At what point does it end - or doesn't it?

scrittrice

nxd10 wrote: »

Now, if I don't log, I tend to be cautious about what I'm eating and often find I undereat. Usually logging tells me I've got enough calories left to eat naturally and follow my appetite.

I am the same way--I tend to be overly cautious if I'm not logging. I have mostly stopped weighing the things I eat every day, but every once in a while I double-check. Also, now that the weather is warmer and I walk/bike a lot more, I have to make sure I fuel myself properly.

Kim55555

ryanhorn wrote: »

katiejanecollins wrote: »

Some people may stay on MFP forever, and that's totally fine, but I don't really want to do that as I feel I could become obsessed with calorie counting like I have done previously. I'm 1lb off my goal weight (which realistically I don't think I'll get to - so I'm going to try and maintain it now instead), and after two years of calorie counting I'm pretty familiar with what food items I regularly consist of calorie/fat/carb wise, but is there a particular mind set I should get myself into so I can lay off the counting but remain at this weight.

Anyone know what I mean/do that themselves?

I'm going to take the opposite side of most people in this thread, and I'll begin by saying that everyone is different. Some people intend on logging forever, but I didn't want to be that person that was entering food in my phone during meals for the rest of my life. People have been staying skinny for hundreds of years without logging or worrying about calories, and I wanted to do it too.

As someone weaning off of logging after logging for two years straight, the hardest part I've learned is listening to your body. For the past two years, I've been so concerned with calorie counts/timing/hitting macros that I've forgotten what it feels like to be hungry, what it feels like to be comfortably full, and what it feels like to enjoy food honestly. I've actually found that I've been eating less now since I stopped logging several weeks ago. My biggest suggestion would be picking up the book "Intuitive Eating." There's lots of awesome tips and tricks in there to help you maintain your weight without the stress/worry that the numbers will bring you.

Also the feeling of nurturing your body when it's hungry and taking care of it instead of fighting it constantly by tracking is kind of nice.

Also, another big piece of advice is don't be scared! You'll see on the scale and on your body if you go too far in one direction or the other. You're not going to go back to your original weight by letting go of logging with all the new skills and attitudes you've learned.

I wish you success if you choose to stop logging, and enjoy the freedom that it brings

The intuitive eating kindle book is down from $16 to $2 at amazon. I'm going to buy it

I've been working on intuitively eating too.

nxd10

scrittrice wrote: »

nxd10 wrote: »

Now, if I don't log, I tend to be cautious about what I'm eating and often find I undereat. Usually logging tells me I've got enough calories left to eat naturally and follow my appetite.

I am the same way--I tend to be overly cautious if I'm not logging. I have mostly stopped weighing the things I eat every day, but every once in a while I double-check. Also, now that the weather is warmer and I walk/bike a lot more, I have to make sure I fuel myself properly.

I rarely weigh now either and have a good sense of most calories and most portions. But every once a while you realize all those little things have added up to a lot more than I thought I did. Logging helps.

Sabine_Stroehm

Slightly different than many here: I lost before MFP etc. I lost by changing my diet and considering portions.
I never "stopped" the weight loss just stopped.
In hindsight, this seems harmonious with fat2fitradio's (previous?) suggestion to "eat like the thinner you".
I ate. I lost. And then one day I didn't.

For ME, the biggest thing was a mind set/paradigm shift. I had to think of food differently. I changed my palate. I changed how I considered food, cooking etc.

For me, it was: SLOW carb (not low), lots of veggies, fruits, legumes, lean proteins, dairy, fruits, WHOLE grains etc.

That was 14 years ago.
I'm STILL maintaining.

I limit the heavily processed carbs (pre-packaged convenience foods, HFCS etc. etc.). And the rest takes care of itself.


I STILL consider it this way: I try to build a nutrient dense, delicious, diet. I try to fuel my body, and not have crazy cravings. I figured out how that worked for me. And kept doing it.
Good luck. YOU can figure out what works for YOU!

feisty_bucket

katiejanecollins wrote: »

I'm pretty familiar with what food items I regularly consist of calorie/fat/carb wise, but is there a particular mind set I should get myself into so I can lay off the counting but remain at this weight.

Anyone know what I mean/do that themselves?

Sure. I think what you've mentioned here is the main part. You know what a "regular" day consists of so you know if you're pigging out and screwing up.
So you'd only need to worry if you're screwing up consistently.

Anyways, I've maintained within a range for a long time and it's not hard without calorie counting. However, since I've more recently taken up IF and calorie cycling, I'm finding myself having to track because I can't just eyeball/guestimate that stuff with enough precision. So yeah, I'll have to be tracking for the duration. I don't really mind though.

booksandchocolate12

snowflake930 wrote: »

It won't end for me. I know myself, and logging will have to be in my life always.

I know some people can do it, just not me. The statistics say that the majority of people will gain all the weight back, some will gain even more than they lost back. I want to be in the small majority that never gains it back, and for me that means logging. Just the way it is, and will have to be, for me.

For me as well.