Taking a break from logging after 8 years

nxd10

Greetings All -

I am taking a break from logging. I logged every single thing I ate for over 3000 days.

I lost my goal of 35 pounds, dropped a few pounds and gained a bit but came back to that range for almost all of the last 8 years. I am still in that zone now (BMI, 22.7).

It's probably been more than a year since logging has had any effect whatsoever on the food that I eat. I have changed my eating habits completely. I always ate healthy, but I am now very attentive to when I'm full and mindful about what I eat.

After all this time carefully recording everything I have just found I was uninterested in continuing. Starting in June I'd just log everything at the end of the day (it's amazing how good you can get at remembering meals). Then I just couldn't figure out why I was doing it except to continue that very long streak.

It feels funny not logging. In fact after five days of abstinence, I just wanted to the day before yesterday and did. But I felt no such urge yesterday or today.

I expect I will take it up again in a month or so - holidays are always tough. I will continue to weigh myself every day. I find that helpful. And I will certainly start logging again if I start gaining weight.

In the meantime, I'm on holiday.

Anyway - enjoy! I have found this discipline incredibly helpful.

Nancy

P.S. I had wanted to go back to see the date (I know it was May 1), but my log gets really wonky on my phone and on the web prior to January 1, 2015. It shows EXACTLY 1 item logged per day, randomly scattered across meals. I'm going to check back and see if it's just a database issue. That was just odd.

Diatonic12

That's quite an accomplishment, Nancy. My longest streak was a year but I lost it due to a vacation. I was sad because you really do get attached to keeping your streak going. Enjoy your break and holiday. Catch you back out there on the trail.

Orphia

Bravo on 3,000 days!

I've just passed 2,000 days. I have had days this year when I just used Quick Add because I knew I hadn't overeaten. (Amazing how 5 years of logging will teach you that!).

I just checked my iOS 14 phone app. No food is there until 1 October 2018, but my exercise calories still go all the way back to when I started in 2015. I recall reading (in the Help section?) that data isn't kept long. I know data on our profile feed is only kept 6 months, because I contacted Help one time about a post by a friend who'd died.

sijomial

Amazing dedication Nancy.

"And I will certainly start logging again if I start gaining weight." - Or you might find that mindful eating will work to reverse the trend as well.

Part of my mindful eating internal discussion is:
Do I actually want this?
Do I need this?
Is this the correct portion size?
What is my weight trend doing?

cmriverside

Yay! I hope it is effortless for you.

MikePfirrman

First time I tried it I failed miserably and came back. But I've been doing it successfully for around 4 or 5 years now. Just have a red line. The fear of entering in all my food again is a motivator, at least for me.

MostlyWater

I'm here longer but i don't log every single thing.

SummerSkier

Well taking a break from logging doesn't mean ending your MFP streak tho right? You can still haunt on the community and help the rest of us... please.

nxd10

Thank you all. It still feels odd not logging. I’ve actually lost 2 pounds. And I expect to be back at it in November.

Gisel2015

I am not logging very consistently or often either, after being in maintenance for 10 years.

I started to take a logging break while on vacation and over the weekends or when eating out. I really don't remember what my longer streak was, but as today is less than 895 days. However, this number is deceiving since it implies logging into MFP, not completing the diary. Congratulations to you @nxd10 on your "over 3000 days" streak. That is an accomplishment!

It didn't feel funny or odd to me not logging daily, just different, and one less (annoying for me) thing to do during the day. However, I did weigh sometimes my food to keep portions control in check, specially when using saved recipes in MFP. Keeping track of my body weight few times a week, and never letting it go up more than a couple of lbs., was and still is very helpful.)

It seems that you are in the right track. Kudos and good luck!

jugar

I have been maintaining for 8 years now, and logging is a tool I use when things have slipped a bit, or if I want to share it with anyone who is just learning and working on improving their eating habits. I have gone through a few periods of experimentation (eliminating grains, increasing fibre, etc.) and logging helps track any results, positive or negative, but normal every day eating does not really require logging any more. A loose approach works for me - and you don't lose your streak as long as you log on to mfp for any other reason.

ggeise14

Congrats on 3,000 days! I've come to recognize your avatar and value your insight.

Addictead

I've maintained for almost 1.5 years without logging! I still weigh and measure food portions but don't tally it anymore, I practically memorized what 1500-1600 calories look like in a day and rarely am wrong about it. I'm back to logging for a little while because I've been on the higher end of my range this last year and I want to be lower again.

PAV8888

Best wishes!

Re old logs being wonky: don't forget that mfp reduced log retention to two years, I believe, for non premium accounts. You may be looking at deleted information!

getting_stronger1483

Wow, congratulations that is absolutely amazing! Well done on losing all of that weight and getting healthier and stronger. If you've kept the weight off for all of that time maybe you don't need to log anymore to keep it off because you're very aware of your eating habits anyway?

mylittlerainbow

Curious how it's gone for you, OP. You must feel so liberated!