I tried going IIFYM today - here are my results

whierd

I would do much for pizza right now.

NonnyMary

Try thinking of it like your paycheck. What's the first thing you do with your paycheck? You hopefully pay your bills. Mortgage/rent, heat, electric, food. If there's money left over, you get to decide what you're going to splurge on. A weekend getaway? A mani/pedi? Maybe you have a lot of credit card debt and you have nothing left for any of those things once you add in your credit card payments. IIFYM is like that. Your calories need to be budgeted like your money. Making sure you hit your protein and fat goals every day is like making sure you pay those bills that keep a roof over your head and the lights on. Whatever calories are left over are your splurge calories. If you're trying to lose weight then some of those calories have to go uneaten - that's kind of like your credit card payment. What's left? Probably not much. That's when you decide what to 'spend' those last calories on. Maybe you can 'afford' 4 squares of dark chocolate or a slice of pizza or half a cup of ice cream. You don't have to spend them on a treat but once you pay your caloric bills, you have that option. Does that help at all?

yes! i thought thats what i was doing, until some people thought i was denying myself food that if i didn't eat it, it will cause me to feel so deprived that i will binge.

NonnyMary

Keep trying don't give up. Decide if u want pizza or ur health

Both! You can have pizza and your health too.

a slice of veggie pizza, thin crust, easy on the cheese?

Unknown

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Unknown

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Cadori

Keep trying don't give up. Decide if u want pizza or ur health

Both! You can have pizza and your health too.

a slice of veggie pizza, thin crust, easy on the cheese?

OK see, that's where you're going to lose people. If that's YOUR choice, fine. But don't say that a slice of cheesy pepperoni that someone else has fit in their goals is unhealthy.

usmcmp

Try thinking of it like your paycheck. What's the first thing you do with your paycheck? You hopefully pay your bills. Mortgage/rent, heat, electric, food. If there's money left over, you get to decide what you're going to splurge on. A weekend getaway? A mani/pedi? Maybe you have a lot of credit card debt and you have nothing left for any of those things once you add in your credit card payments. IIFYM is like that. Your calories need to be budgeted like your money. Making sure you hit your protein and fat goals every day is like making sure you pay those bills that keep a roof over your head and the lights on. Whatever calories are left over are your splurge calories. If you're trying to lose weight then some of those calories have to go uneaten - that's kind of like your credit card payment. What's left? Probably not much. That's when you decide what to 'spend' those last calories on. Maybe you can 'afford' 4 squares of dark chocolate or a slice of pizza or half a cup of ice cream. You don't have to spend them on a treat but once you pay your caloric bills, you have that option. Does that help at all?

yes! i thought thats what i was doing, until some people thought i was denying myself food that if i didn't eat it, it will cause me to feel so deprived that i will binge.

Didn't you prove their point today? You let yourself have a treat and you went crazy because you have been depriving yourself.

Cranquistador

I would do much for pizza right now.

foot rub?

Achrya

On the note of "How do you make it work":

Let me tell you a little about what my diary used to look like. I had a 1300 calorie goal, give or take. I would eat veg and meat and fruit and meal replacement shakes and special K. These were my staples. I would do this for a few days and then, ultimately, crack because I was unhappy. And then I'd have days like this. Note that even now 2000 calories is above my goal.




So for me IIFYM works because it has to. Cutting things out makes me lose it, makes me unhappy, makes me just want to stop, makes me resent the people around me who get to eat normal food in normal sized portions, and makes me angry and bitter and mean(er).

IIFYM gave me the freedom to eat what I want and realize how much I was eating, how much I could fit, and when I needed to stop. I prelog my dessert most days, usually around lunch time, and seeing what I'm having and in what amount and how it fits puts me at ease. I know it's there, at the end of the day, and there is no need to have other treats or feel like I'm denying myself.

Hi - ironically, cutting things out makes me feel safer. Maybe because some foods are to me addicting.. im sorry i dont like to sound like the people who make themselves a victim, who explain with a bunch of psychobabble why they are an addict, but i think i am an addict to some foods. i know that all addictions could be overcome with some effort and just making a choice to not give in to it.. but it lurks there somewhat. Im aware of it. i dont have to give in to it, but i think it is still there, i think our body is programmed for survival to have certain built in mechanisms that tend to make us overeat rather than undereat. And for food to be something that is pursued, rather than denied. and that we have dopamine centers in our brains that get tripped when pleasurable food is served, and saliva that makes our mouth water when delish food is presented to us... and food that has worked as a reward when times were tough. lonely, boring, etc. etc. such like that.

Well of course different strokes for different folks BUT to me cutting things out and trying to force myself to live that way is just letting the food win. Like I said I have eaten an entire bag of cookies at once. I've eaten the whole tray of brownies or the whole pizza or two big macs (Oh those were the dayyyys) and at those times I was controlled by my urges. Even when I cut out food I was doing nothing but admitting that I couldn't handle it and that the food was stronger than me.

Now I control the food. If I want it I have it, if it fits I do it, if it doesn't than I don't.

Achrya

Try thinking of it like your paycheck. What's the first thing you do with your paycheck? You hopefully pay your bills. Mortgage/rent, heat, electric, food. If there's money left over, you get to decide what you're going to splurge on. A weekend getaway? A mani/pedi? Maybe you have a lot of credit card debt and you have nothing left for any of those things once you add in your credit card payments. IIFYM is like that. Your calories need to be budgeted like your money. Making sure you hit your protein and fat goals every day is like making sure you pay those bills that keep a roof over your head and the lights on. Whatever calories are left over are your splurge calories. If you're trying to lose weight then some of those calories have to go uneaten - that's kind of like your credit card payment. What's left? Probably not much. That's when you decide what to 'spend' those last calories on. Maybe you can 'afford' 4 squares of dark chocolate or a slice of pizza or half a cup of ice cream. You don't have to spend them on a treat but once you pay your caloric bills, you have that option. Does that help at all?

yes! i thought thats what i was doing, until some people thought i was denying myself food that if i didn't eat it, it will cause me to feel so deprived that i will binge.

Didn't you prove their point today? You let yourself have a treat and you went crazy because you have been depriving yourself.

Also this.

whierd

I would do much for pizza right now.

foot rub?

Easy. Just feed me the pizza while I rub.

Unknown

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NonnyMary

Try thinking of it like your paycheck. What's the first thing you do with your paycheck? You hopefully pay your bills. Mortgage/rent, heat, electric, food. If there's money left over, you get to decide what you're going to splurge on. A weekend getaway? A mani/pedi? Maybe you have a lot of credit card debt and you have nothing left for any of those things once you add in your credit card payments. IIFYM is like that. Your calories need to be budgeted like your money. Making sure you hit your protein and fat goals every day is like making sure you pay those bills that keep a roof over your head and the lights on. Whatever calories are left over are your splurge calories. If you're trying to lose weight then some of those calories have to go uneaten - that's kind of like your credit card payment. What's left? Probably not much. That's when you decide what to 'spend' those last calories on. Maybe you can 'afford' 4 squares of dark chocolate or a slice of pizza or half a cup of ice cream. You don't have to spend them on a treat but once you pay your caloric bills, you have that option. Does that help at all?

yes! i thought thats what i was doing, until some people thought i was denying myself food that if i didn't eat it, it will cause me to feel so deprived that i will binge.

Didn't you prove their point today? You let yourself have a treat and you went crazy because you have been depriving yourself.

Actually the 3:00 baklava and 2 bite brownie was because i was feeling starving ( I did not eat enough at lunch); so yeah I gave in to the baklava!

I have thought about someone might say today proves i was depriving myself. maybe so.. however, even if i was "depriving" myself, if i had not allowed myself to eat the baklava, then todays overeating would not have happened.. i.e. there are two ways to keep from overeating - dont give in to the urge or dont stress yourself all week to the point you feel deprived.

Thats what i have been sayhing to myself.. i always kept fresh fruit on my desk, but this week i ran out. so i do need to be prepared with good food that i can grab in a time of starvation. so that i dont choose the brownie.

oh believe me, there are many times i am faced with free food at work, left over food from committee meetings and as long as i dont answer the email "theres food in the kitchen" i am ok.

whierd

I love IIFYM. I just makes things so much more simple for me when I eliminate the psychological restrictions that come with a weight loss journey. With that said, I pre plan my days the night before. For instance tomorrow I will have Count Chocula cereal in the morning and pizza in the afternoon, tonight I will log those 2 things first then build around it making sure to target all macros and calories. It's not difficult, just takes some practice.

I think that is the best strategy for IIFYM. Pre-log your intended treats and then just fill your day in around it.

herblackwings39

Oh ok,, well then... that may be it.

However, I think there is another issue.. A lot of people here say "eat everything in moderation"..Taking that literally I did. And they were not big portions, they were small, but still it caused me to go over my MFP macros.

So i think that proves we cant do everything in moderation, but that we have to moderate what we eat, we cant eat everything in moderation. It doesn't leave room for other things that would have been healthier for me.

I'm not sure what others mean by everything in moderation, but for me it's choices. I could choose to have baklava and a frosted brownie, knowing I'd be over my calorie goal or I could choose to have one of those things instead, possibly saving the other for tomorrow. My "moderation" is having things I love, just not necessarily all in the same day. I can have pizza today, tacos tomorrow, and cheese cake the day after.

NonnyMary

I love IIFYM. I just makes things so much more simple for me when I eliminate the psychological restrictions that come with a weight loss journey. With that said, I pre plan my days the night before. For instance tomorrow I will have Count Chocula cereal in the morning and pizza in the afternoon, tonight I will log those 2 things first then build around it making sure to target all macros and calories. It's not difficult, just takes some practice.

]]

Hi - you are another person here with hundreds of posts.. I do see that you have a good handle on food, i hope to get there one day. I'm only up to half

One day i will get ahold of all my issues with food.. already have made good progress.. i hope to be smarter about it.

BinaryPulsar

Keep trying don't give up. Decide if u want pizza or ur health

I ate 250 to 500 calories worth of pizza, a few times a week (it was thin crust, frozen pizza, but I like it), for this whole summer. I'm still healthy. I'm on maintenance, running around with my kiddos, and hitting the gym nearly everyday alternating weights and yoga, so it definitely fits my macros.

mspoopoo

Some people just have to cut certain foods out because they trigger binges.

There is no way I can eat 1/2 cup of ice cream. There is no way I can eat one pop tart.

I paid the price with what started out as mcdonalds shake which led to a 2 day binge.

Some people can eat everything in moderation. Some can't.

MrsFowler1069

Hmm , for those of you who can do it, props to you.

I cant.

Strange but im fighting it because of what it means to me. Like what i said above. I think i still have a food addiction I dont mean to go all psycho-babble on you, but i think thats it. I cant indulge in treats a lot becuse i cant stay within my MFP macros

how do you all do it??? How do you all who enjoy ice cream and pizza do it without going over your portions?

this is ironic because I indulged a little bit, I must have eaten a ton of food to get myself to where i am today If i didn't record that on MFP i would be wondering why i didnt' eat much but still had a lot of calories.

anyway it was just an experiment today. i dont plan to do this all the time.. but i might still have a little slice of pizza next weekend.

Can you tell me how i can enjoy such things without messing me up like today?

Okay, I think your problem is, even having had it explained to you, you are still stuck on what you "thought" it meant.

'What it means to you' simply isn't what it means. "If it fits" is the guideline.....meaning if it doesn't fit, then (in order to meet your goals) you'll probably want to enjoy it another time.

When people say "everything in moderation," it doesn't mean "some of anything you want anytime you want it...." It means that there really isn't anything you can't have at some point along the way, but (in order to meet your goals) you still have to make choices. "In moderation" means, by definition, that there are limits. Maybe it means that you eat pretty normally and you have room for a piece of pizza at dinner (and still eat at a deficit). Maybe it means that you are careful to take in fewer calories through the day so you can eat three pieces of pizza at dinner (and still eat at a deficit). Maybe it means that you eat at a slightly larger deficit all week so you can eat the whole damned pie on Saturday (and still have a deficit for the week).

I try to look at it like this:

I want to be healthier and lose weight. Having pizza or a glass of whiskey is not going to ruin my chances of achieving that, and I do have them when they fit within my macros. When they don't fit, I say to myself, "Hmmm....looks like today isn't a pizza day. What will I have that's going to fill me up, taste good, and fit today's goals better?" So sometimes moderation means doing a little math and making choices - and maybe even changing your mind.

I remind myself that pizza (or whatever it is that I want) isn't going anywhere. With planning, I can fit it in another day and not be outside my goal. So sometimes moderation just means, "Yes. But not right now."

Mostly, what I like to do is to eat reasonably healthy choices (nutrient-dense, calorie-moderate, usually protein and veg heavy) earlier in the day so that I am able to feel satisfied and not eat up so many calories throughout the day - and then I have a little more freedom in the evenings, just because that's what works for me. Now, this week, there has been a little bit of an over-abundance of alcohol around here lol, and I've actually gone over my goal by around 300 calories (although I'm still at a significant deficit for the week). So today, I logged some activity and didn't eat those calories back. I wanted to be closer to my goal for the week so as to stay closer to my program and see the results I prefer. So sometimes moderation just means, "Hmmm...I need to reel myself in a little bit."

I feel a bit like you're looking at an elephant and insisting that it's a giraffe, and then blaming the zookeeper. lol There isn't anything wrong with IIFYM...if that's what you choose to do. But you aren't going to have success if you make up your own rules and then say it's a faulty system.

My suggestion would be to adjust your understanding (because it's flawed), and then give it another go. You've gotten a lot of good advice today and it should give you a great starting point. Learn to apply the new information and give it a chance to work. I totally believe that you can do it and I hope you do.

dynamitegalxo

i would just like to comment briefly on the glory that is this day of eating. talk about a dream. i haven't been to coldstone in ages!

Achrya

i would just like to comment briefly on the glory that is this day of eating. talk about a dream. i haven't been to coldstone in ages!

I'm not sure I would refer to this day as one of glory.

I actually go to coldstone a decent amount now, but I make it fit my macros and calorie goal. I got nutella fudge ice cream today, 100g, around 350 calories. Nomnom

3foldchord

most people who do IIFYM change their percentages and are not using the assigned MFP percentages for macros (which are notoriously low in protein)

QFT

Truth.

My protein is set to 140. I aim for 130. Usually get to 125-140 on average.
It's a lot. It,s hard. Sometimes. My calorie goal is about 1650.
I understood fat and protein to be minimum , it's fine to go over (especially with "good"fats) but I still try to not go over. Still trying to be OK with that.
I think I usually eat fairly close to my macros. I switched from mainly calorie focus to mainly macro focus when I got close to my goal body weight, to focus on macros, weight lifting, body composition.

NonnyMary

Some people just have to cut certain foods out because they trigger binges.

There is no way I can eat 1/2 cup of ice cream. There is no way I can eat one pop tart.

I paid the price with what started out as mcdonalds shake which led to a 2 day binge.

Some people can eat everything in moderation. Some can't.

Bingo! THATS WHAT IM AFRAID OF!

DavPul

Keep trying don't give up. Decide if u want pizza or ur health

Both! You can have pizza and your health too.

a slice of veggie pizza, thin crust, easy on the cheese?

Maybe. Does it fit your macros?

Cindyinpg

I love IIFYM. I just makes things so much more simple for me when I eliminate the psychological restrictions that come with a weight loss journey. With that said, I pre plan my days the night before. For instance tomorrow I will have Count Chocula cereal in the morning and pizza in the afternoon, tonight I will log those 2 things first then build around it making sure to target all macros and calories. It's not difficult, just takes some practice.

I think that is the best strategy for IIFYM. Pre-log your intended treats and then just fill your day in around it.

I did this as well. A friend was bragging about how wonderful the new Dairy Milk Cookies and Cream chocolate bars are, so last night, I logged 9 squares of one and built my day around it. I had to forgo my usual dessert and I had a lighter dinner salad than usual, but I made it fit. :happy:
Side note: where is everyone finding the Count Chocula? I haven't seen any since I was a kid.:sad:

NonnyMary

Ok now i have read your posts - thank you and i have an understanding of it, but putting to practice is a challenge for me so far.

though i may have been doing it somewhat but calling it by a different name (forget about today, that was an experiment

Now, what i dont get is this - on MFP we ALL are fitting everything in our macros.

So what is the difference between saying 'on MFP i can eat 1600 calories, 35 sugars, etc." and "I do IIFYM".

I dont think there is a difference because MFP is doing IIFYM.

RECowgill

Ignoring all the haters here and talking only to NonnyMary, who I believe has legit issues and is trying to work through them:

First off I'm curious about your calorie goal of 1600. Is that really right for you? Is that artificially low or should you be eating a bit more? I ask because I don't know if 1600 was set manually by you based on realistic goals or if that is what MFP truly recommends. It seems like a low target to me, but I'm not sure. If its low, its unrealistic, you won't be able to stick to it.

A lot of people here won't understand what you're going through because they've never been obese. I was at 280lbs for my peak weight, eating way too much sugar, salt and cals. My portion sizes were too big and I had too much junk food in the mix. I had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, kidney and liver problems, frequent headaches, tired all the time, irritable. I fixed all that with at first small changes to diet, then progressively more changes. It has taken about a year for me to just do basic things and really fix those problems.

I don't think your numbers are that bad because I could easily see that typically they have probably been a lot worse. Ignoring calories for a second, the real issue I see with what you ate today is sugar. Much of my own weight gain was from excessive amounts of sugar, namely soda, but also candy or whatever else. You may not be able to cut it out of your diet right away, but start to work on it. 117g of sugar in a day is horribly excessive. An adult human should have no more than 30-50g of sugar a day, and a single can of soda will have 50g or close to it. Plus its that HFCS which is arguably worse than sugar.

I made immediate progress by cutting out soda from my diet, I recommend you do likewise. Watch your sugar intake and get that number way down. Some bodybuilder or personal trainer might feel comfortable having a soda, but I don't think you can afford it. Those healthier people have never been obese and they don't understand all the complications that go with it.

Likewise on sodium, you should have no more than 2500mg a day and preferably less. I cut mine to 1500 a day, I don't always succeed but I try for it. Most American diets consist of about 5000-6000mg of sodium or more a day, we are all being poisoned by salt. One of those mcd's burgers might be only 400 cals but it could be 1200mg of sodium just right there. Focus on cutting that back too. So in the big picture, 3000mg of sodium is bad but may be a lot better than you've done before. It may be better than most typical American diets. That's better than I was eating at 280lbs.

I would just keep eating and logging and trying to replace unhealthy foods with healthier choices. You need to do a bunch of research on what foods are good and bad. Read labels. Get really serious about it. Just do it incrementally, try and replace one bad snack with a good one. You're gonna keep going over on your numbers for months probably, but just keep trying, keep experimenting, keep trying to change your habits. That's the key thing is you need to replace bad habits with good sustainable habits. No gimmicks or BS, but things you can actually do till you die. You gotta think of it in those terms, if you are trying to force yourself to eat something you just can't stomach, don't do it. Work on eating better than yesterday and finding healthy foods you like.

And an important point with fixing your diet, is also a contradiction, which is never starve yourself. Don't stress if you have to go over now to figure out how not to go over later. Maybe you were eating 3000 cals a day before, and 2000 cals would represent a huge improvement, I don't know. But if you have a day where your target is 2000 and you eat 2500, don't panic. Just analyze what you're eating and pick out those bad actors that gave you calories without filling you up, and work on replacing them with healthier more filling foods.

I don't know your exact experiences, but having been through some real weight loss I assure you it will not be quick or easy. Just keep logging, always eat when you need to but watch your portions and work on replacing bad foods with good ones. You might even have whole months where you are over every day and just not hitting your numbers. That's ok, keep trying, keep researching. Google is your friend, keep searching and learning these subjects, the amount of information out there is enormous. You should be a constant student.

Incidentally my caloric intake is about 2500/day on non-workout days and 3000/day on workout days. Those are my numbers, roughly, to maintain my weight. So if I'm able to eat a bit under that and be satisfied then I'm losing weight- hooray! It has sometimes worked for me to think of it more in terms of here's my maintenance line. Instead of trying to suddenly reverse course and drop weight fast, you could try focusing on "do no more damage" and start with maintenance. Fill your maintenance cals up with better foods, and work down from there. You don't want to feel stressed or as if its hopeless just because you're going over by 300 cals or so, that is really no big deal.

Good luck, I hope this helps you.

Fullsterkur_woman

There is no way I can eat 1/2 cup of ice cream. There is no way I can eat one pop tart.

Me neither. It'd just piss me off. So I hold off and don't eat pop tarts until I can have two. Or I eat a pint of Arctic Zero (it'll help me reach my protein goals anyway!).

I have set my protein goal pretty gosh-darn high, and I also know that my body needs starchy carbs at each meal, so the macro for me that sometimes gets left behind is fat. And I am ok with that, because I know there will be days when I will plan to go over my calories and eat a big bacon cheeseburger and sweet potato fries and it will average out.

But I always get my protein, I (almost) always get dessert at lunch and dinner (which takes the form of a 100-calorie chocolate muffin with vitamins and fiber), and I (almost) always get 5+ servings of fruit and vegetables a day.

Because I plan in my "treats" with lunch and dinner every day, and I need to get basically 1 gram of protein for every 10 calories I eat, there usually isn't any discretionary calories left. I usually have to whip out a calculator and kitchen scale to tweak my portion sizes until I fit my macros.

If you're operating on small margins or with stricter requirements like I am, you have to be comfortable doing lots of math, conversions, weighing and adjusting if you want to enjoy the freedom of IIFYM. With great power comes great responsibility. :laugh:

Also, for the record, I have a 6-pack (of Crisco! :laugh: ) and I'm in maintenance (at about 30 pounds higher than I'd like)! Well, sort of; I'm just losing really slowly, because I refuse to deprive myself and I refuse to lose muscle mass. I re-gained about 25 pounds last summer/fall when I was playing hospice nurse to my cat who had cancer. It took a lot of effort just to finally get the brakes put back on, and it's taken a ton more effort and about 7-8 months to slowly start moving in reverse! But that is OK, because I know if I didn't do it this way it wouldn't be sustainable and I would start binging again.

I am the only one who has to live with my results, so I get all the authority about my methods. Likewise is true for you and yours. :drinker:

dynamitegalxo

Ok now i have read your posts - thank you and i have an understanding of it, but putting to practice is a challenge for me so far.

though i may have been doing it somewhat but calling it by a different name (forget about today, that was an experiment

Now, what i dont get is this - on MFP we ALL are fitting everything in our macros.

So what is the difference between saying 'on MFP i can eat 1600 calories, 35 sugars, etc." and "I do IIFYM".

I dont think there is a difference because MFP is doing IIFYM.

Most people who fly the IIFYM flag are those who disagree with "clean" eating and try to get people to see that you don't have to live on spinach leaves and egg whites. You're absolutely right, we all have to fit our choices into what MFP gives us (or what we tweak MFP to be) but some people are more liberal in their food choices than others.

MrsFowler1069

I would do much for pizza right now.

foot rub?

Easy. Just feed me the pizza while I rub.

I just have to say that I notice time and again that every conversation around here has a pretty good likelihood of becoming about pizza. I love this place. : )