Log before or after you eat?

MissGamerGirl

Do you log your food after you eat it or before?

Sometimes I do it before but many times I log after the fact. I still weigh/measure everything and make sensible choices, but sometimes I will go over in a category somewhere and don't know it until I log it (after I've eaten), which in a way kind of hurts the intent of tracking in a sense.

What do you do?

Phrick

before, usually while I'm cooking I'll enter the values I plan to eat because my intent is to not go over (obviously) and that's the easiest way for me to make sure.

Rachelc1992

After, but I will check if I'm unsure of rough idea of calories!

AtLeastOnceMore

I'm becoming a huge fan of pre-logging - especially after my moment of calorie stupidity this morning coming from introducing a new food and falling into an old eating pattern (baked beans and melted cheese - OMG!). Suddenly, about half my daily calories were gone in a single meal! Prelogging means that I know exactly how much I should eat to stay within my boundaries, and it answers questions about what you can eat without guesswork.

prosperkat

Both. I make a plan for the day then adjust or change as the day goes by.

smileymaxine

normally before unless incredibly busy, I normally have a plan of what I will have for each meal that day and leave room for snacks.
I always log any extras I eat afterwards.

livingleanlivingclean

I plan my meals/days on the weekend and follow my meal plan. I eat nearly the same thing everyday (carb amounts change depending on training schedule but not the type of carbs). it makes planning and prep easier and means I can buy in bulk, cook in bulk and generally have less waste.

I eat what I plan, no more, no less, nothing changes!

JesterMFP

If I already know the values, say if I've prepared my lunch for work, then I pre-log. Usually, I log as I'm cooking, while I'm weighing everything out. Sometimes I'll pre-log things to see how they look in my diary and help me decide what to have.

jigsaw_me

Both. I make a plan for the day then adjust or change as the day goes by.

^^^ this, but I also never plan 100% of my calories - I leave a few hundred so I can make choices as I go

EmmyW1984

I do a bit of both

I'll set up a plan for the day on my food diary, but then add or subtract things as and where necessary as I have the app on my phone so find it really easy to keep on top of it

starrylioness

Before, while cooking/preparing it, that way I don't forget anything.

svsl0928

Log before for most meals. It helps me stay on track.

garry2614

I find logging before helps me to keep to my calorie intake but just lately I've been slipping and logging after. I can tell the difference as I've put a bit of weight back on.

mungowungo

Before, while cooking/preparing it, that way I don't forget anything.

^^^^^^ This - that way I can weigh as I go too.

Carla_Quick

I log dinner usually before as that s my highest calorie intake meal and it's to make sure I can plan around it. I have the app on my phone which is really handy so usually I just then log as I go

nicoleisback

I usually log after because A)I tend to have the same or similar things for brekkie and lunch, so I know approximately how many calories I am having and I generally don't cook dinner, so sometimes don't know what I am having until it is in front of me. That being said, my partner knows to keep it mostly healthy .

I wish I was organised enough to pre log.

bumblebeez86

I do both normally log breakfast just after eating - as I have just done. Then log my 'packed lunch/work lunch' with the breakfast log. (If this changes I + or - when I get home. Tea I usually do when I am cooking. Then add snacks as I go. I don't have the app on my phone so can only log at home so at work I write it on paper

gypsyone96

I log all my meals and snacks for the next day the night before. It lets me know how much I'm eating, how healthy I'm eating, and if I have any leftover calories!

avskk

Both. I pre-log meals but I log snacks on the fly and/or make meal adjustments as needed.

Joannesmith2818

At the beginning I always logged beforehand, but now I have a much better idea of what I should eat in a day, so I'm not so organised!

keeptehpeace

Before, normally in the mornigng but I allow myself a few hundred calories to play around with during the day

tlou5

I pre log when possible to kind of map my calories for the day and then modify in the evening if needed

Francl27

Always before I eat, so I know exactly how much I can have or how much I have left.

Often I'll be counting grams to meet my goal as close as possible in the evening too...

PinkyFett

I log all my meals in the morning or the night before... leave room for the snacks until the end of the day. I stick to it better if I pre-log. I feel guilty if I try and grab something extra at dinner or something like that.

JilloftheDead

Before, always before. I like to budget my calories and dislike using too many too early in the day.

SailorKnightWing

After breakfast, during lunch and before dinner.

I tend to wake up and eat breakfast however I want since I normally like lower-calorie breakfasts anyway. I log it, then log what I'll be having for dinner since I plan my dinners two weeks in advance anyway. Then I gauge how hungry I am and how many calories I have left for lunch.

Working from home and knowing how to cook really works to my benefit. :glasses:

MrsAustin1480

I log while I'm making stuff, sometimes before I start - when I get an idea and don't know if it's the greatest one - but I try not to log after because I still get little surprises here and there and go over. Ugh.

luvsherhubby

Both. I make a plan for the day then adjust or change as the day goes by.

^^^ this, but I also never plan 100% of my calories - I leave a few hundred so I can make choices as I go

same here, pre log to hit protein and calorie goal with some calorie room for something that might come up, I then adjust as I go. It can make cooking more fun because I put the recipe in as is, and then when cooking I try to get away with less say 2 tbls of soy sauce vs the 4 the recipe called for etc and then I get to adjust it and watch my cals and sodium drop!

rjdunn87

If I'm being organized and responsible, I'll usually have a general meal plan for the week and so I can pre-log at least my breakfast and lunch at the beginning of the day. For example, for lunches last week I made a recipe that serves 4, divided it up into 4 tupperwares and those were my lunches Monday-Thursday, so I could pre-log that in the morning and have a good sense of how much I had left for dinner and snacks.

spoiledpuppies

Always before. Usually just before each meal/snack though--not the night before or anything earlier.

redstar7

I pre-log the easy stuff, like the things I can just scan a barcode on my phone or if I have already made or eaten something. But, I really like the recipe maker on this website. It makes it really easy to log things that I make for dinner. Especially since I don't cook for one. So usually when it comes to dinner and I'm making something new I log afterwards by using the recipe calorie builder thing.