single thing mentioned here, these topics are just some of the things you might be asked to include in your food journal, but we customize based on the client:

•         Who you are eating with (Alone? With family?)
•         Are distractions present (Are you watching TV? Are you on your phone while eating? Are you reading a book? Are you working during lunch?)
•         Is your meal home cooked vs. take out vs. at a restaurant?
•         Portion sizes (3 blueberries do not count as a serving of fruit, but a cup of pasta is considered 2 servings…)
•         Beverages (Did you drink enough water? What are your sources of liquids? A lot of caffeine? People often forget about beverages…)
•         Don’t forget about condiments (sauce on your chicken, ketchup on your eggs and sugar in your coffee can add up! Not to mention salad dressing….)
•         Physical activity (Did you walk after dinner or lay down? Were you really active and extra hungry? Did you fuel properly before and or after?)
•         Mood (Were you happy when eating or emotional eating (If you missed last week’s blog on emotional eating- click here to check it out)

• Hunger level (Before, during, after)

•         Symptoms (do you have stomach pain after eating? Does your head hurt? Bloated? Etc.)

What does an example of a food journal look like?

Here’s an example of a day in my shoes if I completed an entry in a food journal:  

This is helpful for a basic nutrition assessment (aka nothing specific like food sensitivities).  Definitely could up the veggies and talk about what happened at dinner (likely over ate due to too high of a hunger level going in), possibly switch the morning snack to an afternoon snack?  Remember, this is just a snapshot, and it’s a weekday, most people don’t eat the same way on the weekend.  So a food journal minimum for us would be 3 days (2 weekday and 1 weekend), but 1-2 weeks is great!

Is there anyone who SHOULDN’T keep a food journal?

Absolutely.  Anyone with a history of eating disorders or a bad relationship with food.  This can be triggering and can do more harm than good.  Anyone trying to quit the world of dieting.  This is a big tool for dieting (calorie counting).  Maybe you’ve noticed, we never mentioned tracking calories, which is something we don’t think is necessary, but someone with a history of dieting who is trying to have a better relationship with food would not benefit from a food journal.  Anyone who doesn’t want to.  A food diary can be an added stress, and if it’s not something you want to do, it is totally NOT necessary, you never HAVE to do it.  And remember, a food journal is temporary.  It’s used to gain information and make changes.  You shouldn’t be doing it forever.

Now what do you think of food journaling?   It might be extremely helpful and you might discover ways to improve your diet on your own or with the help of your dietitian!  On the other hand, it might stress you out, you might forget, or you might not be completely honest.  So, like all things in nutrition, it depends on the client/situation.  Do you think you’d give it a try?

Cheers,