Going in the Red

ils_1231

I'm a bit hesitant to post this, and I'm not entirely sure which category this would fall under, but does anyone else have a problem with myfitnesspal's colour system for whether or not you are above or below your calorie goal?

Lately, I have been seeing a lot of posts that seem to indicate that a person has an inappropriate relationship with food. I understand that many of us do, which is how we ended up overweight in the first place, but these posts scare me. I had a friend in high school who had an ED and if you remember LiveJournal-- subscribed to many thinspiration groups. It's where I first heard the term.

I think that myfitnesspal is a great tool for losing weight. It definitely kept me in check while I was living in France, and I even managed to lose ten pounds while eating butter, drinking wine, and indulging in many many different boulangeries I always wonder if I'm doing someone a disservice by complimenting them on the fact that they were below their calorie goal for the day-- shouldn't we just be concerned with trying to meet our daily calorie intake by plus or minus 100 calories?

I really wish that myfitnesspal kept that line blue like its colour scheme and then if someone is plus or minus 100 calories from the daily goal-- give them a thumbs up, or a check mark, or a good job message (just to avoid associating being under with a good/green colour). I find "going in the red" to be extremely damaging to those who are susceptible to EDs, and find it quite bothersome.

Just wondering if anyone else had similar thoughts, or if there was a way to make suggestions to the "powers that be" at myfitnesspal.

navyrigger46

I don't have a problem with it, red means stop in my book. Then again, I'm the type of non PC individual who thinks that all sporting events should end with a winner and a loser, even if it's four year olds playing the game. I also don't think people should get trophies for participation, so take it for what it's worth.

Rigger

hearthemelody

I understand totally.

I don't usually think about it in those terms, but I do agree.

str8bowbabe

I don't have a problem with it, red means stop in my book. Then again, I'm the type of non PC individual who thinks that all sporting events should end with a winner and a loser, even if it's four year olds playing the game. I also don't think people should get trophies for participation, so take it for what it's worth.

Rigger

Exactly!

diannethegeek

I know it's been brought up in the suggestions forum. I honestly ignore red/green anymore but I can see how it would be an issue for newbies. Especially with the macros. People should be eating above and beyond MFP's protein recommendation without worry.

Francl27

That's what I do, if someone is over by 100, who cares? They still get a 'like'. The people who starve themselves and eat 400+ calories under their goal don't get a 'like' though.

mortuseon

I try not to comment on 'under their calorie goal' statuses unless I can actually view their diary (as I get a lot of friend requests from those with EDs and I know that under =/= good). I understand about the red being a bit of a 'trigger', though.

bethannien

I know it's been brought up in the suggestions forum. I honestly ignore red/green anymore but I can see how it would be an issue for newbies. Especially with the macros. People should be eating above and beyond MFP's protein recommendation without worry.

Yeah, I was talking to someone the other day who has an mfp and she was freak ing out because she said her protein intake was "dangerously high." I was like :noway:

TheGymGypsy

I do understand this. For some reason seeing that red number makes me feel really really bad. I know it's silly but it really does get to me!

sillyvalentine

If it's a daily "goal", then meeting it or going over a bit should be a good thing, not a bad thing, and the red does seem to make you feel bad about it. I will often stay 100 under than go 20 over just because the red turns me off and makes me feel like I failed that day. I've started to feel good about seeing my protein in the red, though.

Duck_Puddle

It's better than the bodymedia setup-which won't give you a check mark (for meeting the goal) until you consume more than the # of calories, but then yells at you for eating more than your goal calories. Hmm.

I would prefer that my entire homepage didn't look like I launched a defcon 5 alert if I went over my goal by 2 calories, but really, I don't think having a range vs a single hard target is going to influence people with serious food issues.

cheripugh1

OK I'm new here but one of the main draws for me was the red/green, the not only keeping track of my calories but the content of those so I can adjust my menu's. I need more protein so if it goes red that is ok with me. If my sodium goes red that is a BAD deal for me so that tells me look at the sodium what, if anything can I do to reduce that foods sodium count. As for calories, I have not gone over (yet) but when I am close or think I might I do an extra workout. So in the end I guess green makes me, personally, feel good, it reaffirms that I am doing a good job! Red means here are some area's to try to fix, like I found a low calorie burrito to make BUT the refried beans are super high in sodium, so when I go to the market I'll be checking to see if they have any low sodium and if not I'll be making my own (freezing them in batches lol) I really like MFP the way it is.

_Zardoz_

If a colour Green or Red is going to trigger someone's earing disorder they have a larger problem and any little colour change will help. In all likelihood something else would be likely to trigger it.

montana_girl

If it's a daily "goal", then meeting it or going over a bit should be a good thing, not a bad thing, and the red does seem to make you feel bad about it. I will often stay 100 under than go 20 over just because the red turns me off and makes me feel like I failed that day. I've started to feel good about seeing my protein in the red, though.

I can relate to this! It's especially bothersome that if by some miracle I end up with 0 (which is goal, right?), the zero comes up in red.

uconnwinsnc

Red doesn't mean that you are a failure. Red means stop.

ils_1231

I don't have a problem with it, red means stop in my book. Then again, I'm the type of non PC individual who thinks that all sporting events should end with a winner and a loser, even if it's four year olds playing the game. I also don't think people should get trophies for participation, so take it for what it's worth.

Rigger

red means stop to me too, but to others its a really mean colour. to some it is a trigger, and maybe i am being sensitive about the subject, but i was only prompted to write this after seeing many posts that read ED to me. this isn't about winners and losers, but about how mfp labels going over and under calories. think about how people get up in arms about the words "clean food" and "cheat days." i've been reading the boards and people hate having food labelled as good and bad--- my point is that green = good and red = bad, but say you were eating 600-1000 calories per day; you are getting positive reinforcement because you are in the green, or rather receiving praise for very little net calories.

this is not myfitnespal's fault, but it's just something to take note of on the site. i'm just proposing that just like the vocabulary we should or should not be using, the same can be applied to labelling calorie intake.

ils_1231

I understand totally.

I don't usually think about it in those terms, but I do agree.

I don't either, but I know that for some-- they really do see it that way. I just wonder if and what mfp can do from its end to try to discourage negative behaviour. it's the nature of the beast-- its a free website that counts calories, and created a web format in where there are colours to distinguish between over and under calories. plain and simple, but there is a flaw in the sense that the site sort of demonstrates a good/bad connotation with those colours.

sillyvalentine

If it's a daily "goal", then meeting it or going over a bit should be a good thing, not a bad thing, and the red does seem to make you feel bad about it. I will often stay 100 under than go 20 over just because the red turns me off and makes me feel like I failed that day. I've started to feel good about seeing my protein in the red, though.

I can relate to this! It's especially bothersome that if by some miracle I end up with 0 (which is goal, right?), the zero comes up in red.

Oooh I hate that! It's like "I did perfect" and red says "NO you FAILED!"

ils_1231

If it's a daily "goal", then meeting it or going over a bit should be a good thing, not a bad thing, and the red does seem to make you feel bad about it. I will often stay 100 under than go 20 over just because the red turns me off and makes me feel like I failed that day. I've started to feel good about seeing my protein in the red, though.

I can relate to this! It's especially bothersome that if by some miracle I end up with 0 (which is goal, right?), the zero comes up in red.

Oooh I hate that! It's like "I did perfect" and red says "NO you FAILED!"

i definitely don't take offence to the seeing red, but i definitely see how red denotes, "failure." i wish we didn't have these colour associations!!!

GingerLolita

It'd be nice if they have the option, since some people see it as a trigger and others are motivated by it.

I have a Fitbit Flex and I also have my food plan on there. I love Fitbit's calories in/calories out app because it is green when you are within 50 calories of your goal. I think that's a really healthy approach.

knra_grl

hmmm maybe they need a yellow befor red - hit yellow and be prepared to stop! I actually don't have a problem I would like to see it red when I am over on sodium, sugars, fat etc so that I can look at my diet more closely to see why. Also I may eat something that I think is okay and it puts me over. But I agree it may have a negative effect on some as I have seen so many posts worrying about slight weight fluctuations.

If people are logging consistently though, they should be learning to look at numbers with every entry they make and if they are pre-logging for the day even more so.

ils_1231

It'd be nice if they have the option, since some people see it as a trigger and others are motivated by it.

I have a Fitbit Flex and I also have my food plan on there. I love Fitbit's calories in/calories out app because it is green when you are within 50 calories of your goal. I think that's a really healthy approach.

i agree i wish mfp had that as well. that's great... haha more reason for me to invest in that fitbit....

marymoni

I don't really have a problem with the red colour, but I do find it weird when we congratulate people on being under their goal by 300 calories because to me that's just as bad as going over. Maybe it should always be red until we're +/- 100 calories, and only be green while we're in that zone.

ils_1231

I don't really have a problem with the red colour, but I do find it weird when we congratulate people on being under their goal by 300 calories because to me that's just as bad as going over. Maybe it should always be red until we're +/- 100 calories, and only be green while we're in that zone.

right- i like the idea that you are only rewarded if you are within 100 calories of your daily goal. i also think that we should be able to choose these options. there are so many people on here who have admitted to having an eating disorder in the past that it might be beneficial to have the option to create a more personalized profile to accommodate different needs. the likelihood of this change is slim to none... someone mentioned that there has been suggestions before, but i think it still warrants discussion and sending this suggestion along to mfp.