Eat Well - Keep a track of your daily food intake
Cast your mind back to yesterday and the day before. Although you may (hopefully!) be able to remember what you had for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the chances are you'd struggle to list any snacks or drinks you topped up on at random times.
However, it could be this that is causing you to struggle when it comes to those few pounds you're trying to drop from your waist or hips.
According to Good Housekeeping, most people underestimate the amount they eat by ten per cent and don't even consider small things such as boiled sweets, even though they may add up to a few hundred calories over the course of a week or month.
To beat this, various experts recommend starting a food diary to keep track of everything that passes between your lips.
Recent research by the Kaiser Permanente Centre for Health Research found that such a log was the single best predictor of whether a participant would drop weight and keep it off, with those that kept one losing up to double the amount of pounds over six months than their counterparts who did not.
There's a good incentive to give one a try - but how should you go about it?
Lyndel Costain of BBC Health suggested getting hold of a small notebook that you can keep about your personal life all day, every day.
Set out columns to record everything you eat as you go (and at what time) so you don't forget anything - and make sure you are honest, he warned.
"It can also help to make a note of any thoughts or feelings linked to eating, especially if you find you often eat for comfort or when you're not actually hungry," the expert added.
You should also note down when you exercise and for how long. All this information can then be looked over at the end of the week to provide details about if, when and why you might be eating too much.
Mr Costain said this makes it easier to deal with problem areas.
"They give you a basis from which to plan changes and set goals and allow you to look back and see what you've changed over time. This can be very motivating," he pointed out.
If you find you're being particularly well behaved after starting your food diary, you could even set up your own gold star reward system to provide a treat every so often.
However, it could be this that is causing you to struggle when it comes to those few pounds you're trying to drop from your waist or hips.
According to Good Housekeeping, most people underestimate the amount they eat by ten per cent and don't even consider small things such as boiled sweets, even though they may add up to a few hundred calories over the course of a week or month.
To beat this, various experts recommend starting a food diary to keep track of everything that passes between your lips.
Recent research by the Kaiser Permanente Centre for Health Research found that such a log was the single best predictor of whether a participant would drop weight and keep it off, with those that kept one losing up to double the amount of pounds over six months than their counterparts who did not.
There's a good incentive to give one a try - but how should you go about it?
Lyndel Costain of BBC Health suggested getting hold of a small notebook that you can keep about your personal life all day, every day.
Set out columns to record everything you eat as you go (and at what time) so you don't forget anything - and make sure you are honest, he warned.
"It can also help to make a note of any thoughts or feelings linked to eating, especially if you find you often eat for comfort or when you're not actually hungry," the expert added.
You should also note down when you exercise and for how long. All this information can then be looked over at the end of the week to provide details about if, when and why you might be eating too much.
Mr Costain said this makes it easier to deal with problem areas.
"They give you a basis from which to plan changes and set goals and allow you to look back and see what you've changed over time. This can be very motivating," he pointed out.
If you find you're being particularly well behaved after starting your food diary, you could even set up your own gold star reward system to provide a treat every so often.
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