Calorie counting for life?!

michellepearson224

So I'm just over 5 months in and 20lbs down, with probably another 10 to go until I reach my goal. But I'm soooo fed up of counting every single thing I eat - I have had the odd day off but I just wondered how you all sustain it? Even when in maintenance I guess you have to count? I'm currently giving myself a week off from counting and logging, but still eating sensibly and exercising most days, just to see what happens.

Just interested in other's thoughts on this.

Michelle

arditarose

Not everyone continues logging in maintenance. I've been in maintenance for 6 weeks and it's definitely too soon to stop. Actually, I probably will never stop. I like it.

SideSteel

If calorie counting drives you nutty after a while then I think it's in your best interest to pursue methods that do not involve calorie counting.


If calorie counting is something you enjoy, then by all means keep doing it because it's fantastic especially for people who love it.

You may find this helpful:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10180601/non-tracking-methods-and-behaviors-that-may-help-while-tracking/p1

funjen1972

You don't *need* to track to lose or maintain. Tracking is simply one of many helpful tools. The link above has some excellent tips. If nothing else, try not logging for increasing increments - maybe don't log breakfast for a few days or intentionally don't log for a full day then 2 days. You've got to find a balance between what works for you mentally & physically. I suspect many of us will still mentally track calories consumption even if we don't record it.

michellepearson224

Thanks...interesting. It's funny because I lost a similar amount of weight 5 years ago without tracking at all - I just started exercising and being more careful about what I ate. I only piled it back on when I stopped my gym membership.

Orfygirl

I don't log. It drives me bananas! I found that when I was logging, I obsessed over everything I put in my mouth. I literally spent my whole day counting calories. Now I just weigh my food and eat an appropriate portion size. By making that small adjustment, I have made so many more gains on my weight loss journey then I was when I was obsessing over every calorie I put into my mouth. Find what works for you and go with it because not everyone is the same.

whmscll

I lost 27 pounds two years ago and hit my goal weight. It was such a relief to stop measuring and logging and counting calories. Slowly, I became less careful about what I ate and put half the weight back on. Now I'm losing it again. I've learned that i need to continue tracking in some way, shape or form to stay accountable and maintain.

Sarasmaintaining

With the absolutely dismal success rate for long term maintenance, I have no intention of ever stopping counting calories. Been doing it as part of my maintenance plan for two years now and will be doing it for the next 40+ years. That doesn't' mean I count every single thing, every single day though. For me it works well to count/track during the week and eat a little less than my maintenance calorie level. Then on the weekends I don't track/count and just eat responsibly, but with some leeway because I know I've got the extra calories from my weekdays. It balances out, and I've been doing very well so far

arditarose

Sarasmaintaining wrote: »

With the absolutely dismal success rate for long term maintenance, I have no intention of ever stopping counting calories. Been doing it as part of my maintenance plan for two years now and will be doing it for the next 40+ years. That doesn't' mean I count every single thing, every single day though. For me it works well to count/track during the week and eat a little less than my maintenance calorie level. Then on the weekends I don't track/count and just eat responsibly, but with some leeway because I know I've got the extra calories from my weekdays. It balances out, and I've been doing very well so far

I do this now but continue to TRY to track what I eat on Saturday (my high day). I shoot for 2,500 calories but could honestly eat more pretty easily. I'm tempted to try what you do though, track during the week and be a little more free on the weekend. It's worked well for you?

kami3006

It's not for everyone for sure, but I enjoy it and plan to do it forever. It's become such second nature that I don't give it much thought. I believe that because I cook all our meals and rarely go out to eat (only because I don't enjoy it) that it's an easier process for me than for those who have to work out all the numbers from meals prepared by others. I can see that being a headache.

I'm also doing recomp now and that leaves way too little wiggle room to not count.

Sarasmaintaining

arditarose wrote: »

Sarasmaintaining wrote: »

With the absolutely dismal success rate for long term maintenance, I have no intention of ever stopping counting calories. Been doing it as part of my maintenance plan for two years now and will be doing it for the next 40+ years. That doesn't' mean I count every single thing, every single day though. For me it works well to count/track during the week and eat a little less than my maintenance calorie level. Then on the weekends I don't track/count and just eat responsibly, but with some leeway because I know I've got the extra calories from my weekdays. It balances out, and I've been doing very well so far

I do this now but continue to TRY to track what I eat on Saturday (my high day). I shoot for 2,500 calories but could honestly eat more pretty easily. I'm tempted to try what you do though, track during the week and be a little more free on the weekend. It's worked well for you?

It has. You'll also discover though, that after you've done the whole calorie counting thing for a while you can't just turn it off, even when you give yourself permission to not track (for the weekends etc). It's just in your brain lol. I just picked up Subway and even though I did not purposely track the calories, I knew exactly how much my sub was, including protein and fat grams I could tell you without doubt, exactly how many calories I've eaten today even though I haven't written anything down, and it would be accurate within 50 calories. It's just a part of who I am now

But, I don't allow myself to go long periods of time without intentionally tracking, because I know how easy it is to get sloppy. That's why the weekday-tracking/weekend-not tracking works well, at least for me I have a bit of freedom, but not too much that it becomes a problem.

arditarose

Sarasmaintaining wrote: »

arditarose wrote: »

Sarasmaintaining wrote: »

With the absolutely dismal success rate for long term maintenance, I have no intention of ever stopping counting calories. Been doing it as part of my maintenance plan for two years now and will be doing it for the next 40+ years. That doesn't' mean I count every single thing, every single day though. For me it works well to count/track during the week and eat a little less than my maintenance calorie level. Then on the weekends I don't track/count and just eat responsibly, but with some leeway because I know I've got the extra calories from my weekdays. It balances out, and I've been doing very well so far

I do this now but continue to TRY to track what I eat on Saturday (my high day). I shoot for 2,500 calories but could honestly eat more pretty easily. I'm tempted to try what you do though, track during the week and be a little more free on the weekend. It's worked well for you?

It has. You'll also discover though, that after you've done the whole calorie counting thing for a while you can't just turn it off, even when you give yourself permission to not track (for the weekends etc). It's just in your brain lol. I just picked up Subway and even though I did not purposely track the calories, I knew exactly how much my sub was, including protein and fat grams I could tell you without doubt, exactly how many calories I've eaten today even though I haven't written anything down, and it would be accurate within 50 calories. It's just a part of who I am now

But, I don't allow myself to go long periods of time without intentionally tracking, because I know how easy it is to get sloppy. That's why the weekday-tracking/weekend-not tracking works well, at least for me I have a bit of freedom, but not too much that it becomes a problem.

Yeah, I have a pretty good idea of things now as well. Sometimes down to the gram. I might try it soon. Thanks!

drabbits2

I lost 20 pounds last year and have put 10 back on since January. Why? NO TRACKING. I am a person who does really well with accountability, so I suspect I will be tracking for a long, long time. For real, not in my head since the "in my head" resulted in these 10 pounds coming right back! It's much easier for me to be less honest about what I am putting in my mouth when I don't log. If I would be embarrassed to put down the entire bag of mint milanos I ate over the course of the day, then by golly--don't eat them!!!! Maybe stick to the normal portion! I need the honesty and accountability.

Asher_Ethan

I definitely plan on doing it forever just because it's the only tool that has helped me lose weight and so it will probably be the only tool to keep the weight off.

cwolfman13

I logged for about 9 months while I was losing weight and keeping a diary was a great training tool. When I went to maintenance I quit logging and I have maintained for over 2 years.

IMO, logging and keeping a diary is a lot like training wheels on a bike...it's a great tool to help you learn and a great way to educate yourself...but ultimately you just want to ride. I'm 40 years old and hope to be around at least another 40...I sure as *kitten* am not going to be logging every morsel for 40 years...I don't even think such a notion would be remotely realistic.

Calorie counters are definitely in the minority...there are millions and millions and millions of people who maintain their weight just fine without ever logging a thing.

snowflake930

A little over 3 years on MFP. 19 months on maintenance. 63 years old, and yes I will monitor the rest of my life, if at all possible. I am not logging every single thing I eat or drink now on maintenance, like I did while losing, but I am watching the scale closely. Up a few pounds and I cut back calories. I will not let myself become obese again................it is just the way it is, and will have to be, at least for me. Not everyone needs to do this though.

obLIVIon79

I lost 3 stone tracking and was so happy. Gradually I kept forgetting to log and sure enough then stopped thinking I knew what I was doing. 12 months later I have put a stone on again back on it again but for me I need to have this control otherwise those extra kcal sneak in there

barbecuesauce

I plan to log. I plan to continue to weigh my foods. I have read too many people saying they've put on weight not logging and I know how hard it is to lose when you're at a normal BMI.

People who don't need to are fine, but I don't think I'm one of them.

TimothyFish

Some people seem to think they can continue counting ad infinitum. I don't see that as doable. What I do see as doable is stepping on the bathroom scale once a week or so, and making adjustments as needed. It is also doable to keep a kinda sorta calorie count throughout the day. Most of my meals are all pretty similar on calories each day, so as long as I don't start adding stuff I don't need, I'll do fine without counting.

Liftng4Lis

I take a logging break every 6 months. It's fantastic, as I'll be a lifer.

Sarasmaintaining

cwolfman13 wrote: »

I logged for about 9 months while I was losing weight and keeping a diary was a great training tool. When I went to maintenance I quit logging and I have maintained for over 2 years.

IMO, logging and keeping a diary is a lot like training wheels on a bike...it's a great tool to help you learn and a great way to educate yourself...but ultimately you just want to ride. I'm 40 years old and hope to be around at least another 40...I sure as *kitten* am not going to be logging every morsel for 40 years...I don't even think such a notion would be remotely realistic.

Calorie counters are definitely in the minority...there are millions and millions and millions of people who maintain their weight just fine without ever logging a thing.

Are these people who used to be overweight though? With the dismal rate for long term weight loss success among people who were overweight at one time and then intentionally lost the weight, I don't think you can include that group into your 'millions of people who are fine without logging a thing' category.

So while there are lots of people out there who have never struggled with their weight and can maintain a healthy weight without counting/tracking calories, I don't think that would apply to most here on MFP. I think we're talking about two different groups of people here.