Çá~êó. Your food diary. Completing your diary

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1 Food and feelings Çá~êó Your food diary Why keep a diary? People who monitor their behaviour by keeping a food and feelings diary are much more likely to succeed in changing that behaviour. This diary is to help you to become more aware of what you do, together with some of the reasons why. Try to keep your records as accurate as you can. The more accurate they are, the more likely you are to succeed in changing your eating behaviour. Completing your diary Keep your diary every day to help you to find out exactly what, how, when and why you eat and what triggers you to limit your eating or overeat. Make a note of everything you eat and drink, the time and place you ate, how hungry you were, and how you were feeling at the time. Don t complete the entire day s diary in the evening do it as you go along. You will get much more out of keeping a diary doing it this way. Don t worry if you always eat the same things the aim is to examine your usual eating habits, thoughts and feelings. Food and drink Jot down everything you eat and drink through the day, don t leave anything out however small it may seem. Record the type of food you have eaten, e.g. skimmed milk or semi-skimmed milk, and the way the food was cooked e.g., grilled, boiled, etc. Judge the amount of food eaten using basic measures, e.g., number of slices, tablespoons or cupfuls. Feelings Use the feelings column to record any thoughts or feelings that you were having before and after eating, or anything that upsets you, or makes you feel sad or angry. Don t worry if you don t know what you are thinking or feeling, leave the column blank. Doing this will help you to unravel some of the underlying reasons for your eating behaviour, and to plan ways of adapting it. It can be easier and is particularly helpful to recognise and understand your thoughts and feelings around times when you feel your eating has gone wrong.

2 Example of how to complete your diary Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time 7.30am Food and drink How much and what type? 2 medium slices of white bread and butter (spread thin). Cup of tea, full fat milk and one sugar How I felt before eating Bit rushed. Otherwise OK. 9.15am Cup of tea full fat milk and 1 sugar 10.30am Danish pastry Stressed and irritable noon Chicken salad: chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, peppers, cucumber, onion. No dressing. Can of diet coke OK 3.15pm 5:15pm 7:30pm Cup of tea Raided fridge! 2oz cheese, cold roast chicken (2 slices), 2 glasses apple juice. Chicken Pie, 2 tbsp peas, 2 tbsp carrots, glass of water, mini trifle Tired, stressed, Hungry!!! Out of control Tired, still more relaxed 9:30pm 3 digestives. Cup of tea Looking forward to a sit down 9:45pm 2 packets chip sticks, cup of tea Feel like today is a write off! 10:00pm Rest of packet of digestives, 2 slices toast with butter and jam. No point in trying anymore. Style of eating Use this column to describe how you ate. Log where you were, whether you were sitting or standing up, who were you with? Did you eat quickly or savour your food, did you eat directly from the packet or from a plate? Were you doing anything else while eating e.g. driving, working, watching TV, reading? Describing your eating behaviour in this way is extremely useful in helping you to find ways of making dietary changes.

3 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise) Standing in kitchen getting kids drinks Pleased I had breakfast today At Desk At desk while working Bit guilty Canteen, with colleagues OK. Still wish I hadn t had pastry Desk, office busy Kitchen, standing by fridge alone. Wolfed it down quickly Really annoyed with myself. Why did I do it? Kitchen table, with family Didn t really enjoy that still wish I hadn t pigged out earlier Kitchen, standing alone Feel guilty, shouldn t have eaten those In front of TV with husband What a mess, start again tomorrow Yes In kitchen, quickly so no-one would see Fat, need to get rid of it. Yes Made self sick Binge Use this column to indicate whether you felt your eating was a binge. Other Use this column to note down any actions you took to compensate for what you had eaten e.g. vomiting, laxatives or exercise.

4 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

5 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

6 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

7 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

8 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

9 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

10 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

11 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

12 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

13 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

14 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

15 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

16 Food and feelings diary Day: Date: Time Food and drink How much and what type? How I felt before eating

17 How I ate (Where? Sitting or standing? What speed? With company? While watching TV etc?) How I felt after eating Binge Yes/No Other (vomit, laxatives, exercise)

18 Reviewing your food and feelings diary Writing down everything you eat will help you become more aware of your current habits. However, it is important to use this information to plan changes. To do this you need to review your diary regularly. Plan a fixed time to do this, so that reviewing your diary becomes a habit. Be positive! Congratulate yourself for the things you have achieved, rather than giving yourself a hard time about the areas that need further work. Use support! A close friend or member of your family may notice patterns that you don t and will be good to bounce ideas off when you are planning further changes. They are also an important source of encouragement (not nagging). Things to consider: Have you been recording your food intake accurately? Are you sure you are recording absolutely everything? Is anything getting in the way of accurate recording? Are you recording at the time or waiting until later? Have you been reviewing your progress every week? Check your eating pattern Does it vary markedly from one day to the next? Are there any periods of eating very little? Do you eat regular meals and snacks i.e. every four hours or so? Do you eat enough at meal times, or are you hungry again within the next hour or so? Review your choice of food and drink? Are you eating a balanced diet? Do you have a good portion of starchy carbohydrate at each meal? Are you including adequate amounts of fruit and vegetables? Do you have a very narrow food choice or a number of banned foods? Write a list of all the foods that you have banned. What about your portion sizes? Look at how you eat Do you eat rapidly or savour your food? Do you plan what you are going to have in advance? Do you eat direct from packets or do you sit down with a plate, knife and fork? Do you eat in conjunction with other activities such as working, watching TV, driving or reading? Consider the role of hunger Are you feeling hungry? (Some hunger is a good sign but being over-hungry can make you vulnerable to episodes of over-eating). Are you eating at regular intervals throughout the day? Are you eating sufficient amounts at mealtimes?

19 In which situations are you most likely to overeat? Are you prone to stress-related eating? Are you liable to eat when bored, tired or lonely? Do you frequently use food as a treat to yourself? Does black and white thinking (i.e., having strict dietary rules instead of flexible guidelines) lead to periods of overeating? Are there any other noticeable patterns to your eating habits? What steps could you take in future to help you move towards a healthier eating pattern? Are you compensating for eating (vomiting, laxatives, exercise)? Your dietitian or therapist is available to talk to you about the risks of these behaviours. Notes: A4L063 (BED/AA/0215) Review: February