Why do people keep their food or exercise diary private?

petecastelli5

I thought the point what to see what other people do to be successful. I mean what is so private about the food diary?

KyleGrace8

So other people don't judge you and you just showed up for the calculator and not the community? Some people just like the feeling of secure information, yes even food diaries.

singingflutelady

Because I am low residue/low fiber so no raw fruit and veggies, very few cooked vegetables only if cooked to death, no legumes, nuts, seeds, no red meat, no spices, no lactose, and whole grains, etc so I have too many judgy mcjudgersons who judge me.

DeficitDuchess

I don't use them because I found that it's easier just to track, via Google Sheets; with the exception of having to calculate everything myself! The database isn't accurate enough & I don't round my totals, to the nearest whatever but I kept my account & paid for the premium version, to easily figure my macro nutrients by gram, to socialize, glean information, offer it & I like having the day streak!

neldabg

My food diary used to be open to friends, but then I got tired of explaining/justifying my food intake. For example, during a particularly active time in life, I was logging 2500-3000 calories worth of food. Friends ended up commenting if I was okay, if I was eating properly, etc. Indeed, I am a petite female, but I've been maintaining for a while now, and with what I'd learned from my FitBit, personal judgement, and real world results and data, yes, I needed that much energy to maintain my weight.
I'm very thankful that people on my friends list care that I'm staying on track, but I'd rather just log my intake without explanation.

LBgetsfit

Because out of my 1,260 calories for the day, I chose to eat 500+ cals of "my cookie ate my brownie" today and I just don't have time for people to judge me or lecture me on this... Hahaha.
Also, and more honestly, the reality is that I don't look at people's diaries ever so it never occurred to me that others might want to peek at mine?
Interesting topic!

petecastelli5

Great answers, now I know. I can't imagine giving anyone a hard time here about it. I just wanted to see to gain knowledge and insight, get food ideas from people actually participating. nothing more.Thanks for the replies.

DeficitDuchess

petecastelli5 wrote: »

Great answers, now I know. I can't imagine giving anyone a hard time here about it. I just wanted to see to gain knowledge and insight, get food ideas from people actually participating. nothing more.Thanks for the replies.

You're welcome & thank you also!

jennifer_417

I've been defriended over the contents of my diary. I still keep it open, because I have no bothers to give, but I can see why people wouldn't prefer that.

GaleHawkins

Some find no need to record anything because they tend to eat from a pool of maybe 100 foods and have long since memorized and track mentally. I do all of my counting and food weighing by just using my bathroom scales each morning to compute my net CICO daily. If I drop out of my +/- 5 pound range I track for a day to see how my WOE has changed without me knowing it. Some people may experience peer pressure too.

Edel2479

I didn't know how to make it public lol but a friend on here taught me!! Thank goodness for friends ☺!!

kayte56789

How do you put your account on private sorry I'm new

MissusMoon

I have seen countless examples of people publicly criticizing people for eating this or that. Hate to break it to you, but this is the internet and people can be obnoxious.

Me, I keep it private because at the beginning of the day when I've planned it, it looks like I'm eating 600 calories. By the end, it's typically more than double. I mess with it and I don't need feedback from the internet peanut gallery.

This is OUR journey, it doesn't belong to anyone else. Boundaries. If people want to open it up to feel accountable, that is their choice. Frankly, anyone stating they feel entitled to the information bothers me.

Oh, my success is based on a food scale and total honesty within my private diary.

thehexenbiest

I'm with the 'Don't judge me' crowd. I mostly count calories and while I try not to let things get out of hand, there are days where I'm just stressed at work and forget to eat all day, then have a 1,500 cals meal from Burger King for dinner. Or days when I substitute a meal with candy just 'cause I can. And the last thing I need is people projecting their own standards onto me.

Alatariel75

I have no need to look at anyone else's diary, and disagree that the point of MFP is to do that. You can be perfectly successful without ever seeing someone else's diary.

The default is private. I feel that by changing the default, I'd be implying I'd welcome comments on my food intake, and I don't. I'm happy with what I eat, and I don't need any advice. I don't need the accountability of other people seeing my diary, nor do I need any positive feedback.

Quite frankly, I'm here to track my food and look after my own food intake, first and foremost. What I eat really isn't any one else's business.

paperpudding

petecastelli5 wrote: »

I thought the point what to see what other people do to be successful. I mean what is so private about the food diary?

That isnt the point for everybody though.

Personally I have no interest in other peoples diaries and I have no interest in what other people think of my diary.

Some people like accountability or advice/feedback/encouragement from others, that's good for them.

and when people ask for help, it is useful to see their diary - but there are some of us who dont want help, accountability or advice/feedback/encouragement.

VeganRaptor

Because being judged on what you eat sucks.
I used to have mine open, then I closed it because people were saying comments about my intake that were really upsetting me. I opened it again in the end though!

faith_suzzette

I was wondering the same! I thought the point of having a calculator and having friends/community is to learn from and motivate each other. Good to know how those with private diaries feel!