When to stop counting calories?

astartig

I will be tracking all my life as well I think, but when I was younger I'd just go by how my clothes felt. if things started getting tight I'd go on a diet.

jr235

I'm not sure if I'll track forever. I've been doing this off and on for years. When I've exercised more I've lost weight and maintained that, so I think for me exercise matters.

For the most part I know when I'm making stupid decisions. I seem to be doing ok with weighing frequently. This time I noticed a 5lb weight gain, but I'm still far from my ultimate goal weight of 130.

All in all I don't know. I would like to train myself to eat a regular amount and healthily, because I wouldn't have to count everyday and I think it would be a better example for my daughter.

gogoyubarino

I've already accepted the fact that I'm going to use MFP to count calories and macros the rest of my life. Without it, I know I'll NEVER be able to eyeball calories well enough to maintain, or take in optimal macronutrient intake and calorie intake. I find MFP not only extremely effective, but very very easy to use. Entering food takes only a couple minutes a day, and it's not a big deal to me, but everybody is different.

I agree. I'm gonna have to log for a long long time if I want to avoid becoming huge again. Logging everyday keeps me accountable and eventhough I go over my calories quite often, the task of keeping count helps a lot in reducing overreating.

mspoopoo

I figure you wouldn't just stop brushing your teeth or showering so why stop tracking?

The few minutes a day logging and keeping track sure beats the time to lose 50, 100, 200lbs again.

glin23

Given the inaccuracies I've found using MFP, I don't know. Probably at least for a while. Keeping track of the food I've eaten (roughly anyways) is not a bad thing.

Joehenny

I've already accepted the fact that I'm going to use MFP to count calories and macros the rest of my life. Without it, I know I'll NEVER be able to eyeball calories well enough to maintain, or take in optimal macronutrient intake and calorie intake. I find MFP not only extremely effective, but very very easy to use. Entering food takes only a couple minutes a day, and it's not a big deal to me, but everybody is different.

Same here.

But you couldn't eyeball? Even at maintenance????

HealthyVitamins

I don't think I will use it forever, having logged for a while now, I know what to eat in a day and how many calories that equates to.

If I reach my goal and start eating foods I have never tried before, or foods I am not used to eating, then I know I will need to log that.

I don't need to come on MFP to know how many calories is in an egg for example, this site has taught me that.

BigGuy47

You should still measure and weigh your food just don't worry about adding everything up. You should be able to maintain your weight without counting calories all the time.

This is what I do.

SJVZEE

How to maintain . . .

All the research says it's harder to maintain than to lose. To lose you need to watch your diet. To maintain you need to exercise (an hour a day!), eat normally (including yummy stuff in small doses), and carefully monitor your weight. Logging really helps. (This is from the federal weight loss registry.)

If you don't log, you need to WEIGH OFTEN. If you go above a very narrow weight band, you need to go back and log everything - in other words, back to the full MFP push.

You might also, as you're going into maintenance, start by logging everything every other week. That will give you baseline information but does allow you to loosen up. If that works for six months, go to every three and just weigh yourself.

Where did you come up with the needing to exercise for an hour a day, to maintain? I didn't exercise at all while I lost weight and now I walk 30 minutes a day, 5-6 days a week. No way will I ever exercise an hour a day

ndj1979

never..I will be doing this in some form or other for life...

Seesawboomerang

When I first lost 30lbs here a couple of years ago, I felt sure I'd just keep on counting the calories to keep myself in check.

Then I got bored of doing that. I continued to maintain healthily for a year or so.

Then I got lazy and snuck in extra treats, not making up for them in exercise.

So, I gained back almost half of what I'd lost.

Thing is, although I'm using MFP to help me shift a few stubborn lbs I could do this without it. It's just a useful tool, stops me playing games with myself.

I'd rather hold on to the lifestyle lessons learnt and stick with that, instead of feeling so attached to calorie counting ...

justal313

I'm very close to maintaining. I am at the point now where typically I could wait until the end of the day, logged everything I ate and be close to my goal. I'm logging daily for accounting purposes more than anything else at this point. I know that I'm going for a 4 mile run tomorrow so we are having a slightly more calorie dense dinner and on thrusday I'm planning on a glass of wine or 2 with dinner because I'm running 4 miles and lifting on thursday. I could get away without logging as long as I portion control but I log for no other reason than to ensure I can have a second beer/glass of wine with dinner (or even one depending on the day) or an extra cookie with my milk before bed or whatever.

When I'm finally to maintaining I'll get on the scale every few weeks and keep an eye on how my clothes fit/feel. If I see I'm drifting back to heavy, I'll start logging EVERYTHING again and make sure I don't go beyond 5 pounds or so heavier than my final goal...

NavyKnightAh13

bump

EDollah

I view calorie logging as THE key to maintenance (when I get there, still a way off). I doubt I would ever have gotten to my max weight if I'd accounted for calories along the way. If I'd seen it clearly laid out to me that eating a whole pizza would be 2000+ calories, I certainly would never have followed that up with a pint of Ben and Jerry's. Yes, I did know it was bad, real bad even, but I'm a numbers guy and seeing the specifics would have dissuaded me.

Athena53

I don't count calories, but I have a general awareness of relative calorie counts and I always look up nutrition info on-line if I'm going to or ordering from a restaurant that publishes it.

For me, it's all in portion control. I know I can have unlimited non-starchy vegetables. I have a couple of pieces of fruit every day. I know that a decent serving of lean meat should be the size of a deck of cards. I don't limit my use of salsa, spices and hot sauce and I have a couple of mini-candy bars every day. For starchy things such as pasta, beans, couscous, etc. I'm careful not to take seconds. For dessert unless it's something I absolutely love I take a tiny amount or none at all. Yesterday someone brought doughnut holes to the church coffee hour and I had one, then backed away from the table. I have no idea how many calories were in it. I go by how my clothes fit and occasional weigh-ins. So far I'm still at my goal weight.

For others, logging is an awareness tool. A poster on anoher board I'm on has just started logging on MFP and said she's really surprised at the calorie content of her snacks. If you aren't aware of the calories in what you're eating, this is a huge first step. The other reason logging helps is that it makes some people stop and think, "do I want to have to log this? is it worth the calories?" Whatever works for you. If logging helps you stay at a weight where you like what you see in the mirror, it's worth it.

55in13

Given the inaccuracies I've found using MFP, I don't know. Probably at least for a while. Keeping track of the food I've eaten (roughly anyways) is not a bad thing.

This is kinda where I am at. I only track a few days here and there that are a good sampling of what I really eat; I try not to cherry pick days and even include a few where we are grilling ribs or other indulgences. I have a few "standard fare" breakfasts and lunches on work days and don't snack at work anymore. I did this while losing and was successful; I lost close to 2 pounds a week to get rid of the first 45 and then about a pound a week for the last 10. Loss was pretty consistent, so I think I have gotten pretty good at rough tracking. I weighed daily (now trying to weigh less often, but still will be at least weekly) and I wear the same belt almost every day; so I have an early warning system in place. I think the key is vigilance, whether I achieve it by tracking just the results or also tracking food is less important than having the commitment to take action if I start to slide again.

cwolfman13

I'm maintaining and don't count anymore; I only find it necessary when I'm actively trying to lose. I spent a lot of time while I was losing learning how and what I should be eating most of the time...that hasn't changed with maintenance, only quantity. When I first went to maintenance I spent about 4 weeks logging to get used to what that looked like day to day...what my plates looked like...snacks, etc. After that, the training wheels came off; I never had any intention of logging my food in a diary for the rest of my life...it was just a training ground. I know for myself, my issue has never been so much about overeating per sei...it was more of the fact that I became so sedentary...I won't let that happen again. So long as I maintain a healthy diet and keep on with my fitness, things seem to be just fine.

Kathryn41057

Don't give up !!!!!! We all have Great days, good days, so-so days, and not so good days. You have lost weight... Isn't that the plan?
I know it is for me.... and I'm only starting. There are those days that I don't track, I'm rebelling !!! But I try to keep a close eye on things; For me, it's usually the weekends. I am away every weekend, and as soon as I pull out of my driveway, I go to "Weekend Mode". But, come Monday morning, my mind swings back into MFP mode. I can't say that I will do this forever, but, for now, I NEED this...
For me, it's 1 day at a time, 1 meal at a time... You've worked hard to get a 30lb loss. Some of the posters suggested that maybe
you track 2-3 days a week..... could that be an option?
Good Luck !!!!!
Kat

potluck965

I've already accepted the fact that I'm going to use MFP to count calories and macros the rest of my life. Without it, I know I'll NEVER be able to eyeball calories well enough to maintain, or take in optimal macronutrient intake and calorie intake. I find MFP not only extremely effective, but very very easy to use. Entering food takes only a couple minutes a day, and it's not a big deal to me, but everybody is different.

+1

I actually like it.

Me too. I love data.

I also bought a fitbit after I hit my weight goal to get more accurate data.

I did, too, except it was a Bodymedia device.

I found Maintenance much more challenging to figure than the actual weight loss, so the more data the better.

Iron_Lotus

I've already accepted the fact that I'm going to use MFP to count calories and macros the rest of my life. Without it, I know I'll NEVER be able to eyeball calories well enough to maintain, or take in optimal macronutrient intake and calorie intake. I find MFP not only extremely effective, but very very easy to use. Entering food takes only a couple minutes a day, and it's not a big deal to me, but everybody is different.

Me too