Bargain Travel Agency

In the early 90’s it was seen that the capital had no exact approach of advocating & rating American restaurants. An idea was forecasted to create a review book which would be overflowing with superb London eateries including American restaurants plus a range of charges. The food guide would be in the size of a undersized pocket food book and it would make it simple to carry everywhere with you. Planning an event is easy with caterers from Hardens.

What makes the restaurant guides so unusual and diverse from any other publication is the fact that they are recommended by normal individuals, not skilful food reviewers. Following the achievement of the food guide, later followed the achievement of the review website, The food review website itself will tell you anything you need to consider about pretty much each and every vegetarian restaurants in London, it’s uncomplicated to navigate around & has a good search area where you just have to put in the name of the steak restaurants & what area it is in and it will find it for you.

The restaurant review website itself has three separate sections in all, the capital Restaurants, British Isles eateries & Venues & Parties. the English capital and Great Britain restaurants are pretty self explanatory, spots & parties is a piece that offers venue & service hire.

Parties & Events is all based on struggling to make organising a party or an event as easy as possible. the restaurants have options to help you with everything along with offers on what Harden’s know will work well & added extras. The 1st sub sector is the venue finder, with this all one would have to do is enter your city & the venue capacity that would suit you & it can often bring up all the venues and houses. There is also a services searcher so if one would are looking for London Caterers to cater your corporate event then maybe Hardens is currently able to make offers for you. Other options consist of corporate event entertainment, food and drink, florists and other essentials.

Looking for an easy way to increase your business
deductions? Look no further than your driveway.

First, the general rule: your vehicle is deductible to
the extent you use it for business.

So, if you drive your car 100% for business, all car-
related expenses are deductible.

But if you use it less than 100% for business, do not
despair. Less-than-100% use is very typical among
small business owners and the self-employed — you’ll
still come out way ahead by keeping good vehicle
expense records.

For example, if you drive your car 75% for business,
then you get to deduct 75% of your vehicle expenses.

Now to the fun part.

There are two methods for reporting your car expenses:

1. Actual Expense Method

2. Mileage Method

With the Actual Expense Method, you have to keep track
of all your vehicle related expenses, such as:

– gasoline

– oil

– maintenance & repairs

– insurance

– license & registration

– wash & wax

– supplies & equipment

– depreciation expense (including Section 179 deduction)

– lease payments

– loan interest

– state and local taxes

So you add up all those deductions and multiply the
total by your business use percentage, which is determined
by dividing business miles by total miles driven.

The Mileage Method works like this: instead of tracking
all the actual expenses listed above, you only need the
number of business miles driven, which is multiplied by
the standard mileage rate published each year by the IRS.

For 2003 the mileage rate was 36 cents per mile.

For 2004 the mileage rate was 37.5 cents per mile.

For 2005 there are two mileage rates: 40.5 cents/mile

from January 1 through August 31, and 48.5 cents/mile

from September 1 through December 31.

For 2006 the mileage rate is 44.5 cents per mile.

If you drove your car 10,000 miles in 2005, your deduction
is at least $4,000 (depending on how many miles you drove
during the last four months) — regardless of what your
actual expenses might have been.

NOTE: There are 2 actual expenses that are also deductible
under the Mileage Method — interest and taxes.

Now for the obvious question: Which method is better?

Well, here’s how I look at it. If you want to get the
highest deduction, you should “run the numbers” under
both methods and then use whichever method results in
the higher deduction.

You are allowed to pick whichever method you want.

But once you pick a method, be careful to follow the rules
on “switching” from one method to the other: You can
switch from the Mileage Method to the Actual Method,
but generally are not allowed to switch from the Actual
Method to the Mileage Method.

Having said that, let’s be practical. If you hate
recordkeeping, use the Mileage Method. It’s much simpler
and faster. You won’t have to keep all those receipts.

Even the Mileage Method requires some recordkeeping,
however. You should keep a log that documents the business
use of the vehicle. Here are 3 IRS-approved car logs:

1. Daily Log. Yep, you just record all business miles for
all 365 days of the year.

2. 90-Day Log. Here’s a little-known rule — instead of
keeping mileage records for the entire year, you can get by
with just a representative portion of the year — and a
90-day period is considered an adequate representation
of the entire year.

So you would keep a Daily Log for a 3-month period, say
January through March. To get your annual mileage total, you
multiply the 3-month total by 4.

3. One-week Log. Here’s another short-cut: The IRS also
allows you to keep a log for just the first week of each
month. Then you multiply that week’s mileage by 4 to get the
monthly total.

Regardless of which method you use, there’s a goldmine of
deductions sitting right there in the garage.

Wayne M. Davies is author of 3 tax-slashing eBooks for small
business owners and the self-employed. For a free copy of
Wayne’s 25-page report, “How To Instantly Double Your
Deductions” visit http://www.YouSaveOnTaxes.com

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina’s wide path of destruction, the real estate market will be affected perhaps in ways not fully understood or expected. If recent hurricane recovery history holds true there will be several good things to come out of all destruction. Let’s hope so as those who live in the Delta region have suffered immensely.

In September 1989, a strong category 4 hurricane by the name of Hugo made landfall in the Charleston, SC area. Up to that time it was the strongest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland since Camille whacked the Gulf coast in 1969. The damage from Hugo was extensive with entire forests wiped out and fishing villages and seaside resorts heavily damaged. Dire predictions of the storm’s negative effect on the local economy were made. I know, because I was living in the nearby town of Goose Creek when Hugo roared through; I witnessed a sustained and lengthy recovery effort for many months thereafter.

These were some of my personal observations of that hurricane’s impact on the housing market:

1. Housing stock destroyed. Yes, the number of mobile homes, apartments, and single family homes damaged or destroyed by Hugo was large. What had been a fairly open pre-hurricane housing market quickly tightened up as the vacancy rate plunged to near zero as all available, undamaged property was suddenly snapped up. Rental rates, which had been on the low side, suddenly shot up and stayed up even as the housing stock was replenished over the next year. The net effect of Hugo was that older, substandard housing was replaced by more modern housing built with the latest building code requirements included. Rental rates rose accordingly to reflect the improvements.

2. Insurance payments. Although the property I was living in did not sustain much damage, some of the homes in our neighborhood did. Within days of the storm’s wake insurance agents were canvassing neighborhoods, filing claims, and issuing checks on the spot. The quick move of the insurers allowed people to run out and make needed repairs quickly. Oftentimes, the amount of the check more than covered actual damage thereby allowing homeowners to make both structural and aesthetic improvements to their properties. These improvements were credited with fueling the subsequent surge in local home prices.

3. Government assistance. FEMA cut its teeth on Hugo. Originally, much criticism was levied FEMA’s way because of the agency’s slow response to the disaster. It took several more disasters after Hugo before FEMA’s response time improved. Still, where private insurance companies left off, FEMA stepped in by cutting checks that allowed people to rebuild. Essentially, FEMA stepped in to help the uninsured or under insured recover. Plenty of homes that had been substandard before Hugo were replaced by homes that met current [and stricter] housing codes. The impact on the housing market was felt as this rising tide of support effectively lifted housing prices.

Every particular storm’s impact on a local economy is different. Unfortunately for residents in the Delta region, Katrina blew through after a particularly rough hurricane year in 2004. No, FEMA isn’t broke but the financial stress on insurance providers cannot yet be measured. Unlike with Hugo, where the recovery effort started immediately after the storm left, the Delta region is still in rescue mode and waiting for the waters to recede. I fully expect that it’ll be weeks before any sustained recovery effort can be launched and even then it will be a long, drawn out process as insurance claims are filed, local building codes are re-examined, and the most important part - people - decide whether they want to rebuild in damaged communities or move away.

South Florida recovered fairly quickly after Hurricane Andrew devastated Homestead in 1992, but many central and panhandle communities in Florida are still reeling one year after a series of hurricanes tore up their homes in 2004. Again, much will depend on individual families willingness to rebuild and that is the untold story lying in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Copyright 2005 — Matthew Keegan is the owner of a successful article writing, web design, and marketing business based in North Carolina, USA. He manages several sites including the Corporate Flight Attendant Community and the Aviation Employment Board. Please visit The Article Writer to review selections from his portfolio.

The other day one of my “challenging clients” and I were debating the appropriateness of anger. While maintaining my perspective, I was also enjoying listening to his commitment to anger. My client felt that his outrage at the often-shabby treatment of lower-income people moved him into action and, therefore, anger served a valiant purpose in his life. “Good argument,” I conceded, “but not good enough.” After twenty minutes of getting nowhere, we agreed to both be right and return to the coaching.

In the moment I knew that the coaching had gone south, I had become hooked on “being right” with a capital “H.” I allowed my agenda to override my commitment to the coaching relationship. What I realized in that moment was how the power of anger no matter how lofty the intent seduces us into accepting fear’s lowest common denominator. I had attached to being right, like being angry, is a short-term solution and a way of camouflaging our agendas. When we are so committed to being right, we are often blanketing our anger.

I do have to concede however, that anger can serve a purpose; first it tells us something needs a deeper focus. Secondly, for those who are learning to own their power anger is often an important flag in recognizing it’s time to honor boundaries, their voice, and their freedom to be self expressed. When we allow anger to be more of a resource center, that calls to look within informing us of a deeper truth, rather than a command center that compels to react we can be served well by our anger. Although I have come to believe that anger never is the right answer, I found myself cutting off my client instead of inviting him in. What did being right and being angry have in common? When we dare to lift the carpet of anger, we never find our joys waiting for us with outstretched arms; instead, we find our fears cowering from the light of introspection. Mirror, mirror on the wall who is the rightist of all?

Often, fear is desire turned on its head. When we fear that the desired object will be denied us, we manipulate our fear into anger for the socially acceptable reason that showing anger is preferable to showing fear. The agreed upon, planetary perception is that when we admit to being afraid, we wimp out we make ourselves vulnerable. So we use anger to maneuver others into getting what we want.

We use anger as our ace in the hole because it creates distance so that others cannot see, smell or touch our fear. Anger is the response of the powerless. Children become angry because they are dependent on adults for their survival they are literally fighting for their lives. Even adults, who have choices, sometimes remain fixated on the anger response because they have not owned their independence and right to choose. The following scenarios demonstrate this:

The “withholding” scenario. Your mate won’t pick up after him/herself. You withhold sex, affection, and open communication to get what you want. Or you yell or discuss the situation ad nauseam and wear him/her down until you win.

The “make wrong” scenario. Your boss makes you angry. How much energy do you spend making him/her wrong with others? Notice how the more wrong you make your boss, the more justified and right you feel.

The “I’ll reject you before you reject me” scenario. A friend doesn’t give what you consider enough time to your relationship. You retaliate by creating reasons to distance yourself from it. How many relationships have you abandoned so you didn’t have to feel rejected? No matter, you win and that is what matters!

Many angry people don’t have anger management problems; they have intimacy issues. Intimacy entails openness with self and others. Intimacy allows us to expose our fears and receive healing. Anger signals our unwillingness to be intimate with ourselves. Anger alienates. It puts us in defense mode and redirects our resources away from what would bring us joy and love.

I don’t recall being an angry child or young woman. Yet, when I searched my memory, scalding events began to attach themselves to each other until I awoke one morning, in my thirtieth year, buried in an avalanche of pent up anger. All the equality I had been promised, the dreams I had been assured of, and the love I was owed in exchange for my hard work had eluded my grasp. And was I pissed off about it! From that moment on, real joy became a thing of the past; my anger became my shadow. It assured me: Wherever you go, there I shall be also.

Life always gives us what we desire. So when we look for evidence about how unfair life is, we get plenty of evidence to support our perspectives. The surer I became that life was hard, the more afraid I became. Around every corner lay unending opportunities for me to do battle with the injustice that I expected to encounter. I was right, but was I miserable! The course in miracles asks it well “which do you want more to be right or to be happy?”

I looked for and found plenty of outlets for my anger. I embraced opportunities to explode on humanity, including, sadly, most of my dearest friends. I also became active in my community by sitting on the boards of many non-profit organizations. I accomplished many wonderful things with my anger, such as co-creating the first youth credit union in North California for low-income immigrants. But, with all my fear-driven success, I was ultimately causing and experiencing a lot of pain because I could not admit that I was afraid.

Using racism, I cloaked my fear in anger. Who was going to argue with a Black woman about the tyranny of racism? No one. This became my new armor. As long as I could keep people at a distance I felt safe and in control; but that was a false sense of security. The distance created deep pain that I was unwilling to tap into and resolve. It became far easier to project my pain onto everyone else.

When coaching, I try to remember that anger is not an emotion to ignore or step over. It is not a “bad” emotion; it is just the voice of our pain. Typically, we get stuck in anger and react from it. Anger then becomes a world unto itself. What is important to remember is not to be fooled by giving into it. Recall an instance when someone else’s anger pushed your buttons and, before you knew it, you were either saying or doing something childish that you later regretted or had to work very hard to justify. Engaging anger holds us hostage to the emotion. But when we give anger space by staying curious about it, something deeper emerges for the client and coach to work with.

As coaches, we must look inside, underneath and all around to see what the anger is trying to show us. We encourage our clients to stay present to the anger without succumbing to it. When we work with our clients in discovering the true agenda, they can learn to respond to that agenda instead of reacting to the anger.

Anger doesn’t resolve any issues because it almost never is about the surface problem. Untreated, anger creates the dis-ease that contaminates all our relationships. It is usually a cover for fear; fear that we will not be loved unconditionally. When we use anger to get what we want it is a “get” that is stolen rather than freely given. Unable to trust that we can get what we want without the force of anger we rob ourselves the opportunity for others to engage with us and give to us freely. It wounds us while desensitizing us to the suffering of self and others.
Anger is a toxic lie waiting to be unearthed, healed and released.

Although I cannot give you a foolproof technique that will help your coaching, I can, however, share with you my experience of the healing power of acceptance. When anger was still feasting on my soul, I was taking a coaching course taught by two dynamite coaches. Anger ridden as I was at that time, I found opportunities to find them wrong, complain and dare anyone to argue with me. What I noticed was neither of them ever challenged me, got angry with me or demanded that I be any different. Believe me, I looked for the catch, but could find none. For the first time I started to feel accepted, and this helped me to stop feeding my anger. They listened at the soul level. I felt heard not deterred. Their radical act of acceptance created space for my fear to surface.

Another morning, towards the end of my thirties, I woke up thinking: Today, I can choose to be a free Black woman, where racism may exist, but I exist differently with it. Today, I can believe that the world loves me, wants to play with me, and can’t wait to interact with me. By allowing my fear to expose itself, those wise coaches gently allowed me to choose to be coached into something more a life by design instead of a life by default. By the end of the course, I was sitting in a room basking in the acceptance my soul craved. We are not so different you, me and our clients. Love and acceptance are what we all desire. In fact, my Native American elders say, “Mitakuye Oyasin,” which means, “We are all related.” The client’s pain is our pain. Allowing ourselves to lean into the pain and the fear, being open to feeling it unlocks the door to our acceptance of it.

When our clients bring us anger issues, it is almost always a red herring. There is often something beneath the surface that lies at the heart of the issue. It is our job as coaches to fish up that invisible something, giving it and the client room to breathe and transform. Coach the human not the anger. In the face of anger our best skill is using the salve of compassion.

When anger rides in on your clients, here are a few crucial things to remember:

• Remember it is covering up something deeper.

• Allow the anger the space it needs, and invite it to drop its mask.

• Love your clients as they are; let them to be who they are in this moment.

• See the beauty in the client no matter who they are showing up as.

• Be curious.

Ask the following questions:

• What is hurting right now?

• Does being angry get you what you want and make you happy?

• When the anger is gone, what are you left with?

Finally, don’t forget to check in the mirror, because our clients always show up with exactly the same issues we have as coaches. Should you find yourself with an angry client, it’s time to look under your anger carpet, too. One of the most wonderful gifts of coaching is having our reality mirrored back to us! You can be sure my client sent me on my own treasure hunt.

Together, clients and coaches have the power to choose to radically transform and liberate their deepest anger and fear into acceptance. When we expand our hearts by seeing our client’s highest self, no matter who is on the call, asking powerful questions, and, yes, adding a dollop of love a spiritual alchemy occurs. Without the shackles of anger, our clients have the power to free up and redirect the resources previously held hostage in the defensiveness of anger to the greater a good of claiming a joyous life.

Melanie DewBerry-Jones is a twice-certified coach and a Senior Trainer for the Coaches Training Institute. She is a regular contributor and co-founder of Choice magazine, the first magazine for coaches. Melanie is a speaker, storyteller, and a member of the National Speakers Association.

Inflatable trampolines can be tremendously pleasurable as well as being helpful to keep your youngster engrossed and entertained for many hours. Trampolines are not just excellent for youngsters, as they can additionally be used by people in their 20’s as an aerobic fitness drill on top of a means for tightening and building body muscles simultaneously Because of this a trampoline has a good deal to provide throughout the summer months for all the family and it is of no bolt out of the blue that trampolines are such a much loved product throughout the sunny months.

The core thing to consider when getting a trampoline is to confirm it’s appropriate for the age & ability of the persons who will likely to be trying it, be it the children or the mature people. Toy Shopper has details on a whole range of mini trampolines.

A supplementary thing to bear in mind is naturally going to be the location of the kids’ trampoline. A few trampolines these days can call for up a large degree of floor space on the whole as you will need about 3 feet of grass around the exterior of the trampoline in order for the toddlers to descend in one piece if they by coincidence fly off.

It’s also helpful to keep in mind that several trampolines will require to be sited on level ground otherwise the strength and well-being of the garden trampoline can be affected. Therefore, numerous ditches might need to be produced in order for the outdoor trampoline to stand properly.

“The Chinese weren’t allowing anybody on the mountain. They ended up commandeering it for themselves, even though the mountain is shared by two countries. Sherchan just 5 days away from his 77th birthday beat the age record set last year by 71-year-old Japanese teacher Katsusuke Yanagisawa.

Now that Bahadur Sherchan has successfully scaled the tallest mountain in the world, he is once again ready to focus on his family. More than 2964 people have climbed to the summit since it was first conquered in 1953 by New Zealander Edmund Hillary, who died in January, and Nepal’s Tenzing Norgay.

He was reported in good health as he began making his descent. They basically coerced the Nepali government to not allow any climbers past camp two on the Nepali side. As he planned for the climb, Sherchan told reporters he wanted to inspire fellow senior citizens. He also said many Nepalese have established records on Everest, so it was only fitting that the record for the oldest climber to reach the summit should also belong to a Nepali. They flexed their muscles this year all the in name of the Olympic spirit, but it was hardly spirited at all.”

The Chinese were flying their airplanes over the mountain and had Chinese officials in Kathmandu. This season mountaineer Anthony Loeff is reporting the scales for Chomolungma or Mount Everest after he reached the top of Kilimanjaro earlier this year.

With the Chinese preparing for the impending summer Olympic Games, Andrew Brash noted that the government’s actions hardly reflected the Olympic spirit. Min Bahadur Sherchan and four climbing guides reached the 29,035-foot (8,850-meters) summit of the world’s highest mountain early Sunday, said Ramesh Chretri, an official with Nepal’s ministry of tourism. Min Bahadur Sherchan returned this week from Nepal after successfully climbing to the summit of Chomolungma. Indeed, he was all too aware of the potential dangers the mountain could bring. Certain parts of the climb are more dangerous than others and it is important for climbers to remain focused The 77-year-old man from Nepal is now the oldest person to have reached the top of Mount Everest. “the Mount Everest this year became a political pawn,” he said with some frustration.

His first found him within 222 metres of the peak when his team stopped to help a fellow mountaineer who was left for dead. One year later, Bahadur Sherchan, a University of Calgary alumni, returned to Mt Everest to finish what he had started.

Min Bahadur Sherchan last attempt resulted in the rescue of Lincoln Hall, an Australian climber who was left by his team in the “death zone.”

Hall was frostbitten and severely disoriented due to altitude sickness. Andrew Brash returned a hero to Calgarians. Therefore, the decision to actualize a long-time personal goal left Min Bahadur Sherchan with some internal uncertainties, he cited the political actions of China and Nepal as providing the greatest adversity he faced on his journey.

Studies show that Americans are now saving less than ever before. Along with that, Americans are carrying a heavier debt load than ever. It’s easy for a home loan, a car loan and a few credit card bills to get out of hand, and many people are struggling with more debt than they can easily pay. To make matters worse, new bankruptcy legislation will make it harder than ever to file bankruptcy for those who simply cannot pay their bills.

There are a number of solutions available that allow most people to reduce their interest rate on their debt, reduce their total monthly payment, or both:

Most people can utilize one of the ideas above to help them reduce their debt. If none of these options work for you, you should consider speaking to a credit counselor, who can outline other options that may work for you. Many credit-counseling agencies are non-profit, so it may be worth your while to talk to a credit counselor if nothing else will work.

©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a site devoted to debt consolidation and credit counseling, and HomeEquityHelp.net, a site devoted to information regarding home equity loans.

Whereas unusual present giving has its many trends , once in a while it’s Its O.K. to give something that is out of the normal. Unusual presents can be just the chance you are looking for to be unique. Unusual Presents can switch the ordinary into the stratosphere. You can spot the best circumstances to give unusual presents.

Presents that are unusualcan be rare, uncommon, or even odd. By now you are already thinking about many weird, wonderful and outlandish unusual presents. It’s great to get creative remember at some point you need to keep your head about you and make unusual present purchases. But brainstorming is a great beginning

Conformity is commom in the world today, sometimes it’s fun to do something completely different. Sometimes, giving unusual presents at the right time can be cool as well. It takes some reflection to outdo yourself on the identical thing over and over again. So giving unusual presents might break the die and make for advanced and imaginative presents. Providing unique presents is not only tremendous fun, it might be the divergence from all the other presents the natives get.

Following evaluation, almost certainly you already have some additional ideas for unusual presents that might improve on these. Click Here to visit Shodega.com

Even before the coming of man, animals like the ants
have been doing storage of food and other stuff to cope
with the daily demands of life. Storage is a vital part
of human life. In the Bible, the wisdom-filled Joseph
used storage to escape the problems of famine which
happened for seven years. During the seven years of
fullness and abundance, Joseph suggested to the Pharaoh
to put up stock houses for food to carry on with the
famine.

Storage is also important in our day to day living. Our
refrigerators have stocks of food to be used for our
everyday survival. Storage is of major concerns for big
companies and businesses involved with different
products ranging from the items that will fill up man’s
basic needs to the complex wants that man desires and
longs for.

Storage is done not only by placing in one corner the
items or products to be used later on. There are
several factors to be taken to ensure that the stored
stuff will be in safe condition so people that will
make use of it. In the case of food storage, the place
or the equipment to be used for storage must be free
from any toxins caused by different factors in the
environment ranging from the tiny bacteria and other
microorganisms to big rats, cockroaches and other
insects. Improper food storage can lead to food
poisoning and death.

There are various ways of food storage which can
include canning, freezing and drying. Drying is used to
remove the moisture from the food so as to prevent the
growth of micro-organisms. Freezing is the commonly
used method of food storage and preservation to slow
down spoilage through chemical reaction done by
transforming water into ice or liquid into solid.
Canning is a form of storage which includes the use of
jars and other containers in which food is heated first
to kill or destroy the microorganisms that can mess up
with the food.

Storage areas for other commodities are also a major
concern of businessmen thus they have storage plans to
ensure the safety of their products. The fabricators of
various products must have a secured dry storage area
that can sufficiently be used to stock all the items.
The location and size, together with other vital
factors must be carefully considered to guarantee the
efficiency of storage. The advancements in technology
is a great help in the efficiency of storage since the
different factors involved which may include the
temperature and lighting system can be easily adjusted
to suit the condition of the items and the area.

Stacking of different products is made easier by using
the new racking systems. Aside from organized location,
it can also save spaces for other items or products.
The Flow-through and First In - First Out systems are
the commonly used racking types for storage. The
Flow-through system works by positioning the older ones
in a location that will allow it to be used first. A
First In - First Out storage system is also a variation
of a flow-through though it uses gravity rollers
adjusted at an angle that will provide easier facility
by simply moving the product forward. The brakes on the
rollers control the movements of the items. After which
the products are placed systematically for the next process.

David Arnold Livingston is a business owner and entrepreneur with many years of business experience.
Visit: http://www.rtsstorage.com
for lots of great storage options and ideas.

If you want to be successful in your weight loss efforts; keep a food journal. It is an excellent way help you learn about your eating habits, understand your triggers and help you identify why you are making certain food choices.

What is a Food Journal?

A food journal is simply a diary or record of all the foods that you consume on a daily basis. To get an even better understanding of your eating habits, I recommend you also record your water consumption, your moods when you are eating, the company you are with and the location you are in. Do you eat when you are happy, sad, bored, stressed or frustrated? You might begin to see patterns about yourself that you may not have realized. A food journal can be done for a week, months or on an ongoing basis.

Why Use a Food Journal?

I encourage all of my clients who want to lose weight to use a food journal. I then review it each week and make recommendations and suggestions for the following week. Journaling helps clients see in black and white why they may not be reaching their goals. People often say, ‘I don’t eat that much,’ until they see their own food journals that they have been underestimating their food intake. Often just knowing that someone else is going to be looking at what they eat is enough some people make better choices. Food journaling takes all of the guess work out of trying to figure out just how many calories we consumed.

I like to take the food journal one step farther and use it as a basis for a healthy meal plan. With some modifications, you can learn how to transform an unhealthy meal into a nutritious, healthy balanced meal. Once you get into the habit of recording, you can actually put together your own personal healthy cookbook consisting of the foods you enjoy and feel confident knowing that they are part of your healthy eating plan.

To obtain the best results with your food journal:
- Be honest with yourself
- Try to keep your journal in a convenient place( posted on the fridge, in your day-timer or beside your bed)
- Try to record when you eat instead of trying to remember back a full day or more
- Include tasting and nibblingthose calories add up

Although it may seem time consuming, learning how to manage your weight by keeping a record of your food intake and you will save a lot of time, money and frustration.

Cathy Morenzie is a certified personal fitness trainer, aerobics and Pilate’s instructor. She specializes in providing creative fitness solutions for people on the go. She has trained thousands of clients and trainers over the last 15 years. For more FREE tips like these, visit her site at http://www.activeimage.ca or call 416-410-8517 to schedule your complimentary session. Can’t fit personal training sessions into your schedule, no problem- try our on- line personal training and receive the benefits of one-on-one personal training at a fraction of the cost.