Just "watching what you eat" is not enough sometimes to lose the weight you want.  When you think you have reduced the amount you are eating and still are not seeing the pounds come off the way you would like, consider using a food journal.

Food journals can be extremely useful tools in the battle to reduce weight.  Many times we just aren't aware of the actual calorie count of what we are eating.  Food journals are great to provide you with the information you need.  They also help to keep you honest!  Write down everything you eat and drink for a couple of days, being careful to be exact about the amount (serving size) and calories. Most people are surprised they are taking in as many calories as they actually are.              

After you have a good idea about your calorie intake for the day and the week you will be better able to decide where it is that you can reduce your calories.  In order to lose one pound of fat, you need to take in 3500 fewer calories.  If you want to lose 1-2 pounds each week that means you need to reduce your daily caloric intake by 500-1000 calories. 

 As you continue on your weight loss mission, use the food journal to write down what you are eating before you actually eat it.  Waiting until the end of the day to record everything you ate in your food journal not only will not be accurate it will also be too late. 

You can find food journals (diaries) in bookstores or you can make your own.  They don't need to be complicated.  Include the following in your journal:

1.   time of day
   

2.   food and serving size
   

3.   calorie content
   

4.   (optimal) grams of fat, protein, carbohydrates, glycemic index
   

5.   total calories for the day
   

I find it useful to subtotal throughout the day so you have a running total of where you are rather than waiting until the day is done and then being surprised how many calories you ate.