Why do so many people hide their food Diary?
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Because it's my diary. If I want advice, I will open it.0
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PaulLester wrote: »PaulLester wrote: »I must admit i did not know i was going to open such a can of worms with this question.
It was definitely worth discussing! Thanks for bringing it up.
I am amazed by the strong view of many ref the question.
I respect the privacy of others and did not want to come across as somebody who wants to look at others diaries and criticize, that was not my intention.
I believe in a support structure and want to help and support those who require it. I include myself in that number.
I would not offer unsolicited advice as i know nothing of the specialised dietary requirements of other people. It just a pat on the back so to speak. Encouragement helps
These threads tend to take on a life of their own.0 -
tesha_chandler wrote: »I will be 100% honest in my food diary if no one else can see it.
^ This. My diary was public for a long time when I first started but I found that if I had a bad day food-wise or whatever, I just wouldn't log it. So I closed it and now I log the good, the bad, and the ugly. It keeps me on track better.
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kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
I've lost 20 pounds in three months - I'm not sure that would have changed if someone else was looking at my diary? Personally I don't see losing 20 pounds as cheating myself - I am actually very proud of myself!0 -
I recently set mine from Private to Open for friends. My reason for Private was to be able to be honest with myself on logging without being held back by feelings of shame or judgment on a bad eating day ("Did you really eat a whole box of Girl Scout cookies??"). I don't like being affected by anyone else's thoughts or comments even to the smallest degree, but I have to admit that I am, and I don't want anything negative to stand in my way, so I will remove the problem, whatever it is, if I can. I moved it to Open for friends recenlty though to hold myself accountable. So far, I have been successful at being honest and it has helped me to make good choices.0
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kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
Just because my diary is closed doesn't mean my choices are bad. It just means they are my choices.
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PaulLester wrote: »PaulLester wrote: »I must admit i did not know i was going to open such a can of worms with this question.
It was definitely worth discussing! Thanks for bringing it up.
I am amazed by the strong view of many ref the question.
I respect the privacy of others and did not want to come across as somebody who wants to look at others diaries and criticize, that was not my intention.
I believe in a support structure and want to help and support those who require it. I include myself in that number.
I would not offer unsolicited advice as i know nothing of the specialised dietary requirements of other people. It just a pat on the back so to speak. Encouragement helps
I think your question led to a really awesome discussion! Yes, a lot of strong views, but its enlightening! Just goes to show, what appears to be a simple question, actually can be of real meaning to other people... I learned a lot myself here, reading about how others feel about it, how it affects their journey and what it means to them.
This sort of knowledge only helps with being more sensitive to where others are coming from, an awareness of viewpoints that differ from my own....which is something I always see as a good thing!0 -
kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
Right. Because only "bad" diaries are private. *eyeroll*
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When some days look like this:
and other days look like this:
and others look like this:
people won't understand what the heck is going on and may start giving unnecessary comments.
Not to mention the ones that look like this
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I don't enjoy the feeling that I may be being spied on. (Unlikely but not impossible) Like some creeper might put it together that I went grocery shopping recently or eat at Subway on Wednesdays or deduce anything specific about me.
I log for me, I'm not here to fascinate members of MFP. I post whatever food ideas I have on the forums, and get ideas from others on the forums.
I don't participate on social media like Facebook for the same reason. Being an open book and risking (however unlikely) being spied or creeped on gives me anxiety, and I don't feel obligated to anybody to suffer that.
When I did the friend-thing on here I kept my diary open to friends as a courtesy. But I didn't enjoy it for the same reasons as outlined above, and I didn't enjoy feeling obligated to people to comment or like their activities or be supportive or whatever, and I didn't enjoy feeling like I was putting an obligation on anyone else to support me. I have a hard enough time keeping up with my RL obligations to my RL friends/family.
I'm just not the type of person that gets pleasure out of being an open book, or supporting people and getting support, and so on. I realize that being private makes me less interesting, but I'm not interested in being interesting.
In short, everything I do here is for me.0 -
Hope you creeped on the "right" food diaries ... idk, this is all strange to me. We know what we're supposed to do, right? So, we need to do that ... with foods that we like (so, can sustain) in the right quantities. This is not complicated. Why do we need to creep?DoneWorking wrote: »When I was here the first time, my friends and I learned a lot about food choices from creeping each others food diaries.
Even after two years of logging and losing most of my weight (exactly one person has asked me to stop), I'm still not sure I agree with this. If I was sure what to do everyday for the rest of my life to stay on the healthy / healthy weight path, I'm not sure I'd maintain an account here. For me, this is almost as true now as when I first started
Congratulations on your hard work and great success! I appreciate your comments and should probably qualify mine, because I suppose they weren't very sensitive.
I meant that if people are looking at their friend's diaries for the "right" approach, there is no promise that the diaries they're looking at are going to be useful ... for instance, there are folks who try extreme approaches to weight loss. This is (imho) not a sustainable or advisable plan. Instead, I hope our (collectively) education comes from outside the MFP community and is supplemented by the things we observe in here.
I'm no authority when it comes to dietary needs, running, weight training, or weight loss. I wouldn't want someone to see my success and think my diary should be a guide. It's what works for me. Just because it works for me doesn't mean it'll work for everyone. As I mentioned before, though, just as people should be left alone to close their diaries, they should also be free to choose friends who have them open. I just hope those folks are also seeking nutrition education outside this community. I think most of them are.
Edited because I hate when I make typos.
Thank you for your compliments. And I promise, no offense taken at anything you've said
The way I think of it is, we're gathering the data not just from one person we put on a pedestal, but from the collection of diaries we "creep". It could be one ingredient in someone else's dinner that I could use in breakfast tomorrow, or a lunch item I might incorporate as a snack. Or a fruit I randomly see in their diary and realize I haven't eaten that since I was a child... I got a zero calorie hazelnut coffee thing that I saw in someone's diary months ago and finally just today got the coffee maker and coffee to go with it :laugh: It can just be... an odd sort of connection, I suppose
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kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
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mine is public (it wasnt always)
but the thing is - im losing weight. steadily, consistently. whatever im doing, so far, is WORKING FOR ME. thats all i care about. Personally, i think my diary is a great example for what eating out/ eating 'fast food' / enjoying life can look like- all around 1500 calories.0 -
and i love looking at my friends diaries. i get tons of ideas for what i want to eat coming up, that way! LOL0
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PharmGirl522 wrote: »kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
Yes, as I have demonstrated above, my diary may "look" bad to other people and solicit unneeded comments. I just don't feel like explaining my (absolutely planned and calculated) patterns, how I do my quick add calories, why I eat so little on some days, why I log in multiple languages, why I'm okay with having a day of just cake and chocolate milk... etc0 -
amusedmonkey wrote: »PharmGirl522 wrote: »kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
Yes, as I have demonstrated above, my diary may "look" bad to other people and solicit unneeded comments. I just don't feel like explaining my (absolutely planned and calculated) patterns, how I do my quick add calories, why I eat so little on some days, why I log in multiple languages, why I'm okay with having a day of just cake and chocolate milk... etc
I used to be on here a couple years ago, and I had my diary public. I will never forget the day that I received a message from another member -- who I didn't know from a hole in the ground -- asking me "how in the hell" I expected to lose weight when I was "gulping down" chocolate milk "all the time".
I had had three glasses of chocolate milk. In the run of a week.
I wasted no time telling that person where they could stuff their judgment (hello, I hadn't asked for anyone's input, let alone that of a perfect stranger) and promptly made my diary private. What kind of judgmental nosy *kitten* does that?
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Mine is closed because when I first joined, I could see that there were a few, but shrill, people who jumped to conclusions without a solid foundation. I did not want to be defending myself against unfounded accusations.
I may open it up to my friends or others whom have demonstrated a great degree of wisdom and cordiality. So far though, no one has shown any interest, so I don't see a need.0 -
PharmGirl522 wrote: »amusedmonkey wrote: »PharmGirl522 wrote: »kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
Yes, as I have demonstrated above, my diary may "look" bad to other people and solicit unneeded comments. I just don't feel like explaining my (absolutely planned and calculated) patterns, how I do my quick add calories, why I eat so little on some days, why I log in multiple languages, why I'm okay with having a day of just cake and chocolate milk... etc
I used to be on here a couple years ago, and I had my diary public. I will never forget the day that I received a message from another member -- who I didn't know from a hole in the ground -- asking me "how in the hell" I expected to lose weight when I was "gulping down" chocolate milk "all the time".
I had had three glasses of chocolate milk. In the run of a week.
I wasted no time telling that person where they could stuff their judgment (hello, I hadn't asked for anyone's input, let alone that of a perfect stranger) and promptly made my diary private. What kind of judgmental nosy *kitten* does that?PharmGirl522 wrote: »amusedmonkey wrote: »PharmGirl522 wrote: »kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
Yes, as I have demonstrated above, my diary may "look" bad to other people and solicit unneeded comments. I just don't feel like explaining my (absolutely planned and calculated) patterns, how I do my quick add calories, why I eat so little on some days, why I log in multiple languages, why I'm okay with having a day of just cake and chocolate milk... etc
I used to be on here a couple years ago, and I had my diary public. I will never forget the day that I received a message from another member -- who I didn't know from a hole in the ground -- asking me "how in the hell" I expected to lose weight when I was "gulping down" chocolate milk "all the time".
I had had three glasses of chocolate milk. In the run of a week.
I wasted no time telling that person where they could stuff their judgment (hello, I hadn't asked for anyone's input, let alone that of a perfect stranger) and promptly made my diary private. What kind of judgmental nosy *kitten* does that?
LoL that person would have a field day with mine then... I have a beer 3 or 4 times a week. Why, just last week, I went out for drinks and had 2 beers in one night! *faints* lmfao! People man.... I think they were just feeling antsy cause they were having some serious chocolate cravings and got mad to see someone else having some. 0 -
Mine is public. Not because it's anything to emulate (half of it is recipe builder which won't give anybody any clue as to what the dish contains, also I treat the calorie goal as a gentle reminder and can be over or under by any odd amount you think of - works for me, won't work for others). The reason I keep it open and like to see other open diaries is what JaneiR36 said a couple of posts above - diary creeping is a good way to gather ideas and boost your imagination, a little like recipe site browsing. I have gotten ideas I could use that way before. Never made, and never will make, any assumptions about the person based on it.
I understand the wish for privacy though. My avatar is obviously not my face and I will never post family pics on here and will keep any progress pics with face pixelated/out of frame, etc. Not out of any sort of mistrust for the people on here, but because image recognition software is getting better and better and I don't want to have a bunch of information online that a spider can relate to me - i.e. my face *and* my diet *and* my address etc etc on one site. So I can totally understand why someone would want to protect their privacy in a way that they themselves find suitable.
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PharmGirl522 wrote: »amusedmonkey wrote: »PharmGirl522 wrote: »kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
Yes, as I have demonstrated above, my diary may "look" bad to other people and solicit unneeded comments. I just don't feel like explaining my (absolutely planned and calculated) patterns, how I do my quick add calories, why I eat so little on some days, why I log in multiple languages, why I'm okay with having a day of just cake and chocolate milk... etc
I used to be on here a couple years ago, and I had my diary public. I will never forget the day that I received a message from another member -- who I didn't know from a hole in the ground -- asking me "how in the hell" I expected to lose weight when I was "gulping down" chocolate milk "all the time".
I had had three glasses of chocolate milk. In the run of a week.
I wasted no time telling that person where they could stuff their judgment (hello, I hadn't asked for anyone's input, let alone that of a perfect stranger) and promptly made my diary private. What kind of judgmental nosy *kitten* does that?PharmGirl522 wrote: »amusedmonkey wrote: »PharmGirl522 wrote: »kmccann357 wrote: »If your diary is bad enough to be private then you're only cheating yourself!
A person having their diary closed has absolutely nothing to do with how "bad" their diary is. Congratulations, though...your comment is the sort of judgment that people who keep their diaries closed are trying to avoid. So thanks for proving the point.
Long story short: you don't know the reasons behind someone keeping their diary private, and those reasons (and their diaries) are no one's business but their own. Including yours.
Yes, as I have demonstrated above, my diary may "look" bad to other people and solicit unneeded comments. I just don't feel like explaining my (absolutely planned and calculated) patterns, how I do my quick add calories, why I eat so little on some days, why I log in multiple languages, why I'm okay with having a day of just cake and chocolate milk... etc
I used to be on here a couple years ago, and I had my diary public. I will never forget the day that I received a message from another member -- who I didn't know from a hole in the ground -- asking me "how in the hell" I expected to lose weight when I was "gulping down" chocolate milk "all the time".
I had had three glasses of chocolate milk. In the run of a week.
I wasted no time telling that person where they could stuff their judgment (hello, I hadn't asked for anyone's input, let alone that of a perfect stranger) and promptly made my diary private. What kind of judgmental nosy *kitten* does that?
LoL that person would have a field day with mine then... I have a beer 3 or 4 times a week. Why, just last week, I went out for drinks and had 2 beers in one night! *faints* lmfao! People man.... I think they were just feeling antsy cause they were having some serious chocolate cravings and got mad to see someone else having some.
Ahahah, that must have been it. Poor thing...they were hangry!
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