Open Diaries

Reaverie

malibu927 wrote: »

I got to the point where having my diary open led to me omitting things when I started overeating again to make myself look better. It's now locked because I don't think it's anyone's business what I eat. I've been here for three years, I know what I'm doing.

Now THAT is the hardest thing to do! Have an open diary and still be HONEST! I may not COMPLETE the diary, but I still leave it open, and I still give an honest account.. even if I do have to wrestle with myself to do so. But I need to stay honest with myself and need to have it open for others to browse.

alexpriceonline

I keep mine open in the knowledge that people might look at it. It certainly makes me think twice about my food choices.

Speaking of accountability, I'm looking for new MFP friends to motivate and keep me on this fitness adventure!

not_a_runner

Mine has always been open and no one has ever commented on my food choices, and I'll admit I do not always make the best choices. Sometimes when I go way over my calories I don't always log it, but I would do the same even if I had a closed diary. I just sigh, and move on.
Honestly I rarely look at other people's diary's unless they post a question or something related to their calorie goal/food choices/or progress. I would never look through someone's diary just to tell them "OMG you didn't even eat any vegetables today!?" because I still struggle with this myself. Not everyone has goals to eat more whole foods like I do at this point in my journey, and that's fine.

thewindandthework

Mine is open, mostly because I'm grateful for other people's open diaries, which I find very helpful.

Nobody's going to learn anything from me yet, because I'm brand new, but maybe someday I might be of use to someone.

lmew91

I don't have a lot of friends on here, so I don't really worry about who is reading my diary. If someone happens to find inspiration from my diary, then that is wonderful. If someone were to delete me over what I eat... well, okay then. I guess I opened it because I felt someone might want to peruse it, and really what do I have to hide? It's food that I am putting into my own body.

successgal1

Mine is open, but I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who cares. :-)

JeromeBarry1

The only person who judges me is me. The only person whose judgemental opinion of me matters is me. I have an open diary and hundreds of friends. Maybe you all treat ugly old men differently than pretty young girls, but no-one has second-guessed, objected, or questioned my food choices. Open your diary, I advocate, because it's a lot easier to get good help when you ask for it if your diary is open.

_Justinian_

I wish it was a requirement to keep all diaries open. Then you could see who is being honest and who is not. If you are doing what you are supposed to be doing and the weight is coming off, then you have nothing to be ashamed of.

Tacklewasher

_Justinian_ wrote: »

I wish it was a requirement to keep all diaries open. Then you could see who is being honest and who is not. If you are doing what you are supposed to be doing and the weight is coming off, then you have nothing to be ashamed of.

Really? Sounds pretty judgemental to me.

mph323

Mine's open. not to keep me honest in my logging but to keep me honest in the community. If I participate in a discussion about food choices or logging methods and make a statement about what and how I eat I feel other participants should be able to look at it and challenge me if I'm misrepresenting. I've never gotten any comments and wouldn't expect to, and would cheerfully block anyone who felt they need to give me unsolicited advice

Christine_72

Mine is open, partly so people dont have to friend me to see my dairy, and because i feel if I'm going to give advice on here about healthy food choices, exercise, macros whatever, then it's important not to hide my food choices.

As for judgments.. I once got a message chastising me for not eating enough veggies and drinking too much milk, which is probably true on both counts lol

Lolalikeslolagets

So- is it just me but all of you who say you have open diaries, when I click on your profile it says diary is private. Is this just an in app thing? I'm being nosy but honestly trying to figure this whole food thing out and definitely not ready to share my diary our there.. am I supposed to request a friend? Sorry- newbie here...

mph323

emilk2016 wrote: »

So- is it just me but all of you who say you have open diaries, when I click on your profile it says diary is private. Is this just an in app thing? I'm being nosy but honestly trying to figure this whole food thing out and definitely not ready to share my diary our there.. am I supposed to request a friend? Sorry- newbie here...

Ha! You made me go check my settings! Yup, mine's public

red99ryder

_Justinian_ wrote: »

I wish it was a requirement to keep all diaries open. Then you could see who is being honest and who is not. If you are doing what you are supposed to be doing and the weight is coming off, then you have nothing to be ashamed of.[/quot

I think logging is a win in itself ( Open or closed ) and if you eat over and gain weight at least you know why

Gisel2015

_Justinian_ wrote: »

I wish it was a requirement to keep all diaries open. Then you could see who is being honest and who is not. If you are doing what you are supposed to be doing and the weight is coming off, then you have nothing to be ashamed of.

And how would you know that the person was being honest just by looking at his/her diary? Just because they logged a particular food doesn't mean that they actually had it.

Food diaries are very personal; some people may like to share it and others not, and we have no right, nor does MFP, to require or even suggest that members kept an open diary for everybody to see.

Christine_72

emilk2016 wrote: »

So- is it just me but all of you who say you have open diaries, when I click on your profile it says diary is private. Is this just an in app thing? I'm being nosy but honestly trying to figure this whole food thing out and definitely not ready to share my diary our there.. am I supposed to request a friend? Sorry- newbie here...

I can't see open diaries from the app either. You have to go in through your computer.

Speaking of... I once got drilled for having my diary closed in a similar thread as this one. But that charming person was on the app, so couldn't access my diary, it looked
like it was set to private.

_Justinian_

Gisel2015 wrote: »

_Justinian_ wrote: »

I wish it was a requirement to keep all diaries open. Then you could see who is being honest and who is not. If you are doing what you are supposed to be doing and the weight is coming off, then you have nothing to be ashamed of.

And how would you know that the person was being honest just by looking at his/her diary? Just because they logged a particular food doesn't mean that they actually had it.

Food diaries are very personal; some people may like to share it and others not, and we have no right, nor does MFP, to require or even suggest that members kept an open diary for everybody to see.

True, but how many times do you see someone seeking help on weight loss in these threads, wondering why they're not losing anything, and they have to be asked to make their diary public? Also, there are some on here--and I'm not naming any names--who have been on this website for years, and like to give advice and bring out their pitchforks on others, but haven't logged any diary entries for weeks (or keep them private) and lost a total of maybe 10 pounds out of 80 or more. I don't think that's fair to people who are new here and really seeking help.

What exactly is the big deal about people seeing what food you eat? The majority of us here are either overweight or obese. It's no secret. Do you eat every meal in private where no one can see you? It's obvious that our eating habits over time are what caused us to get to where we are today in the first place.

I just find it ironic that we are on a website seeking help with weight loss where it is agreed that 80%+ of it involves your diet, and yet we don't want anyone to know what we are eating.

Christine_72

To be honest, and I'm speaking myself only, not anyone else.. The only reason i would keep my diary closed is if i was embarrassed by my food choices and didn't want anyone else to see them.

mph323

Well I think if you're going to ask for help you need to let people see your diary or the advice you get will be based on guesswork and pretty much worthless. Beyond that whether or not you keep your diary public is a personal decision and really only relevant if you're advocating others eat or track the way you do, in which case yes it should be open.

Gisel2015

_Justinian_ wrote: »

Gisel2015 wrote: »

_Justinian_ wrote: »

I wish it was a requirement to keep all diaries open. Then you could see who is being honest and who is not. If you are doing what you are supposed to be doing and the weight is coming off, then you have nothing to be ashamed of.

And how would you know that the person was being honest just by looking at his/her diary? Just because they logged a particular food doesn't mean that they actually had it.

Food diaries are very personal; some people may like to share it and others not, and we have no right, nor does MFP, to require or even suggest that members kept an open diary for everybody to see.

True, but how many times do you see someone seeking help on weight loss in these threads, wondering why they're not losing anything, and they have to be asked to make their diary public? Also, there are some on here--and I'm not naming any names--who have been on this website for years, and like to give advice and bring out their pitchforks on others, but haven't logged any diary entries for weeks (or keep them private) and lost a total of maybe 10 pounds out of 80 or more. I don't think that's fair to people who are new here and really seeking help.

What exactly is the big deal about people seeing what food you eat? The majority of us here are either overweight or obese. It's no secret. Do you eat every meal in private where no one can see you? It's obvious that our eating habits over time are what caused us to get to where we are today in the first place.

I just find it ironic that we are on a website seeking help with weight loss where it is agreed that 80%+ of it involves your diet, and yet we don't want anyone to know what we are eating.

Point taken, but as Christine said "To be honest, and I'm speaking for myself only, not anyone else.. " I prefer, to keep my diary closed and not because I am embarrassed (in maintenance for over 6 years) but because what I eat is my business and nobody else. Since by choice I have no friends in MFP then I see no reason to disclose my eating habits to the whole community.

But I understand that if somebody needs help losing weight, seeing their diary and offering recommendations is a good thing. If you don't ask for help, keeping your diary close is also a good thing and a matter of preference.