Log On to Lose Weight: How Blogs Can Save Your Diet

Focusing My Weight-Loss Woes

During the three long years it took me to lose 100 pounds, one of the most helpful things I did was talk about my struggle with anyone who'd listen. I'm certain I tortured everyone I knew with never-ending tales from the scale. But I did what I had to do. It was a whole lot easier to stay on track, counting calories and fat grams, when I knew there were other people keeping an eye on my waistline as well. And the strategy worked: I kept those 100 pounds at bay for more than five years. And then I fell in love. Shortly after I got married in 2004, I started regaining. At first, it was a few pounds here, a few there, and I didn't really care. Neither did my husband. Within a year, though, I was devastated to learn that I'd packed on 25 pounds. Losing them has been much harder than I expected. To help me focus, I started a blog.

I'm not alone. An astonishing 1 out of every 20 adult Americans has created a Web log (the technical term for blog), according to the Pew Research Center's Pew Internet & American Life Project. As that number grows, so does the number of weight-loss related sites; one list of links, called fitnessblogs.org, includes nearly 500 sites. Most of these consist of daily essays concerning everything from unsupportive family members to getting over a plateau, but others offer reader surveys and hyperlinks to calorie-counting sites. Mine (wordstoeatby.blogspot.com) features essays, recipes, and general insights about losing weight while loving food.

Weight-loss blogs can be an alternative tool for dieters who feel that keeping a pen-and-paper food journal is either inconvenient or boring (or both). But they're also a place to connect with other people who are experiencing similar emotional ups and downs. Reading about another person's struggle can give you the confidence you need to make -- and maintain -- the tough lifestyle choices that long-term weight loss demands. It can also give you comfort to know that other people find dieting just as difficult as you do. Whether you want to start your own blog or just read someone else's, here's how you can benefit.