Keeping track of what i eat....

[becky]

I had my prenatal check today and i still haven't gained a pound. Actually from my first prenatal check 4 months ago I'm down 2 pounds. That said, my doc wants me to keep track of everything I eat and if i dont gain anything in two weeks then he wants to see me.

Anyone have any ideas what would be the best way to keep a record of my food? Has anyone ever done this before?

Help Please

[daisydoc]

I ahd to do it for a nutrition class in college. I just designated a small notebook for it. I would put the say/sate at the top and then list what I ate one item at a time. We had to keep track of carbs, fats, sat. fats, calories etc. The hardest part was remembering to write down what I ate right after I did it! Trying to remember it all at the end of the day was difficult!

[becky]

my doc didn't say how specific he wanted me to track my food so i thought about just listing it as this is what i ate for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. I have never done this before.

[daisydoc]

If they weren't specific I would just write down what you ate during the day... but the most important part is to keep track of the amount you ate. Example:
Eggs, Bacon Toast

Better - 2 eggs scrambled, 2 pieces Bacon, 1 slice of toast with butter and jelly.

Being specific about "portion" size will make a difference in being able to see if you're eating enough calories.

[becky]

okay thanks Anna.
Here is what i have for today then:
Breakfast: bowl of wheat chex with 2% milk
Lunch: In-N-Out double double, fries and a coke
Snack: Yoplate(sp?) Cherry Yogart, bowl of chips and salsa and 1 Fruit Juice popcicle, Glass of Iced Tea

I think my snack turned into dinner though. Ate it at like 7pm after i got up from my nice long nap.

[daisydoc]

Great start Becky! Now just try to fine-tune it. Check the side of the cereal box and guess if your bowl was approx. 1 serving or 2... or 1 1/2. And about how much milk did you use... like 1 cup or two. Do the same for the chips... look at what the company says is 1 serving and just appromiate how many sevrings you think you had. And if you really want to be thurough (sp?) list the total calories per serving so you can add up the calories at the end of the day b/c that's what the doc will mainly be looking at... is your total calories/day. I think I may still have a spread sheet for keeping track. If you want me to see if I still have it let me know.

[becky]

that would be great. I never had an issue where i had to track callories so this is all new. I have a feeling i'm not eating enough but i'm not that hungery.

[daisydoc]

I never had that issue with either pregnancy but a friend of mine did. I think too that doing your business and taking care of Kayla and Myah keeps you so busy you forget to eat. I think that had happened to all of us before. I'll see if I can find the spread sheet for you.

As a nutrition tip... try eating things that are high in good fats... nuts, avocado, whole milk, wholemilk yogurts, whole milk ice creams, etc... The higher fat content in these will help you gain weight without turning your diet into total junk food!

[becky]

you might be right about being too busy. I nver really thought about it that way.

I do have a peanut butter sandwhich most mornings (I love PB&J) but i can't do the whole milk thing. My stomach just can't handle that much milk fat. I can do the reg ice cream though.

when i dont have PB&J then i will make hashbrowns (one-two med potatoes) and 2-4 egg whites depending on how hungery I am.

[daisydoc]

can you do soy? it's higher in good fats. why only egg whites? is it a taste thing or allergy thing? if not try doing the whole egg. The bulk of the fats are in the yolk.

[daisydoc]

couldn't find my old spread sheet (did it on the old computer and can't find the disk I saved it on) so I just made up a new one real quick. I'll email it to you.

[Lynette]

I had to track what I ate when I got gestational diabetes with Alaina in the end to see how it related to my blood sugar levels. Big PITA and I forgot most days so I would sit in the parking lot before my appts and make stuff up because my levels were fine <g>

Sounds like you are doing a good job though, the doc probably just wants to make sure you aren't skipping meals or eating salad all the time.

[becky]

i was really honest with him today and even told him that i have been eating alot of "junk" like pizza and cake becuase of the birthday's. I also mentioned that we have had several days of heavy pasta. I'm not a big salad eater so i dont know what's up with the weight.

[becky]

can you do soy? it's higher in good fats. why only egg whites? is it a taste thing or allergy thing? if not try doing the whole egg. The bulk of the fats are in the yolk.
I dont do soy (personal thing) and only the egg white becuase of taste. My grandma used to make us eat over easy eggs as a kid so much that it became something i dredded. Now i can't stand the taste so i jsut stay with egg white. I will eat the whole egg if its scrambled or in an omlett but not by itself. Again bad memories of grandma.

[KaisaG]

I emailed you a food journal that I had as well... I copied it and blew it up first so it wouldn't be so small for you. This one might help make sure that you have a "well-rounded" diet...

I don't blame you for not doing soy... I can't stand the after taste.