The thread killer, or ignored question...

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  • Stripeness
    Stripeness Posts: 511 Member
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    Nope. Didn't see the thread, but when someone posts re: stalling or regaining, one of the most common and first-asked questions is "are you weighing your food to ensure accurate measurement?"

    So, observationally, yes. Most MFP folks are weighing their food.

    Not even close. The people giving out that advice are a vocal minority.

    QFT

    Fair enough. So OP, if all you want to know is how many people are doing it, there you go.

    Why is there a vocal minority? Or what are the pros/cons of weighing vs measuring cup vs eyeball? ... 'nother story.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    Has anyone else noticed that every time you ask 'do you weigh all your food?', you suddenly turn into a ghost that nobody seems to notice?

    So many people start that "I'm not losing weight and I can't figure out why!" thread with a closed diary, or a diary that is clearly incomplete, or a diary that indicates they're not actually weighing food. The answer is always "because you're eating too much food." Their defense is always "no I'm not!"

    And sigh.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    I actually don't understand some of the responses here. I think the OP was trying to say that, when someone complains they're not losing weight and you ask if they're weighing food, they simply ignore the question. I think people read it some totally different way that I can't quite get my head around.
  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
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    two years ago I lost 20 pounds with no food scale. eyeballing and measuring worked just fine for me.

    Then why are you back? :huh:
  • bwogilvie
    bwogilvie Posts: 2,130 Member
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    Fair enough. So OP, if all you want to know is how many people are doing it, there you go.

    Why is there a vocal minority? Or what are the pros/cons of weighing vs measuring cup vs eyeball? ... 'nother story.

    I think what the OP meant is that when someone posts to complain that they're not losing weight despite eating 1200 calories and exercising 2 hours a day, and another person asks, "Do you weigh all your food?," the first person ignores them, preferring to think that they have a screwed-up metabolism rather than admit that they are eating more than they think or log.

    vjohn04 got it, but I thought I would add additional clarification for those who are new to MFP or to the forums.

    I don't weigh all my food, but I weigh often enough to have a realistic sense of portion size. And I've consistently been losing weight, except over the holidays, when my goal was only to maintain. But if I reach the point where I'm at a plateau despite apparently running a deficit, I'll weigh every bite that enters my mouth.
  • iammelli
    iammelli Posts: 42 Member
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    tbh the most shocking is cereal pasta and nuts, 30g is not very much!!
  • JustME1611
    JustME1611 Posts: 112 Member
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    two years ago I lost 20 pounds with no food scale. eyeballing and measuring worked just fine for me.


    ^this. I lost 49 lbs by just eyeballing. I have thought about getting a food scale though.
  • tworthen79
    tworthen79 Posts: 1,173 Member
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    I've never weighed my food and I've lost almost 50lbs in 9 mos.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Yeah it's what I mean... If you come and complain that you're not losing weight on 1200 calories, and people ask you if you weigh your food, why do you ignore them? I mean, eyeballing works for some people, clearly. Some don't want to weigh and that's fine... but if you're that upset about not losing weight that you're going to post about it, why ignore what could possibly be the most relevant question that people ask you?

    I don't know, when people tell me that they eat 1200 calories and workout 1 hour a day but are not losing weight, the first thing that occurs to me is that they're probably eating way more than they think. And 9 times out of 10, nobody even acknowledges the 'do you weigh all your food?' question. It's a bit irritating.

    So yeah... I just wanted to rant a bit about it :p
  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
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    You might be surprised. Did you know there is a huge population of people here that are not vocal, but think weighing food is ridiculous? Yes, they are here. They just don't speak up.

    They are all on this thread, speaking up. :laugh:
  • devil_in_a_blue_dress
    devil_in_a_blue_dress Posts: 5,214 Member
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    I mean, there's not much difference in a leveled off tablespoon or a heaping tablespoon, right????

    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
  • FitnFeistyLyness
    FitnFeistyLyness Posts: 757 Member
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    released 205 pounds.. the only food i weigh is nuts because its a trigger food for me.. i eat nutrarin food so no reason to weigh. i pretty much can eat unlimited amounts of greens, veg. fruits the other thing i monitor closer is my fats like avocado i keep a eye on . beans and grains i have up to a cup a day when i have them..

    i don't judge anyone that does weigh. eac has to do what works for them.

    im here to finish my journey.. 30 pounds to goal.
  • Michigander1956
    Michigander1956 Posts: 22 Member
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    I actually do not weigh everything but I was on weight watchers and kind of` go by theirs like 3 oz meat size of deck of cards ,when having a bagel a large one size of dvd , potato average ..tennis ball . I do my pasta and veg.. anything by 1/2 cup or 1 cup I use my measuring cups , it's very easy to go over by saying "oh just a little over won't hurt" I hope that helped a little .Good luck
  • kimmymayhall
    kimmymayhall Posts: 419 Member
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    I don't doubt that people can lose weight without weighing all their food, clearly many people do. There are also many people who manage to lose weight without counting calories at all. But when people on this site ask why they aren't losing weight when they insist they are doing everything right, making sure that they are counting their intake correctly should be the first place to look. Weighing food is a good way to do that. Just eating less is also an option but I'd rather make sure my counts are as accurate as possible.
    That's great if counting calories without weighing is working for you, but if it starts not working anymore you might want to look into getting a scale.
  • Mr_Bad_Example
    Mr_Bad_Example Posts: 2,403 Member
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    I mean, there's not much difference in a leveled off tablespoon or a heaping tablespoon, right????

    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    Not really... maybe 10 - 100 lbs., depending on whether or not you've jump-started your metabolism with a cleanse.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
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    Squats and deadlifts.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
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    Nope. Didn't see the thread, but when someone posts re: stalling or regaining, one of the most common and first-asked questions is "are you weighing your food to ensure accurate measurement?"

    So, observationally, yes. Most MFP folks are weighing their food.

    Not even close. The people giving out that advice are a vocal minority.

    I agree.

    I think we all have different levels of accuracy that satisfy us.

    For me, I feel like eyeballing it works. My husband and I are both cooks and bakers, in fact he's better at cooking than I am...but I think I have a better "eyeballing" skill. The other night he said there were 2 cups of beans in our bowls and I laughingly said, nope, 1 cup. He measured the ladle used and it was exactly 1/2 cup, so I was exactly correct. Sure I am not 100% accurate all of the time, but I'm pretty decent at it and that means accurate enough for me.

    I wouldn't want to get too attached to weighing everything because it would cause me a lot more anxiety eating in restaurants. I don't want that. I want to feel relatively 'normal' even though I do plan to log for many years to come as I maintain after reaching my goal.

    I also would never weigh peanut butter. WTF.

    That said, the only way I'd consider weighing all of my food is if I found myself unhappily plateauing at 190-200 lb. I want to be 180 or below. I don't see that happening, but who knows.
  • Cindyinpg
    Cindyinpg Posts: 3,902 Member
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    Nope. Didn't see the thread, but when someone posts re: stalling or regaining, one of the most common and first-asked questions is "are you weighing your food to ensure accurate measurement?"

    So, observationally, yes. Most MFP folks are weighing their food.

    Not even close. The people giving out that advice are a vocal minority.

    I agree.

    I think we all have different levels of accuracy that satisfy us.

    For me, I feel like eyeballing it works. My husband and I are both cooks and bakers, in fact he's better at cooking than I am...but I think I have a better "eyeballing" skill. The other night he said there were 2 cups of beans in our bowls and I laughingly said, nope, 1 cup. He measured the ladle used and it was exactly 1/2 cup, so I was exactly correct. Sure I am not 100% accurate all of the time, but I'm pretty decent at it and that means accurate enough for me.

    I wouldn't want to get too attached to weighing everything because it would cause me a lot more anxiety eating in restaurants. I don't want that. I want to feel relatively 'normal' even though I do plan to log for many years to come as I maintain after reaching my goal.

    I also would never weigh peanut butter. WTF.

    That said, the only way I'd consider weighing all of my food is if I found myself unhappily plateauing at 190-200 lb. I want to be 180 or below. I don't see that happening, but who knows.
    I always have to weigh peanut butter, mostly because I like it so much and I know I would estimate it about double and it's so calorie dense that it would really add up. Ditto for ice cream. Plus, there's always the happy chance that weighing will give you more than you would eyeball. That happens to me with pasta all the time. 85grams of dry pasta is a nice big serving. :bigsmile:

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