Tip #5: Food budget

It's super important to have a "budget" of sorts when it comes to how much food you should be eating and how much food you really ARE eating. It's very similiar to a financial budget. You wouldn't go through life just spending money on anything and everything you wanted without making sure you had enough money set aside for bills, food, gas, etc... right?? Can you imagine "accidentally" spending all of your money for the month and not having any left for food for your family (assuming you have no credit cards)? The same concept is true with regards to eating. If you go through life eating whatever you want, having no clue the caloric cost of that food, then you will continue to gain weight and be overweight. It's imperative that you have a budget with your eating just like you have a budget for your money! And just like budgeting with money, you CAN still enjoy spending on fun things you enjoy - but only if you are a good steward with your money. Similiarly, you can eat foods you enjoy - but only if you are a good steward with your food choices throughout the week!!!

Weight Watchers uses a "point system" by which every type of food has a points value attached to it. The points value is calculated by using the number of calories, grams of fat and grams of fiber for each food. You are given the number of points you can eat each day in order to lose weight - this amount is based on your current height, weight, current activity level, etc.. As you lose weight, the number of points you can consume a day is reduced by one point (DARN!). If you chose not to do Weight Watchers, I would suggest counting calories. There are many amazing websites that tell you how many calories you should be consuming if you are trying to lose weight. These websites also contain a HUGE database for the number of calories associated with each food - even restaurant food! I encourage you to choose a method by which to become knowledgable about the "cost" of each food you are putting in your mouth. In addition, become knowledgable about how much you should be eating in order to lose weight. Then commit to tracking this every single day to ensure you are not overeating!! It's the worth the time and it's worth the effort!!! This was THE NUMBER ONE KEY to my weight loss!!!