#2017MonthlyChallenge Linky – #FoodDiaryMonth Wk 1

#2017MonthlyChallenge

Welcome to the first Linky of the 2017 Monthly Challenge – this month is FoodDiaryMonth. For those of you not familiar with the #2017Monthly Challenge – you can see all the monthly themes here. You can join at any time – each linky is open for 7 days starting at 7am Sundays and will close as the following week’s linky opens. If you aren’t a blogger you can still join in by sharing updates on Instagram or twitter using the hashtag #2017monthlychallenge.

The idea behind this month’s challenge is to log your intake of food and drink to gain a better understanding of your diet and where it needs to be improved. I already know a lot of where my food intake is going wrong – and this hasn’t been helped by the amount of Quality Street I consumed over Christmas!! Having done a food diary once before, I find that even the art of writing down what I have consumed is quite effective in making me feel guilty and enticing me to eat better!

Here’s how my first week has gone!

I am using the My Fitness Pal to track my food. I am not affiliated with the app in anyway, but just find it really easy to use. The app allows you to log all the foods you consume, either by searching from well known products and brands, or by using the scan barcode facility. This is great for pre packaged foods as it allows the calories & fat content etc to be entered automatically.

Using the app, I entered my current weight and advised how much I wanted to lose, and explained that my current activity level is only lightly active – largely due to the fact I only recently got back to walking again (See Baby Steps Post Section) and that I seem to spend most of my day glued to the sofa breast feeding.

In order to lose 2lb a week the app suggested a calorie intake of just 1200 calories which I know is low. I have added an extra 350 calories to this because I am feeding, and do not want to affect my milk supply!

Overall, I have found the week challenging! I seem to be thinking about food ALL the time, but the fact I have to record everything that passes my lips does make me think twice before I eat something. I also don’t like the app to show a minus figure, and prefer to have calories left at the end of the day. The best part? You can effectively ‘earn’ calories by doing exercise – which is quite the incentive to move more! We have been on a couple of walks this week at the National Trust, and the fresh air has been great for all of us. We have now joined, and home to get out and about in their gardens as much as possible as part of my exercise routine!

By using the Food Diary, I have already made some food swaps, as quite frankly I didn’t feel that they were ‘worth’ the calories. We have swapped our white bread for wholemeal, and I am having cereal more often for breakfast as this has a lower calorie count. I am having more vegetables with my dinner and when I crave sugar, having some natural yoghurt or fruit.

I have noticed that my water consumption is pretty abysmal and I am drinking FAR too much lemonade. Although its diet variety and therefore low in calories, it can’t be good for me, so as the weeks go on I will try and swap this for water.

Have I been completely angelic? No, not at all – but the quantities of naughties are FAR less. I have had an occasional packet of crisps and a couple of sweets here and there, and there was a “eating jelly beans in the car” moment – but that less said about this the better! (I’m not proud!!) The naughties I have had though have been within my calories and therefore feel relatively guilt free. Friday was my worst day as we went out for a pub lunch, but I am not going to beat myself up.

The real test, I guess, will be at weigh in tonight. I am weighing myself weekly during the #2017MonthlyChallenge – I will share the outcome (good or bad!) next week!

How has your first week gone?

The #2017MonthlyChallenge Linky is now open! You can add your own links to the #2017MonthlyChallenge posts Linky below – I look forward to reading how you have all found Week 1!! 🙂 If you haven’t been taking part up till now,  its not too late to join, your first post can be about why you plan to take part going forwards! 🙂

Don’t forget to add the #2017MonthlyChallenge Badge to your posts using the code from my Linky Introductory Post , and please comment on others posts to share the love and support others on their challenge!

I look forward to reading your posts!

Lucy x