MFP Stop predicting my weight

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  • Therealobi1
    Therealobi1 Posts: 3,261 Member
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    Op I would stop pressing that button, if it's making you feel this way
    Really think about what your doing before you make yourself ill
    You need to be patient , don't drop your calories too low otherwise you may burn out
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,943 Member
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    TreyTnt9 wrote: »
    Redhededkewty wrote: »
    It is BS and they are irresponsible for doing it. Everyone is different. I understand the under calorie warning, but the lie about your weight projection is just as bad. It's depressing and defeatingly frustrating.

    mymqly3fzkbk.gif

    Ohhh, you grabbed my <3 What an adorable baby!
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    Machka9 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    Ready2Rock206 wrote: »
    So stop pushing the button that makes it predict your weight. There's absolutely no reason to push it unless you want the prediction so just don't push it. Simple. And if you're not following MFP as intended and not logging accurately it won't be right. Not a flaw in the system really.

    Actually, it won't be accurate unless every day has exactly the same amount of calories in, and the same out. It's a completely useless tool. And utterly unhelpful. MFP should have done away with it in one of their many updates to mess with other features.

    As I said, personally I found it inspiring ... motivating.

    When I reached my first goal, I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue on or stop. But that little message told me that in 5 weeks I could be a weight I hadn't seen in a long times. So I figured I'd keep going and see what happened. Sure enough, I lost the weight ... and of course, as I went down the number in the message kept going down too. It was like chasing a carrot!! :grin: And before I knew it, I had dropped to my 2004 and earlier (including my high school days much earlier) weight.

    Ah ok, I stand corrected. I wasn't thinking about it as a strictly motivational tool, more in the way of its lack of accuracy.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    I dismiss it as a total gimmick. I click it sometimes out of novelty but set no actual store in it whatsoever.

    Same. I click the "Complete This Entry" button on my food diary every evening, but I completely ignore the "prediction" it generates. I don't even see it as an annoyance, it's simply not even worth looking at.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    I'm clearly perfect because I experimented with putting the prediction in my diary on the date it was predicted and it turned out pretty accurate within a 2lb margin

    But then I stopped completing my diary because it is an irrelevant feature

  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,930 Member
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    Aaron_K123 wrote: »
    Lizarking wrote: »
    It's not a lie, it's mathematical formula that makes the mistaken assumption that weight loss is linear.

    It also assumes perfectly accurate recording of both calories in and out and it also assumes that that perfectly accurate recording will continue for 5 weeks straight with the exact same deficit hit every single day.

    Ideally we should be recording our calories accurately every day for as many weeks as it takes. :)


    I must have over-recorded my food and under-recorded my exercise because, like I said, those predictions were pretty pessimistic. I was consistently hitting the predicted amount in about 3 weeks instead of 5.

  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
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    MissusMoon wrote: »
    Redhededkewty wrote: »
    It is BS and they are irresponsible for doing it. Everyone is different. I understand the under calorie warning, but the lie about your weight projection is just as bad. It's depressing and defeatingly frustrating.

    You know what though? By the math, it's correct. Unfortunately, every day isn't the same.

    I've lost 101lbs since April 3rd of this year. I've beat their predictions. I've never complained about them. MOVE ON.

    This. My projected weight loss was always pretty accurate when I stuck to the deficit.
  • DebSozo
    DebSozo Posts: 2,578 Member
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    OP, if you are having difficulty matching the MFP predictions, then recalculate your MFP goal. You could possibly be accidentally overestimating exercise calories, eating back too many, and are not at a deficit. (I'm assuming your 1200 is net calories after exercising and not before).

    Most people are simply not weighing food properly or are not logging everything or are overestimating calorie exercise burn. At any rate it takes a while to figure out YOUR individual daily calorie burn. I average out my calories for the week (add every day's results and divide by 7) because mine are not the same every day. That way if I eat a bit too much one meal I can shave off a few calories here and there spread out over the rest of the week to compensate.

    Another consideration is that you might not match the algorithm MFP follows for variables such as age, height, and activity level. You might have an undiagnosed thyroid issue, for instance. It may take detective work and a little time to tweak.

    As mentioned already, don't go too low unless doctor supervised. As a safeguard I have figured out my max and minimum daily calories from calculators on outside sites. I calculated my resting metabolic rate (rmr) and usually try not to go under that. And I estimated my daily max calories to be my upper end which is my TDEE. As long as I stay between my max and min daily/weekly calories, then I am in a deficit. It is best for me to vary my calories every day or my body adjusts and gets used to a set value.

    If you have unrecorded "cheat" days/meals you will sabotage and slow down efforts. My deficit is only a couple hundred calories daily, so personally I can't afford to go over my TDEE often.

    If you are frustrated with not hitting what MFP predicts and don't have a lot to lose, please consider recalculating for a 0.5 or 1 pound a week loss. It is difficult to run too long at an aggressive deficit. Recalculate goals and adjust expectations as you drop weight.

  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
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    Aaron_K123 wrote: »
    So here is the thing. MFP bottoms out at 1200 calories. That means that if your TDEE is 1600 calories and you tell it you want to lose 1 pound a week that is a deficit of 500 calories a day. But it won't recommend 1000 calories a day, so it gives you 1200. If you switched it to lose 2 pounds a day that would in theory be a daily intake of 600 calories but again MFP will give you 1200...because it doesn't go below that.

    If your goal is 1200 chances are you bottomed out MFP and its not actually giving you the amount of calories that would fit with your stated goals and therefore expectation. Probably why it is "lying" to you. But yeah feel free to ignore it, its a digital readout on a computer screen autogenerated...it isn't a person judging you. Or, alternatively, if you cannot ignore it then just don't click the "complete my day" button....you don't have to click that.

    This ^^^ !
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    What's wrong with a crystal ball that tells you your future, particularly how much you will weight in exactly 5 weeks from now? :(

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1318741/in-5-weeks-youll-lose-10lbs-why-is-it-not-working/p1

    Or just stop pressing Complete This Diary button.. /end
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Redhededkewty wrote: »
    but the lie about your weight projection is just as bad.

    It's not a lie, it's just math, assuming the estimate they have for your maintenance is correct and the inputs are correct. Obviously it couldn't be anything else. I mostly ignored it. Who remembers what was predicted 5 weeks ago?
    It's depressing and defeatingly frustrating.

    I didn't experience it that way at all, but if you do, definitely don't close the diary.
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    edited October 2016
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    The projection assumes your calories in and out are 100% accurate and the deficit 'today' will be the deficit for each day over the next 5 weeks. Such accuracy is not really possible and that level of consistency is also unlikely. Even if you are meticulous there will be errors in your calories in. And even with the best efforts, calories out are a guestimate.

    If you don't want to see the prediction, don't 'complete' your day. Problem solved.
    Redhededkewty wrote: »
    I started dieting in June. I set a 1,200 daily calorie limit and am usually well under that. Every day I close my diary, and it tells me what I should weigh in 5 weeks - but I don't. I have lost 26 pounds, but according to MFP I should be 10 lbs lighter. This nonsense has been VERY VERY VERY DEPRESSING AND I NEED IT TO STOP.

  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
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    I find it humorous. Or, I did, back when I was tracking.

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