Daily planning vs weekly planning

whitej1234

Hi,
I wanted to share a tip that was easier for me to log, and see who else is doing it this way and maybe to learn from you.
Over the time I realized that logging daily post food intake is usually very cumbersome and causes me to drop it quit quick. What I am currently doing is planning a week ahead.
Meaning I am, along with some partial meal prep at the beginning of the week also set a food budget for the week in terms of quantities (5 boiled eggs, 3 bananas, 1 cup of rice, etc). I will actually weigh the food right then and store it in a separate box, which excludes the need to weigh every cup all the time.
I make sure to set aside about 20-25% of the budget to unforeseen food (spontaneous dinner out/ craving /etc). And if some plan changes (I really didn't feel like eating that 3rd banana but I decided to take an extra piece of bread) I just readjust the plan which takes much less time.

Did any of you do anything similar? Do you have extra tips on logging like that? Somehow it is easier not to feel guilty of wanting to eat extra piece of something when you know you have a "budget", and I have almost always didn't finish it towards the end of the week even though I'm on a quit restrictive calorie intake and I actually expected myself to go overboard at the beginning with "I will compensate on this tomorrow".

I'm still debating about what to do with the going outs dinners - I mean I just place them in that 20-25% and always try to round up the calories I think the meal had (If it was something around 500 cl I will round and say 800 just in case I didn't notice some crazy sauce or they added sugar somewhere I didn't expect etc). But I am thinking about going into planning not only calories but nutrients as well and then this is really complicated.

I also wandered, those of you who maintain, how do you log? I mean do you actually measure every spoon for years?
Thoughts and ideas are welcome!

kommodevaran

I abandoned my food diary a few months after I hit maintenance, I just plan my meals in a spreadsheet, with boxes for each meal and color codes for fruit and vegs. I plan ahead; how far and how detailed varies, sometimes just one day, sometimes three weeks, sometimes all components of all meals, sometimes just dinners for some days of the week and fruit for breakfast and lunch, etc. I start with an idea, or fill in when I want something in particular and I see an opening. Before I go shopping, I read through the flyers from the various grocery chains, adjust the plan, write my shopping list and schedule shopping - decide how much to buy basedon how many days I'll be buying for - try to get everything on the list, struggle really hard to not buy anything else ; when I come home, I roughly weigh and portion out for the number of days left until the next expedition shopping trip. Persishables are scheduled to be eaten first, the hardier vegetables and fruits last (yay pun).

This works for me because I focus on getting all my favorites, being frugal and stretching everything - not because I have to, but for the game aspect - and getting real portions, not so much on the restriction of calories. My meals are balanced and varied, so I don't have to worry about nutrition. I also plan for, roughly guessing, around 95% of my calories, so I can have a treat now and then.

zyxst

I log daily, before each meal I eat. I typically use the container/utensil I'm going to eat from/with to weigh out foods. Example: if I'm eating a salad, I put the bowl on the scale and weigh out each item as it goes into the bowl (zeroing out the scale after each item). I don't find it taking too much time, but I've been doing it for 6 years.

If what you do works for you, keep doing it.

glassyo

I think I'm lucky because I tend to eat the same things every day so it's really easy to just click on the copy from yesterday option.

Then I can change the weight of certain foods or swap out an Oreo for a do si do or golden grahams for chocolate frosted flakes.

I never really found logging that time consuming.

kimny72

I never really found logging took much time, but I live alone and tend to eat a lot of the same stuff often. I think if you do find it to be a pain, your plan sounds like a good idea. I often log my food for the day in the AM to see how my numbers will look and tweak portions or make a mental note on what macro I might want to focus on for snacks if necessary.

I'm maintaining and logging/weighing is a habit so I keep doing it. I find I tend to naturally eat lower protein and fat than I'd like to when I'm not paying attention. I will be less worried about exact serving sizes on occasion, but I'll also have weeks where I weigh out every bite. I think you have to find the right balance for you where you don't feel burdened but you also aren't in danger of flying off the rails!

nickssweetheart

I generally prelog a weeks worth of meals when I plan my grocery list. I usually have the same breakfast every day, so I just copy that, and then I make 3 or 4 different meals and mix them up for lunch and dinner. Throw in some fruit for snacks and I"m good to go. I don't do a classic meal prep, but I generally cook 4 servings of whatever I make and have 1 serving the day I make it, 1 the next day, and throw 2 in the freezer (if it's something that will freeze well.) I combine cooked from scratch meals with some convenience foods like the occasional jarred spaghetti sauce or canned refried beans to keep everything simple.

Lounmoun

I prelog my food for the day most mornings before breakfast.
I have dinners planned for the week but it is different every night.
I tend to eat a limited number of things for breakfast or lunch. I do not weigh and set aside food in advance though.
I tend to eat the same number of calories most days for breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks so I just have to find a lunch that is around 400 calories every day. If something changes with my plans that allows some flexibility but I am not lost.

whitej1234

Great tips!
I actually didn't think about just logging whatever I buy and then just marking it when it is over, and dividing it by the number of days it took to "eat it". It should definitely work for all sorts of ongoing foods (milk/bread/etc), a bit less for pasta or cans, but I guess they can be logged when they are opened and then finished. Awesome idea!
@Lounmoun how do you know if your dish is around 400 cal? Do you measure it? Do you have the eye for it by now to just know?

hesn92

I don’t actually meal prep or log my food for the week In advance but I find I eat the same things all week for breakfast snacks and lunch so I just hit “copy yesterday” all week lol. For dinner, I create a recipe one time and then use that recipe each time I eat that same meal in the future. So the only time it’s a pain to log dinner is when I’m making something new or we go out to eat. Another thing that helps is saving meals. I saved my sandwich as a meal so I just have to select that meal instead of logging each ingredient. I also do that for meals like pork that I eat with a side of veg, a baked potato and roll for example and then when I have that same meal in the future I select the meal and go back to my diary and adjust quantities as needed