Diary Feedback

ftsolk

I know I'm not perfect. Sunday "dinner" was pretty bad (I actually had a very late lunch, so lunch and dinner were more one meal than two). I'm also not perfect about measuring fruits and veggies (one step at a time).

I'm working on transitioning over from Weight Watchers, and I wanted a little feedback on my diary. Today is incomplete. I also take one night a week off from tracking (Monday- my weigh in day), and since I weigh in Monday nights, I keep my lunch very light (though I did have half of my starfruit with lunch instead of breakfast).

queenliz99

What is your question?

xcalygrl

I don't know what you're looking for.

For starters, start weighing your fruit on a kitchen scale. Entries that give measurements are often not correct.

For veggies, start weighing them as well. It is highly inaccurate to log 1 cup of zuchinni.

For entries that have grams after them (like 9 grams of almonds), were those weighed items or just guesses? They should be actual weights.

jkal1979

In for the oncoming train wreck and excuses.

TimothyFish

I see nothing wrong with your diary. As long as you are staying below your calorie goals, I see no problem at all.

mewilmes

I think it looks yummy!

ftsolk

"Diary review." I want feedback on my food log.

I will see how long I last weighing every last gram of my food. Typically, that is what gets me off track. I get so obsessed over the numbers that I eventually just quit. But instead of making a recipe and dividing by the number of servings, I will just make single serving recipes and meticulously weigh every ingredient down to the gram.

TimothyFish

ftsolk wrote: »

"Diary review." I want feedback on my food log.

I will see how long I last weighing every last gram of my food. Typically, that is what gets me off track. I get so obsessed over the numbers that I eventually just quit. But instead of making a recipe and dividing by the number of servings, I will just make single serving recipes and meticulously weigh every ingredient down to the gram.

If weighing your food gets you off track, don't do it. Some people swear by it, but they seem to be the kind of people who benefit from weighing their food. Some of us are losing weight just fine without weighing our food. My average is right at 2lbs a week, and I haven't been weighing anything. And that includes not logging at all for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

pander101

So are you just listing the foods you put on your plate with a estimated guess of how much is there? A lot of people tend to overestimate and that's what tends to hinder their weightloss. Weight Watchers doesn't count calories, MFP does and that's what you need to do here. So you do need to weigh your food and portion it out, there are no free vegetables or fruits.

ftsolk

Right now, I just feel like I'm going to overwhelm myself if I weigh EVERYTHING. I do weigh 99% of non-prepackaged dry goods other than produce, and I will use a measuring cup for things I don't weigh.

I just get worried that I will overwhelm myself if I jump in too quickly. I'm trying to focus on consistency while getting an idea of whether I want to track here or WW.

I set my goals to losing 1 pound a week being lightly active, but I am trying to stay under, and I don't eat my exercise calories back. I figure this should keep me somewhere in the middle of a weight loss range in case I underestimate here or there

azulvioleta6

You are eating real food! You are finally losing weight and keeping it off for longer than a week at a time! I see an enormous difference between what your tracker looks like now and what it looked like on Spark, say, a year ago.

This is HUGE progress for you. Don't ruin it by getting too caught up in perfectionism. I see nothing wrong with measuring zucchini by the cup-it's zucchini for goodness sake, not a cup of butter.

Do you think that having a job where you are getting more exercise on a daily basis is making a difference for you?

crunnerwv

I get what you're saying about becoming overwhelmed with weighing every little thing. Most low cal veggies I just guess at the serving size. I've maintained a 40lb weight loss for >10yrs without tracking. I'm tracking a little closer now because I'd like to lose 5-10 pounds before a cruise in april. If you are losing wt now - don't fix what's not broken. If you're not losing, then maybe try tracking a little closer. Fell free to add me if you need an encouraging friend!

lgoldfarb

What do you do for exercise? You are burning a lot of calories!!

ftsolk

Azul! Fancy seeing you here!

Actually, my job has been a huge issue. I still struggle with meal timing and not taking breaks, but I am fairly active. Even though I don't do much formal exercise, I spend 5 to 7 hours a day 5-6 days a week walking or standing. I also do a bit of heavy lifting, bending, climbing, etc. On days I go out after work, we usually walk before and/or after dinner (even if it's just walking around a mall). I've gotten better about packing a lunch that I can eat in 15 minutes, and I'm adjusting to going 6-7 hours between meals some days (I don't snack much.. Maybe I will have a treat after dinner, but usually, I just eat at my meals).

Plus, because I am often so worn out physically from work, I have 0 motivation to do a formal workout. Right now, I am focusing more on diet and getting that on track.

I am down around 15 pounds since December 2013, but I have been struggling since February/ March of last year. This is actually the longest I have been consistent with tracking in any way since March.

llynn1976

It looks like you are doing good to me, keep it up.

Liftng4Lis

All that's important is the caloric deficit. Eat the foods you like.

xcalygrl

When I suggested weighing, I didn't mean it as an "end all be all" thing. A lot of people on here don't weigh their food and do just fine (as you're doing now). There are others that struggle to accurately log what they eat if they don't weigh (like myself).

If not weighing is what works, then no need to weigh your food (for the time being). If you find yourself stuggling to lose, that may be the time to look into weighing your food. (As you lose, you have a smaller margin of error so weighing your food can really help you find extra calories/be certain that what you record is everything you're eating).

I hope that kind of clarifies what I was saying by weigh your fruits and veggies.