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Weight Loss Secrets -- It Pays to Measure

Last week, I wrote about the basic guidelines for choosing BL foods and the importance of regular meal times and snacks. Another one of the first things The Biggest Loser contestants learn about is the importance of a food journal. Not only is it one of the key secrets to a successful weight loss plan, it's often a very loud wake-up call. Most of us eat (and drink) much more than we think....until we start recording it.

The more detailed your food journal entries are, the more accurate your calorie count for the day will be. The first thing you need to know is -- how big is a serving size? Weighing and measuring food is crucial in order to calculate an accurate number of your daily calories.

For this, you will need

a liquid measuring cup (2-cup capacity)

a set of dry measuring cups (1 cup, 1/2 cup, 1/3 cup and 1/4 cup sizes)

a set of measuring spoons (1 tablespoon, 1 teaspoon, 1/2 teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon)

food scale

calculator

calorie counter

The food scale should measure pounds and ounces as well as grams. Most measurements will be in ounces but some foods are very concentrated sources of calories so the portion sizes will be smaller (nuts are a good example of this).

There will be no more eating cereal out of mixing bowls! I recommend taking a small bowl out of the cupboard the first morning you try this. Measure your serving size of cereal (based on the nutrition facts label on the cereal package) into the bowl with a measuring cup. Take a good look at the cereal in the bowl. Next, measure the milk and then add to the bowl. Now look at the cereal with the milk added. Now you know what your serving size should look like and you won't have to measure it every day.

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