Photograph Your Meals for Weight Loss

By WLR Guest Writer, Cara Frost-Sharratt

Scientists have discovered that taking a photograph of your meal just before you are about to sit down to eat could help with weight loss.

It may sound bizarre but apparently the fact that you are concentrating solely on the food helps you to really focus on portion size. There is sufficient time to think logically about the amount on your plate and to alter it, if necessary.

Photographic Food Diary

There is also research to suggest that if this is repeated for every meal and snack, dieters can then create a visual record of eating habits and this might shock them into cutting down at mealtimes.

It is very easy to overestimate portion sizes, especially if you are hungry: another few handfuls of pasta get tossed into the pan; that extra piece of cheese is grated instead of being returned to the fridge. Photographs could really help you to keep track of what, and how much, you are eating, which can only be a good thing for health-conscious dieters.

WLR says . . .

This sounds like a really simple idea and surely it has to be worth a go.

Whilst it’s more psychological than other weight loss techniques, you could try combining it with your regular dieting methods and see if it has a positive impact when the time comes to hop on the scales.

Weight Loss Tricks

Many weight loss programmes on television use similar tactics in an attempt to shock people into rethinking their eating habits. Food consumed over a certain period is displayed and people are often genuinely shocked by the amount of food – in particular, the amount of unhealthy food – they consume.

The mere act of taking a photograph disconnects you from the meal. Theoretically, this should make you more impartial and able to look at the plate of food as an observer.

Portion Control

It’s easy to prepare and plate up your meal almost on autopilot and we become used to dishing up the same portion sizes. You know the scenario: you’re tired after a long day; you’re hungry; there’s something starting soon on the television.

Basically you just want to sit down to eat as quickly as possible. However, when looking in from the outside, you might be able to get a more realistic perspective of the size of the meal and its components.

It could provide that split-second moment of clarity when you actually stop and think before you spoon another mound of rice onto the plate.

Diet With a Friend

This doesn’t have to be a solitary activity. As with all weight loss methods, it’s great to have some friendly reassurance. Why not team up with some fellow dieters and create a photographic log over the course of a week or two? You could compare your snaps and, as well as helping you stick to your goals, it’s a great excuse for a get together.

In the age of the digital camera and the camera phone, taking photos of meals is a really quick and easy way to keep a record of your food consumption. You will soon spot your weaknesses and they will be on display for all to see.