Dear Diary.....

How have the first couple days been?  Are you finding it tough to get all your new habits completed during the day?  One thing that will help is to keep a food log. I know it's cliche, but it's true!  Keeping track of your food can help you both remember what you have eaten (that quick Snickers snack at 2pm) or have not eaten (all the veggies you're supposed to get) to keep you on track.  It makes you consciously think about what you place in your mouth.  You don't necessarily have to track calories, but it can be helpful if you've never done it before (you would be surprised what some things "cost" you in calories!).  Just the act of writing all your food down will make you more aware.

Here are a few things to consider about keeping a food log:

1. Go digital!  There are so many online logs out there now, and many have a whole library of food items already entered by other users.  This makes it as easy as select and add so that all the calorie counting is done for you.  One I've recently started using after several referrals (and I LOVE how easy it is) is www.myfitnesspal.com.  There are apps for Droid, iPhone, and iPad, so keeping your food logged is just a click away!  Another one I've used before is MyDailyPlate at www.livestrong.com. 
2. Include EVERYTHING! (even the two extra brownies you scarfed down after swearing you would only have a bite, and then deciding that as long as you've had one, you might as well splurge, but maybe you can just write down that you had ONE brownie so that you don't have to be honest that you just ate the caloric equivalent of a three course meal in the matter of 45 seconds, and since you made sure to do it after your husband went to bed, there are no witness anyway small, completely acceptable treats you may have from time to time). After you do this for a couple weeks, start trying to find a trend in how you are feeling at a certain time of day and what you may be eating to trigger that.  If you keep close enough track, it makes correcting it or finding substitutes in your eating that much easier.  Once you have some consistent logs, I'm happy to take a look if you're interested.
3. Be realistic about your portion size, and record that as well.  This will help with noticing improvement over time with portion control, as well as help with identifying any trends in how you feel throughout the day.
4. Track your water consumption as well....lots of the online trackers include an entry area for water specifically.
5. If you're using an online tracker, they will often calculate your caloric needs based on the information you enter into your profile. Don't completely depend on these!  They can under or over estimate depending on your actual exercises being performed, and the nutritional value of the food you're eating.  Also, the exercises to choose from may overestimate the calories you burned, so it could have you eating too much.  Bottom line, listen to your body.  Make sure you're eating good quality food with lots of vegetables.  If you're still starving, your intake may need adjusted.