Counting calories forever

Pohudet

yes, you have to count calories forever. and the older you are, the more so.

Laura3BB

It depends on you and how you function.
I am not logging in maintenance.

astartig

I will never stop.
Yes, I do know what portion sizes look like, and I do know not to overindulge.
But...................I know myself. I need to keep logging to keep myself from straying back to where I was 2-1/2 years ago.
I will be counting calories forever.
That is me. Everyone may be different.

yup, I may have small windows where I don't log but it's really easy to start slipping without the logging.

jamesdavidy

No you don't have to count calories forever, when you think about it after you have had a stint of counting you kind of get a hang on what you should be eating, I find this site most useful for being mindful and posting discussing fitness stuff that bores the pants off of Facebook friends about my gym attendance. I have just had a long spell away from this site and had a good handle on my calories, but did miss chatting about lifestyle so I came back. Please feel to add me if you want to chat about fitness.

LivingtheLeanDream

I hope to stop after I have lost the weight and have mantained for awhile (3 months) but I will weigh myself weekly and if the weight goes above 5lbs over my goal weight then the logging will start again.

^^ good plan
I have been logging for over 2 years and I have relaxed my logging over the past 3 months, just logging the odd day and have been maintaining nicely.
When I put on a few pounds I start logging again more to satisfy my curiosity that I am still doing things 'right' and hone in any silly snacking (which I am prone to).

Everyone is different but I would like to have more confidence in my food choices to feel I could go without logging long term. I haven't quite reached that place yet.

(^^ gosh I have used that logging word WAYYY too much lol)

Ninkyou

I do not plan to stop logging. I know that it would lead to regaining the weight I lost. Since it takes less than 5 minutes a day, I don't see the problem. There are many routines that I perform every day; I'm not going to stop doing those things either. Just part of an accountable, organized life.

Pretty much this. There may be a time where I'm not as strict with it, but I plan to keep doing it. It really doesn't take that much longer to log and weigh my food. Plus it will give me a pretty good idea of where I am nutritionally, not just calorie-wise.

mcibty

I say I won't count X day, or Y weekend, or even on holiday, but inevitably in a moment of boredom I will log everything. It doesn't make much difference to me, it doesn't take long. Like the others have said, I know what a meal is roughly, but it's just done out of habit now.

47Jacqueline

Yes and no. I'm pretty familliar with calorie counts so it's not necessary to weigh or measure everything any more, but I do it out of habit as a rule. I pretty much log every day, except if I'm away or involved in some all day activity. Also, my activity tracker records what I eat without my doing anything, based on my eating history and it's pretty accurate.

The next two weeks I'll be recovering from a cataract operation and can't work out, so I'll probably log to keep busy.

FindingAmy77

I'm less than 10 pounds away from my goal weight. 7 pounds to be exact. Which got me thinking...do I have to count calories forever? I am used to counting my calories of MFP so it's not a big deal if I continue to count calories. I'm just wondering if everyone is going to count calories forever if not, when do you plan on stopping?

whether you count them or don't, you will be eating them forever so why not? why not continue to pay attention to what and how much you eat for the rest of your life? I think you can come up with an easy plan to eat that stays within the average of what you need and then occasionaly you just make sure you aren't overestimating or underestimating. its all a balance.

elisa123gal

I think that after we’ve been doing this for a while we get a pretty good idea of what a 200 meal or a 500 meal looks like. After a few months of eating around 1600-1800 calories I know what a day like that looks like without having to log. Most days I log at the end of the day and have no problem staying within my calorie goal. I have continued to log because I am trying to slowly build muscle and I do not want to fall short in calories but once I get to where I want muscle wise I will probably stop logging.

I got to the point where the fear of gaining weight again is over. I take progress pics at least twice a month and I still weight myself almost daily. If I see a change I don’t like for a week or two I know I can always go back to logging and lose the weight.

(this) is so great to hear..and is how I feel and trust I will be when I get to goal. I find it hard to believe that I can't teach and condition myself to truly realize what I am eating. I read that some on here say they have to log forever… I find counting calories more interesting and important to realize where you need to be to lose…and where you need to maintain.

Chevy_Quest

The question to me was: "Do you see yourself counting calories forever"?

If I had a job where I didn't have to travel often and stay in different cities. I could see myself in a few years not needing to log every day because I would have a good routine.

However, because I am constantly in new/different places, and in different situations, I will keep logging for a long time. Logging my calories serves as a "guidance beacon" or anchor and removes one variable from the equation and becomes a "constant". MFP is a great free tool for that. And, I have to admit, I really like interacting with my MFP friends.

:drinker:

prestigio

Gotta hit that 50year's in a row mark =D

kennie2

i stopped for about a year and a half but then gained a few lb so now getting back into it for a bit to lose them

uk_ja

I suspect I will need to log in some way forever. I am not the same as a normal person. If I was, I wouldn't be over 100 lbs. overweight. For me, a willingness to do some simple things to keep my health in check is worth it. A diabetic has to test every day. And I will likely have to log every day. I hope I will be willing to do it to stay healthy.

qft

bostonboxermom

I've been thinking about this too. With only 4 lbs to go, I've decided I will continue to log my calories. At least for a few months - maybe forever if need be. I log all my food in the morning when I get up. It really only takes a few minutes, and I rarely change it later (but do if I need to). Maintenance Calories are so different from 'weight loss' calories - I want to make sure I know what I'm eating, so I can change things around if the scale starts creeping up. I weigh daily while I'm losing, but I think I'll go down to once a week once I start maintaining. I also plan to up my calories slowly - 50 a day for one week, 100 a day the next week, etc. until I reach my maintenance calories.

seren218

I log my calories daily until I feel confident that a guess of a 3 oz piece of chicken is actually a 3 oz peice of chicken. After awhile you get good at eye-balling things. But I still check in every now and again and what I find is that it slooooowly starts to creep upwards again. At that point I will log daily for a short period of time.

dopeysmelly

I don't know whether I'll count calories for ever, but I use MFP as much for making sure I'm hitting my macros and for meal-planning in general as much as tracking my calories. Without my (and my family's) meals planned for the day, I would honestly forget what I'd eaten earlier in the day and would probably miss out on protein, fiber or fat. Also, my diet is very seasonal so there is a fair amount of variability in there and I would forget from month to month what an "average" meal would look like.

Allterrain_Lady

I still have about 20lbs to lose before I reach UGW so I know I'll be counting until then. Hopefully by Christmas.
I've been thinking about maintenance mode, when I had a moment where I purposely stopped losing but didn't want to put weight back on.
The website and the app make logging a no-brainer so it's not a problem to continue counting calories.

In the very long run, I hope to not count every day. And weight myself twice a week. If pounds are creeping back up, I'll take control again right away.

I really think the key is not to let yourself go. A two pounds gain and I'll count and log again!

ntnunk

I'm a long way from needing to worry about it, but I've already been thinking about that. I will, at the very least, continue to weigh myself every day and continue to keep a spreadsheet with my daily weights and weekly weight averages. As for logging, I'm not sure how I'll proceed. I think at this point I'll continue to log what I can and just try not to worry about meals that I'm unsure of such as when we eat out at local places, etc. I'm kind of nit-picky about getting the data in correctly so I'm not sure how well it'll work. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

missjanetleigh

I think the counting calories with the food you eat after reaching your goal weight will become second nature. Keeping track of them here or anywhere can be most helpful to stay on track.

I have always had my calories depend on how active I was that day that helped me, always staying mindful.

RobD520

I never intend to stop counting. When I count I make my goals fairly easily. When I stop counting, the calorie consumption tends to creep up just enough that I start gaining weight back. If it is not hard to keep doing it, why stop?

amblight

At the moment, I'm kind of sick and tired of it... But I think that's also because I like to be super accurate, while at the same time, I'd be mortified if anyone found out I weigh my food.... So it's does make things difficult. Once I reach my goal, which is soon, I think I'll be VERY relaxed about logging, I won't weigh food, maybe I'll even only log the calorie-dense items...

I will weigh myself every day, though, so if I see myself slipping, I know what to do!

FitPhillygirl

I don't think anyone needs to count calories forever. There is nothing wrong with taking a break from it every now and then. Use the break to reevaluate your goals or set new ones for yourself.

holliebevineau

I may take a weekend off here and there, but I need MFP to keep myself in check. I am super close to my goal and WHEN I reach it I know that I must continue to log my calories.