Am I the only one who doesn't count or measure?

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  • snowflakesav
    snowflakesav Posts: 644 Member
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    I track what I eat but I pretty much eye ball the measurements. I own a scale and occasionally I do a reality check...only to find I'm not far off. I am conservative with calorie dense foods..I don't get too wrapped up about weighing spinach, however I use a measuring spoon for all salad dressing.

    Week off over week my weight loss is nearly precisely the deficit that I am tracking. So I am tracking correctly.

    Sometimes old timers on the board jump all over people for not weighing their food. I don't always think it is warranted.
  • nak1126
    nak1126 Posts: 1 Member
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    Well whatever you are doing is working for you! Your before and after picture is incredible!! Keep up the good work!!
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
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    I think the closer one gets to their goal/ideal weight, the more critical weighing and logging become since there's an increasingly dwindling margin for error. :)

  • AlciaMode
    AlciaMode Posts: 421 Member
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    I do log my food because it helps me be responsible about how much of it I eat but I do not measure it. It is working just fine for me, and since you are obviously succeeding as well I say stick to doing what you are doing. I like this site for a lot more than the food diary. Getting to see the graf of my weight going down is probably #1 so don't let the meanies get you down. Some folks have trouble seeing past their own nose.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    forgtmenot wrote: »
    This is a calorie counting site, so naturally most of us count calories...

    Maybe I am wrong (I often am) but I see this site as much more than just a place to count calories. Counting calories is only one segment of MFP.

    I have learned much about exercise and fitness. I already knew how to figure and count calories...I can log them on a piece of paper for the day. However...I was clueless about where to start on an exercise routine.

  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    aprilflower18232 wrote: »
    reading the boards I sometimes feel as though I am the only one who does not count calories or measure my food. I mean I know about how many calories I eat daily but I have never really counted and I never measure or weigh my food. I am not criticizing those who do, we all have our own journeys but I just feel like I'm in the minority.

    You are where I hope to be...soon...able to eat intuitively and still lose or maintain. I do not want nor plan to count calories for the rest of my life.

  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    billieljaime wrote: »
    no youre not the only person, there will come a time you will need to do so though.

    Why do you think so???

    She has lost 174lbs!!!

    You don't think she has it in her to either maintain or maybe lose another few pounds???

    Personally...I don't think she needs to lose any more at all...she looks great at her current weight.

  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    if its working for you, great.

    i dont think any of us CARE if people count or not, but when people come on and say ' i cant lose weight' or claim to be under their calories but obviously aren't weighing and are gaining or not losing... THEN we care. cause... well, its a calorie counting website, at heart. LOL
  • Lady_Grell
    Lady_Grell Posts: 103 Member
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    You have to do what works for you.

    I know that I had to start counting because a part of me couldn't accept that my eating was the problem. I was convinced that I had some terrible, undiagnosed disease that prevented me from losing weight. Whenever people told me I needed to count calories, weigh, and measure foods and such, I would counter that I didn't eat that much. The thing was, I didn't eat all that much quantity-wise, but I was still getting far more than I had assumed. I was also way off on portion sizes. I never would have dreamed that my steak was routinely 8oz rather than four. For me, I had to learn to weigh and measure so I could teach myself proportions. I had to learn to count so I could recognize what I was putting into my body.

    Your pictures look great, and I'm glad it's working out for you. If you find yourself having trouble later on, you might want to revisit this train of thought. Good luck to you!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
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    Annie_01 wrote: »
    forgtmenot wrote: »
    This is a calorie counting site, so naturally most of us count calories...

    Maybe I am wrong (I often am) but I see this site as much more than just a place to count calories. Counting calories is only one segment of MFP.

    I have learned much about exercise and fitness. I already knew how to figure and count calories...I can log them on a piece of paper for the day. However...I was clueless about where to start on an exercise routine.

    The primary function of MFP is; 1) a calculator to estimate requisite calorie intake per given weight control goals; 2) a diary for which to track calories based on #1.

    Yes...there is much more that can be learned, but those are the primary functions...that's what most people sign up for. Most people I know in the real world don't even use the forums, they just use the diary and calculator.
  • karyabc
    karyabc Posts: 830 Member
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    Nop you are not alone, i dont count , i sort of guess how much i consume daily and go by that, it works perfect.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    As I said...I am often wrong.

    If you go by the name alone...My Fitness Pal...it sounds to me (again...I am probably wrong) but it would seem as if the primary function is...Fitness. For me...weight loss and fitness are not necessarily the same but can for some be one and the same.

    I think what bothers me...in the past there have been some member make statements such as..."If you are not counting calories why are you using MFP?". While I do use it to track calories at least for now I just think that people use it as they choose...how it best benefits their...fitness.

    Maybe I am just being a smarta.. this morning. I seem to be in a strange mood. Possibly I am having one of those opinionated moments...IDK.

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
    edited May 2015
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    Annie_01 wrote: »
    As I said...I am often wrong.

    If you go by the name alone...My Fitness Pal...it sounds to me (again...I am probably wrong) but it would seem as if the primary function is...Fitness. For me...weight loss and fitness are not necessarily the same but can for some be one and the same.

    I think what bothers me...in the past there have been some member make statements such as..."If you are not counting calories why are you using MFP?". While I do use it to track calories at least for now I just think that people use it as they choose...how it best benefits their...fitness.

    Maybe I am just being a smarta.. this morning. I seem to be in a strange mood. Possibly I am having one of those opinionated moments...IDK.

    what's the first thing you do when you sign up for MFP? Set up your profile right? and then per your information, MFP spits out that calorie goal for you...what's the point of that if the primary purpose of the application isn't to calculate a calorie goal and have people track that with their diary. I mean what's the point of having the database and being able to scan stuff for calories if the primary purpose of the app isn't to track calories?

    I don't log or count either, but I used to...there's lots of people who don't or no longer do...but to answer the OPs question of why it seem so many people count calories here? Well...duh. The VAST MAJORITY of users want to get a calorie target and use the database to track calories in their diaries to hit those targets regardless of their weight control goals.

    As a fitness tracker, MFP blows chunks...there are way better fitness trackers out there. You don't get a much better food tracker/diary or calorie database though.
  • dixiewhiskey
    dixiewhiskey Posts: 3,333 Member
    edited May 2015
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    No. Don't worry about what everyone else is doing. Do what works for you. Reevaluate when you hit a roadblock
  • BlueSkyShoal
    BlueSkyShoal Posts: 325 Member
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    I never measure and rarely count. I don't care about losing exactly two pounds a week or one pound a week as long as I'm losing. And I can usually estimate and eyeball well enough to achieve that.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    If there are 70m users and a fraction of those are active, then its unsurprising a small % will mean a significnat number dont weigh food or count. Its just less accurate bit it doesnt always have to mean less effective.
  • Carol_
    Carol_ Posts: 469 Member
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    My thoughts are sooner or later you will hit a plateau..and that's ok. You will have this site to get you back on track..and by then you might need to count and measure to remain successful. You really look good! Good work!
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,565 Member
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    I dont!
  • Carol_
    Carol_ Posts: 469 Member
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    I'm not good at visually judging. Wish I was.
  • spat095
    spat095 Posts: 105 Member
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    lemonsnowdrop wrote: »
    I didn't in the beginning, but when I got down to my last fifteen or so pounds, I really had to tighten up my measuring. Knowing "about how many calories" I ate per day wasn't enough. Now that I'm down to my goal weight, I don't weigh foods I've weighed a million times every time, but it's because an easy habit and ensures I'm not eating more than I think.

    TLDR: being off by a few calories can make a difference and a food scale removes that chance.

    This exactly - maintenance is much trickier than losing (at least in this way) and counting makes all the difference.

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