Do you ALWAYS track?

_lyndseybrooke_

It depends. I usually always track, but I may wait until the end of the day to enter everything in, just to see an estimate of how much I ate. That's what I did on Christmas last year - probably Thanksgiving too. I don't restrict calories on holidays unless I'm in the middle of a strict cut (I didn't splurge on Easter this year, for example). When I went on vacation last October, I didn't track at all for the week and ate like a pig the whole time. It was fun.

It's okay to go over in calories from time to time. It's even okay to go totally off track from time to time. As long as you find your way back, brush yourself off, and keep on keeping on toward your goals. We're humans, and we deserve to let go every once in awhile. Just don't let your birthday turn into a month of excessive calorie intake.

maxit

I always log (at least so far) -

tami101

I almost always track, except for the odd day here and there. However, I do not track on Birthday week, (there are four birthdays in my family that week) Thanksgiving week, (due to work and family circumstance I have at least 3 T-day dinners that week) and Christmas week (because too many desserts around to log them all). I did this while losing weight and since maintaining. I actually lost 3lbs. after that first Thanksgiving! Happy Birthday! Enjoy your day!

runningforthetrain

I "need" to track- an ocd thing; I think. I am not sure now that I've started I will ever stop. I am an accounting type and logging gives me a fix.

flyrodn

I've been at my goal weight range for over 6 months. It's the 3rd time over the last two decades. I got "fat" by not tracking. So, yes, I track both activity and what I eat, and try to balance them on a weekly basis. I figure keeping track of what I eat, do, and weight are a lifetime process now, as I've been unable to maintain my preferred weight (my choice) otherwise.

FitPhillygirl

I usually always track. I'm a Lifetime WW member and therefore receive eTools for free every month so I've kind of been going back and forth with tracking my calorie intake here for a while and then I'll track using the WW point system. As of yesterday, I started tracking here on MFP again because my Fitbit Charge syncs better here than on the WW site. Also, the WW site over estimates activity points using Fitbit by as much as 6 points or more. For myself it doesn't matter as much since I always stick to 1800 calories or 37-39 points a day anyway to maintain my current weight. However, for someone on WW who does eat back all of those activity points from Fitbit I can see how that could cause them to gain weight and not even realize that is the reason. For now, I'll keep track of calories in VS out using MFP as it seems to be a more accurate method of tracking when using it with a device such as a Fitbit.

bfanny

@ Eileen S
I'm also a Lifetime member in WW logging here trying to lose 5 lbs that are taking forever!!! I was tracking on E-tools but got sick and tired of finishing my WP in 2 days (weekends) and feeling discouraged the rest, I have an AL and was earning a lot of AP 7+ a day but didn't work for me 'cause I was eating those and was maintaining

FitPhillygirl

bfanny wrote: »

@ Eileen S
I'm also a Lifetime member in WW logging here trying to lose 5 lbs that are taking forever!!! I was tracking on E-tools but got sick and tired of finishing my WP in 2 days (weekends) and feeling discouraged the rest, I have an AL and was earning a lot of AP 7+ a day but didn't work for me 'cause I was eating those and was maintaining

Those last 5 pounds can take a while to come off, especially if you are very close to your correct body weight already. Hang in there, they will come off.

betuel75

Ive just gotten so used to tracking. Everytime im eating i whip out my ipad or iphone and log the food. Now sometimes when i walk to the kitchen and get a tsp of PB2 or jelly/jam i wont log that but other than that im just so used to it...

FitPhillygirl

As of today I am done with tracking/logging my food for the Month of May. If no weight gain and I doubt there will be. I am not going to track/log my food anymore. Calorie counting seems to have become more of an obsession now and is something that is no longer needed. I do believe it was good for a while as it has taught me a lot about heathy eating and the right amount of food that my body needs daily in order to maintain a healthy weight for my height..... Today was hard, though. Because every time I ate something I found myself opening the MFP App and almost tracking it. Hopefully as the days go on I will stop doing this.

Noreenmarie1234

I always track but sometimes I don't like if I am going to a birthday party, holiday dinner, or a special event.

Determined_Missy

Tracking is very important to my success, but when my birthday comes, I am not going to worry about tracking. I will get right back on track though.

Slumbreon

I always track, approaching 900 days, every day. Have had lots of 'red' days for one reason or another, logging them keeps me from deluding myself. I remember that It's data, it's not a judgement. For me, choosing to not log bad days would be like pretending they didn't happen, and that's a path that doesn't end well. Approaching 1.5 years at my maintenance weight, and that's a record for me.

kanerz14

Hi OP.

I can't imagine not tracking. At the moment I'm trying to maintain weight. I dont trust my self to be able to track accurately using just my mind.
Tracking helps me keep an eye on trends and if I'm gradually slipping back into old habits.

If im out at a resteraunt. I try and plan ahead by looking online at their menus, and estimating the calories if its not directly on database. It is time consuming but its now a habit.

I don't agree with people saying its an OCD thing,
As I feel that has a negative connotation. No one should feel guilty for tracking their diet daily and as prescisely as possible.

JustSomeEm

If I know I'm going over but don't feel like logging every single bite, I tend to "quick add" calories. That way I'm still owning the fact that I went a over-board, but am not beating myself up for it. Plus, when I do go over by a significant number of calories I've generally made a conscious decision not to care. I've had quite a few of those days lately. So yes, I track it, but not every single bite. I know what to do if I hit my maintenance cap, so no big deal for me.

Timorous_Beastie

I don't track on weekends, holidays, or sometimes, when I just don't feel like doing it. That doesn't mean I eat everything in sight, but it's nice to just nibble on a handful of pretzels without weighing them on the scale and logging them on MFP.

I look at it as the same thing as taking a walk interval when out running. Sure, it might make my overall pace a little slower, but it makes the run more enjoyable and I'll still finish the distance I set out to finish. Same goes with the way I eat. Taking a break from logging makes life more enjoyable, and I'll still reach my goal. Maybe I'd reach it a little faster if I didn't take breaks, but that's fine with me.

Eating right and exercise is supposed to be something that enhances my life. If I'm overly obsessed with calories and grams and macros, or miles, pace and PRs, it's not enhancing my life.

(And yeah, I know old saying that "obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe dedicated." I know I'm not a happy person when I'm "too dedicated.")

aciuti

Never stop tracking! You'll be surprised how good you feel. If you go over, no problem. Enjoy. Then get back on track. You'll see that you will learn how to enjoy special days too. This is a long term thing, keep going... and tracking. Ciao

aciuti

And happy birthday!

rainbow198

I always keep track of what I'm eating. Vacations, weekends, birthdays etc.

Everyday.

Seeing what I am consuming helps me to fit things in and plan things out and keeps me in control.

Working hard everyday to maintain my 80 lbs loss and for me tracking has been a crucial part of not gain any weight back.

lovabee

I often don't log my food on special occasions like birthdays. You get a feeling after a while for how much you can eat anyway. If you eat more every now and then, don't worry. It will not have much of an impact. You could also even it out by eating at a deficit again for the following 2-3 days.
I also wouldn't want to weigh my piece of birthday cake with a food scale when at a party, only to make sure I didn't go over my calorie goal. Enjoy these days.

Jubee13

What I ended up doing was logging in and recording my exercise, then I didn't track my food on my birthday. Yes I ate too much but I enjoyed it. The next day I got right back to tracking. I enjoyed the freedom of not tracking on my bd but the next day I was ready to start back. This worked for me and I plan to not track on special days. It's a good balance for me.
We all have to find our own way and do what works for us. I enjoyed hearing different experiences!

CrabNebula

I always try to keep some mental log of what I have eaten. If I can't calorie track, I portion track.

My birthday will be the first major event where I may suspend both forms of tracking for the first time in two years. Thinking about going to a calorie bomb burger joint where I have drooled looking at the pics of the desserts. I already ruined it for myself to some extent reading the nutritional info (most burgers easily north of 1k cals each, the supposed 'light menu' not much better, and the desserts? hahahahaha!), but man, once a year? Sure, time to splurge!