Is it Cheating!

cyclingrick73

Is it cheating to not log every single ingredient when cooking your meal or buttering your bread ( cooking spray butter and what not) what about my life savers Only eat 2-4 per day that I suck on everyday? I'm i needing to log this too? ( helps keep people alive! And keeps me from smoking! ) Please advise me on this topic... Lol

afacetocallhome

In my opinion, it's better to log as much as possible so that you're tracking your calorie intake as accurately as you can.

Rose6300

Well, you're cheating yourself, of data you'll need to determine what you're actually eating. It's going in your mouth after all.

SueInAz

You're only cheating yourself if you don't count them so it really comes down to how your weight loss is going. If you're clicking along and weight is dropping at a rate you like, then by all means ignore those little things.

If you're having difficulties it'd be time to revisit your methods. A single Lifesaver has 10-15 calories so just one won't matter much in the big scheme of things but a whole pack certainly will, especially if you're eating a roll each day.

cyclingrick73

I'm not a big calorie counter it's more about the total carbs in take in.

HuskyHiker413

Butter and other fats are calorie dense so I would definitely track them as accurate as possible (weigh in grams). The candy should be easy to track create a meal for 4 pcs and just add it every day.

SueInAz

cyclingrick73 wrote: »

I'm not a big calorie counter it's more about the total carbs in take in.

Lifesavers are all carbs, of course. 4 pieces of the fruit flavored ones are about 11 grams of carbs. Switch to the sugar free ones if you haven't already.

r5d5

I would say it's "cheating." If if you're not concerned about calories, those food items still have carbs so if that's what you care about tracking, then you need to log those items to be sure you're hitting the carb limit you have set for yourself.

leggup

You can use MyFitnessPal as much or as little as you want. However, if your weight loss stops or doesn't happen as quickly as you want it to, you may need to become more accurate with your calorie counting.

I don't usually count the calories for my 2-3 black coffees each day. That's about 6-8 calories I don't count. Sometimes I eat a sugar free breath mint. Those are the only things I don't track, so I don't worry about them. I log all cooking oils and sprays, so my margin of error on my daily calories is probably about +/- 50 calories. That's not enough to change how much weight I lose each week, so I don't worry about it. If I stopped losing weight, I would start counting every cup of coffee.

Jruzer

britishbroccoli wrote: »

You can use MyFitnessPal as much or as little as you want. However, if your weight loss stops or doesn't happen as quickly as you want it to, you may need to become more accurate with your calorie counting.

Exactly right. MFP is a tool, nothing more. It's not a diet regimen and no one will hold you accountable but yourself.

Personally I'm a little loose with my logging, but I'm OK with that as I have a fairly good sense of how loose I am, and I find that I lose/maintain at a higher calorie level than predicted anyway.

Your results may vary.

StaciMarie1974

I generally do not believe one can 'cheat' on food but this might be different.

If you're choosing to not log some things, then you're not really being honest about your calories in vs calories out. Depending on your deficit goal, it might not matter. I mean if your goal is 750/day and you're eating 50-100 that you're not logging, you should still see progress. On the other hand, depending on your personality, you may find that once you 'allow' yourself to skip logging x, y and z - that you stop logging other stuff too. Kind of the slippery slope theory.

So ultimately - its up to you. BUT if you reach a point where you're not seeing results, the first thing to do: firm up your food logging. Honesty, accuracy, consistency. Those are the keys.

When I was losing, I tried to be as accurate as possible. For the most part, foods that I could not log accurately were of no temptation. But now that I'm ~5 months into maintaining, I do estimate here & there and skip logging things like condiments. But I also have a range that I stay within, in terms of weight, and if I slip out of it - I know to fine tune my methods.

cyclingrick73 wrote: »

Is it cheating to not log every single ingredient when cooking your meal or buttering your bread ( cooking spray butter and what not) what about my life savers Only eat 2-4 per day that I suck on everyday? I'm i needing to log this too? ( helps keep people alive! And keeps me from smoking! ) Please advise me on this topic... Lol

futuremanda

Not much point in logging at all if you're not logging everything, in my opinion.

sbruce1989

My Motto is "if you bite it write it" in this case log it.

SarahKhristan

If you lick it, you log it! You're doing yourself a disservice by not accurately logging each and every calorie. Who knows how many hidden calories you're eating?

fredk1946

I always aim to take 100 cals below my daily allowance and if my nutrient balance is skewed I can make an adjustment in the evening also acts as a buffer for miscalculations or omissions . it seems to be working and I have lost 8lbs in 4 weeks

efwolfcub

Even since I've had surgery, I refuse to log *every single bite* - doing so would likely turn me off of logging very quickly. I figure an approximate log, with aiming to be well under my calorie goal but at or above my protein goals is certainly better than not logging at all. To me diets aren't about perfection, and trying to aim for perfection is a quick way to burnout/dissapointment.

PennyVonDread

I honestly don't tend to track any pickled veggies. But then, I can't think of anyone ever getting fat on <15 calories of pickles, kimchi, sauerkraut, daikon, or capers. As for butter and candy on the other hand... just budget for a controlled amount.

fnoblebrown

Accurate accounting is important to me, because I believe calorie counts are just the first step - you need to spend your allowance on the *right* calories to maximize your gains.

clioandboy

You gotta ask? then yes it is.... if there is such a thing as cheating that is.

cheney630

I count everything. I try to stay just below my calorie allowance too. I have lost seventy pounds since October. Thirty of those pounds have been with MFP. Good luck on your journey.

cwagar123

I don't really "get" the whole cheating thing.... If you are wanting to track calories why wouldn't you log things? Save recipe in "my recipes" folder and it is easy peasy.
I track EVERYTHING. Only way I have been able to lose 60+ pounds.

Liftng4Lis

Everything counts and the closer you get to goal, the more important that is going to be. You're only "cheating" yourself, when you're not accurate.

rosnigetsfit

Yes, you need to log everything you eat and drink. I even log my candies and gum.

WayneBradt

I heard somewhere it's only cheating if you get caught, but I'm not sure if that helps

SideSteel

Are you making progress at a reasonable pace using your current methods? Then for now, it's fine.

Just realize that you do it, so that if/when your progress slows or stalls, you identify that you are likely eating more calories vs what you are logging, and you can correct that as needed if it becomes necessary/desirable.

CherokeeBabe

Ehhh, cheating yourself, yes. Cheating in general? Not exactly. It all comes down to how serious you are about your weight loss. Not logging things like butter and oil is definitely going to hurt in the long run, just like any fat or relatively high calorie item. I weigh everything down to the ounce, half ounce, whatever is necessary to stay on track. I don't weigh out super low calorie things like lettuce usually, but otherwise it all gets logged, even ketchup on a hot dog by the teaspoon/tablespoon, etc. I don't log salt by weight and a few dried herb items, but I do a close estimate and still add it in. I let up a bit while maintaining, but especially towards the end of weight loss you have to be very accurate to get the last few pounds gone.

AmandaHugginkiss

Make sure you weigh your lifesavers on a food scale so you can get the gram weight. Accuracy is everything.

Otherwise, just plan to log about 100 extra calories in spray butters and oils and maybe throw in another 50 or so for quick added calories.

Theres accuracy and there's insanity.

PaulaWallaDingDong

In the realm of weight loss, if it works for you and you can keep at it, then do it. If you find that your "cheating" is cheating you out of the progress you're looking for, then you know what you have to do. If not, don't worry about it.