Calorie counting making me anxious and obsessive

losingwhatican

I used to enjoy tracking my nutrition on MFP, knowing what I was putting in my body, and being aware of my nutritional needs. But lately, I've been getting more and more anxious every time I update. I check my log multiple times a day, even when I have nothing to add. I get anxious when I've eaten "too many" calories before a certain time of day, because I have bad cravings at night and don't want to use up calories before I can satisfy them (yeah, the cravings are a whole 'nother issue). This obsessing over my log is exhausting and demotivating, especially since I haven't yet settled into a pattern that will help me lose weight, so it feels like it's all for nothing anyway.

I love eating healthy foods, and I like lifting and other exercise, but when I don't keep a log, it's too easy to get lazy about both of them.

Has anyone had this problem before? I'd really like to keep using MFP (and, you know, lose excess body fat), but I don't know how to break this pattern.

alaskamatteson

In, because I have this same problem.

diannethegeek

I reached a point like this in my logging. I actually broke down into tears in a restaurant because they were out of quinoa burgers. I meet with a therapist for anxiety and depression and at the time she wanted me to quit the diet entirely. Instead we came to a compromise. I reset my weight loss goals to a less aggressive goal (1/2-1 pound a week) to give me some wiggle room with my food. I made sure to incorporate sweets and treats into my diet so that I'd feel less deprived. And I stopped looking at deadlines and weight loss charts. The weight is going to come off on its own pace and obsessing over things won't help.

I still use a food scale. Right now I'm logging, though I'll take some time off or hide my diary if I get anxious about it. I go over my calories as often as I'm under my calories. And I try to get more exercise and sunlight to help with my depression.

I don't know what your particular issues are with logging, but trust me when I say that these feelings aren't worth it. If you feel like logging is ruining your sanity or your life then find a way to change it.

mrsbloveleigh

I have gotten that way from time to time. I usually take a break from tracking for a little while. I just focus on eating healthy things and getting exercise in, but I don't track. After a while, if I feel myself really starting to slide off the healthy path, I come back and start tracking again. For example, I stopped tracking for a few weeks because I started getting really hard on myself and obsessive, but I started again when sugar started to become a problem around Christmastime. I didn't want to ruin all the progress I'd made and the break helped get me in a different frame of mind, almost like starting fresh. Sometimes taking a step back is a good thing and can keep you from giving up completely.

sfbaumgarten

In for answers.

cwolfman13

take a step back and stop logging and counting. this is one of the very real and serious dangers of calorie counting. many people are just fine, but a lot of people end up with a lot of disordered thinking if not full blown EDs from this stuff.

I'd suggest just stepping away and really just focusing on your nutrition and fitness....giving up calorie counting was one of the best things I ever did. I really just focus on my nutrition and fitness...if I feel like I'm starting to put on some fat I take a look at my diet as a whole and find something or other to just cut out...

Also, give this a read...don't get hung up on the power lifting part, that's not the overall point of the blog...

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

rdeysher

I get the same way sometimes. Right now, I am happy logging and doing what I am doing but I am sure that in a month or two I will be sick of it and want to quit. The one thing I did do this time was set my calories to maintnance calories instead of losing. I would get really crazy if my calories went over what I had allowed myself. Since I know that I am set at maintnance calories I try to eat less than that each day. I figure that if I never go too far above it and try to always stay a 100 or 200 calories below it then everything will work out fine and I won't have to freak out if I go over calories once a week. I just keep thinking that there is always tomorrow and that tomorrow I will be better - and normally I am!

BarbellBlondieRuns

Yes, I have had the same problem. I think it helps to make other things your main focus. You may not lose for a while as you "regroup" but it'll still help you create new habits. For example, rather than counting calories set a protein goal and count protein instead. Make a water goal and focus on that. Make a goal to exercise 5 days per week. Just don't throw in the towel.

Also, if you're struggling to stay within cals then up your calorie goal. Calculate your TDEE on one of the many free calculators that you can find online. Eat less than that. Even if you're only eating 250 calories less than that then you're still setting yourself up to lose approximately .5 lbs per week. Any progress is good progress.

sbarella

take a step back and stop logging and counting. this is one of the very real and serious dangers of calorie counting. many people are just fine, but a lot of people end up with a lot of disordered thinking if not full blown EDs from this stuff.

I'd suggest just stepping away and really just focusing on your nutrition and fitness....giving up calorie counting was one of the best things I ever did. I really just focus on my nutrition and fitness...if I feel like I'm starting to put on some fat I take a look at my diet as a whole and find something or other to just cut out...

Also, give this a read...don't get hung up on the power lifting part, that's not the overall point of the blog...

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

This. Counting calories might not be good for you right now.

cici1028

Take a week or two off. Don't log your calories. Eat healthful, nutritious food to fuel your body. Avoid processed foods and stick to things you have to prepare for yourself. The effort you put into it makes it more worth it.

You know what to avoid... super heavy cream sauces, fried foods, anything oozy or melty or crispy... and take-out/restaurant food that might be loaded with sodium, sugars and fats). Love good fats like olive oil and nuts and avocados...eat rice and grains and enjoy it! Just have a good relationship with what you eat and see how you feel after a week.

HotSouthernMess

I get the same way...which is why I have been a member of MFP since 2012 and my ticker only shows 18 lbs lost. This time last year, it said 56 lbs lost. It sucks...and I always feel like just giving up because it is too much and I just wish I could eat foods, along side everyone else in my family and not have to say "do know what is in this? can you save the package for me?" etc...in for advice!!

Iwishyouwell

I feel you. I did the whole calorie counting/measuring/weighing deal back in the day. I loathed having that kind of relationship with food, the kind of relationship human beings have generally never had with food.

I eventually found counting carbs to be easier, and after that, intermittent fasting, which is how I live now. I eat intuitively now, have a vastly better relationship with food, know the difference between hunger and cravings, dropped all notions of "guilt" and "cheating", and have built in enough fasting to serve as the perfect auto-deficit. It works beautifully for me.

Calorie counting and logging is great if you can do it, stay the course and not become an anxious, obsessive dieter. I've even seen people on this board who find counting and logging fun, and I so applaud that. But it ain't for me. I too would be just like you OP if I hadn't found a far superior road that fit my individual needs.

J72FIT

I have the same experience... I long to get to a point where I can just eat intuitively and not track anymore.

castlerobber

I get anxious when I've eaten "too many" calories before a certain time of day, because I have bad cravings at night and don't want to use up calories before I can satisfy them (yeah, the cravings are a whole 'nother issue). This obsessing over my log is exhausting and demotivating, especially since I haven't yet settled into a pattern that will help me lose weight, so it feels like it's all for nothing anyway.

...

I love eating healthy foods, and I like lifting and other exercise, but when I don't keep a log, it's too easy to get lazy about both of them.

I see a couple of problems in your diary:

Some of the entries are flat-out wrong. You have a listing for Hy-Vee popcorn that claims 200g carb, 50g fat, 30g protein, 50g fiber...but only 250 calories? The math doesn't work. People get confused on how to enter foods in the database, I guess.

You're eating a lot of bread/bagels, oatmeal, Domino's Pizza, candy, and relatively few veggies. Fat and protein are all over the place, and sugar is quite high some days.

You might feel better, less anxious, fewer cravings, if you dropped some of the starch and sugar in favor of meat, veggies, and full-fat dairy. Some of the anxiety may be due to just being hungry. Double-checking food entries for accuracy would give you a more accurate log.

HTH

WeepingAngel81

I used to feel that way when I first started. It was an obsession! After a while I figured out that most of my anxiety came because I was depriving myself of foods because it wasn't fitting my calorie goal. I did a few things.

First, I figured out my TDEE and subtracted 20% this gave me more calories and even helped me lose weight.

I gave myself a calorie range to eat withing. If I eat within 1400-1500 I'm cool with that. I don't fuss about going over because there will be days when I don't reach 1500. Rather than looking at the day, I look at the week. This seems to help.

You just need to find what is going to work for you while still focusing on losing the weight. Not always an easy balance, but just keep asking questions and seeking support.

Dragonwolf

Yep, been there. I've stopped tracking entirely, though I still make sure I maintain awareness of what I'm eating. I've found MFP's default macro spread, also, to be detrimental to me. There were far too many carbs in it, and even though I'd be struggling to stay under my allotted calories, I felt like I was starving. After I tweaked my macros and cut out the trigger foods, I was able to fall into a habit that allowed me to better listen to my body's hunger signals and stay in a calorie deficit without having to track every morsel of food. That allowed me to stay away from tracking, which I can't do more than a week or two at a stretch before I start obsessing over it.

It didn't help, too, that for a good chunk of time, I was in the same boat as you - doing everything I was told I should be doing, but getting nowhere. It turned out that my PCOS symptoms had reached the point that my body wouldn't tolerate, and my insulin levels were high enough to keep me from losing weight on any sane/healthy amount of calories, but I had to fight to find that answer, and having doctors tell me that I was fine and my lack of results was my own failing just drove me further into obsession around tracking.

So, if you've been at this for more than a month (because it does take the body some time to start losing the weight) and haven't seen any results (and don't forget, the scale isn't the only measure, be sure to keep track of inches), then I recommend going to the doctor to rule out any medical issues. From there, take a good look at what you're eating and see if you find any patterns (such as certain foods causing cravings for other foods, or issues staying under calorie goals), and try other macronutrient ratios (ie - if you're struggling to keep under goal, or if your cravings are always for sugary, empty calorie foods, decrease carbs and increase protein and fat; if you have a hard time getting up to the goal, decrease fat and increase carbs). And you don't have to track for these, either - just make a point to do things like trade the bagel for an avocado, or have some cottage cheese and a smaller portion of spaghetti, or whatever works for you.

Losing weight and being healthy shouldn't have to be a fight or struggle, and I don't believe we should have to forever count calories just to stay within a certain calorie range (eat at a deficit to lose, certainly, but it shouldn't require counting calories all the time to lose and then maintain weight). So if it's causing you more harm than good, then find another way that works for you.

sweetpea03b

I hear you. Especially since I got my fitbit... I am constantly checking my phone and updating to see how many calories it says I've burned and making sure my log is under the calories burned.... then I hit a plateau for a few weeks and I sort of decided right there and then that I've had enough of letting food and weight loss run my life.

The last few days... I've only checked my fitbit once or twice/day. I eat a reasonable amount... to satisfy my hunger... and whatever It is, it is. Some days I've only had a few hundred calories for a deficit... some days I ate right up to maintenance. You have to live your life for more than that darn scale, you know? I just try to concentrate on eating good healthy stuff (the last week I've been PMSing so I kinda cheated a bit ) and do the best I can for my HEALTH first, weight loss second. Honestly... I feel like as long as I'm not gaining.... that's good... I'll just keep going and eventually the weight will come off.. because I'm getting exercise and eating healthy. Best not to live on a timeline.

losingwhatican

Yep, I start letting the bready, carby stuff filter back in when this kind of thing happens! I've got to see someone about emotional eating, for sure. Thanks for saying this, though. Sometimes you just need to hear it from someone else, you know?

(Oh, and if anyone knows what's really in popcorn, that'd be great. The nutritional information on the side of the box is completely useless. I'm not eating two tablespoons of unpopped kernels!)

xkmayx

I struggle with the exact same thing and it's why I stopped logging entirely. I decided to make it about eating clean, nutritious foods in modest amounts rather than about numbers. The obsession with logging is very similar to my obsession with the scale and the numbers there. It sucks. I'm really thankful I found this post and can know I'm not alone.

losingwhatican

take a step back and stop logging and counting. this is one of the very real and serious dangers of calorie counting. many people are just fine, but a lot of people end up with a lot of disordered thinking if not full blown EDs from this stuff.

I'd suggest just stepping away and really just focusing on your nutrition and fitness....giving up calorie counting was one of the best things I ever did. I really just focus on my nutrition and fitness...if I feel like I'm starting to put on some fat I take a look at my diet as a whole and find something or other to just cut out...

Also, give this a read...don't get hung up on the power lifting part, that's not the overall point of the blog...

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

But I love lifting, haha! Thank you, this was a great article. I really am trying to focus on getting stronger instead of smaller, but it's hard to let go of that fear of gaining even more body fat. (I would love to gain weight if it were mostly muscle!) It's been hard to get to the gym because the average high in my town is around 10˚F these days and I don't have a car, but it really does help with that and I think I need to just suck it up and try not to freeze to death.

losingwhatican

Thank you to everyone who's answered (and continues to answer). I know there are lots of not-very-complicated ways to deal with this, but it's easy to start feeling alone and hopeless when nobody else around you is attempting the same thing. I'm very grateful for the MFP community!