Food dairy, why don't more people make them visible?

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nas24
nas24 Posts: 880 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Just noticing that many people don't make their food journals visible, at least out of the few friends ive made here in 5 days. I make mine visible so that all my friends can give me tips and also, i want to see what everyone else is eating to give me new, fun ideas of what to eat.
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Replies

  • A_Brunner
    A_Brunner Posts: 9
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    My food journal is public.
  • Chunkabutt83
    Chunkabutt83 Posts: 461
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    mine is open too, im not sure why a lot of people dont want to share
  • trilikeagirl
    trilikeagirl Posts: 218
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    I'm with you. It's not private...we're all here for the same reason!! Nice to get ideas from others, and see what works and what doesn't.
  • Robscofle
    Robscofle Posts: 40
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    I'm assuming that people are afraid of what others might think of their food choices. My diary is public as i've got nothing to be afraid of.
  • TNAJackson
    TNAJackson Posts: 686 Member
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    I agree... I didn't make mine public for a long time and now that I look back, the reason was simple... because I wanted to be able to eat crappy and not be held accountable for it. Now that it's public, I'm really making sure (most of the time) that the things I eat are things that my friends would find acceptable. It helps me stay focused.
  • Dragonwolf
    Dragonwolf Posts: 5,600 Member
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    It's private by default, and I don't think most people know they can make it more public.
  • MichelleLydia
    MichelleLydia Posts: 224 Member
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    Mine is public, and I make sure I log everything and when I screw up I hope that people tell me "you probably shouldn't have eaten that entire bag of chips" or whatever! It makes me way mroe accountable!
  • jazzy020106
    jazzy020106 Posts: 485 Member
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    Mine is private.. IDK why I just dont like the idea of people seeing what I ate.. If I have a bad day I feel like everyone can see it and that just bothers me.. other than that no reason really. =]
  • catmom2cj
    catmom2cj Posts: 47 Member
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    When I first joined I was nervous to have other people see what I was eating - that they might criticize me for it. Now it is open to my friends. For me it helps with accountability. If I don't want anyone to know I'm eating something, then I probably shouldn't be eating it! I wish more of my friends would have theirs open.
  • MayhemModels
    MayhemModels Posts: 367 Member
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    Mine is open to my friends, so friend me lol
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
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    I'll tell you why I don't share mine with everyone:

    Because people are judgmental and often rude about it. I am an extremely picky eater who eats the same things everyday. I also consume far more calories than a lot of people on this site do. I used to let people have access to it, but when they get it in their head that it is okay to offer me advice or whatever -- I shut it down. I've lost 60lbs and I am currently maintaining my weight. If I don't ASK for your opinion or advice - I'd appreciate you not commenting on what *I* choose to eat.

    Easiest way to eliminate that? Not letting people see what I am eating. Am I embarrassed about what I eat? Nope. Am I trying to hide behind a private diary? Nope. Do I do it try and keep my crappy eating private? Nope. Because for ME, I do not eat crappy. I keep a food diary for me and me alone. What someone else thinks of it is of no concern to me. :)
  • BrittaneyHG
    BrittaneyHG Posts: 98 Member
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    I got nothing to hide!!!

    :)
  • weightofyourskin
    weightofyourskin Posts: 173
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    I eat well and don't have anything to be ashamed of in my food diary. That being said, it's nobody's business what I eat and if one of my friends on MFP started complaining that I don't let them know every single bite I put into my mouth, I would find that creepy. You don't need to know what somebody is eating to be able to support them in their weight loss and there's an entire subsection of the message board devotes to recipes if you need new food ideas.
  • prettyash76
    prettyash76 Posts: 117
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    Mine is private. I just feel more comfortable with it being private for now
  • highrise
    highrise Posts: 147 Member
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    I think many people would like the support without having their detailed eating habits scrutinised. In general, I understand that if people want nutrition advice, they'll ask for it - and making their diary public at that stage makes sense.

    (I've seen a lot of threads on this very subject during my time on MFP, and people have got very upset when they've been cross-questioned, so might be worth searching out one of those threads if you're interested in the discussion)
  • melizerd
    melizerd Posts: 870 Member
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    Mine is open to my friends, and I don't friend everyone who sends a request either. I do friend people with good stories, or goals similar to mine or just because you gave me a good reason to friend you LOL.


    My diary is not public to the world because it's none of your business what I eat and how much I eat. I don't eat in front of a million people so I wouldn't share it with a million people.


    There are also people who are recovering from eating disorders who may be trying to lose or gain weight in a healthy manner and don't want people scrutinizing their diary. It's also why those people on my friends' list won't get a blanket "GOOD JOB" if you're under your calories, it depends on why/how you're under that can make it a good or a bad thing.
  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
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    Mine is private. Contrary to popular belief it's not because I am hiding anything or lying about what I eat. I prefer not to be judged for what I eat. There was a whole thread on here one day started by some woman who wondered if she should dump an MFP friend because she didn't like how they ate.

    If I ever do want feedback on my diary I will open it and ask for it.
  • ladybg81
    ladybg81 Posts: 1,553 Member
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    I've noticed that too. Mine used to be viewable only to friends but I recently changed it. I like to look at other people's diary's to get ideas, etc. I don't really have a specific reason why mine was not public before.
  • StellaBby10
    StellaBby10 Posts: 108
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    maybe they dont realize its private...when i first got on here i didnt even notice it was private for a long time....or maybe they are not interested in seeing what other have to say and are just doing it on there own?
  • mermx
    mermx Posts: 976
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    I'll tell you why I don't share mine with everyone:

    Because people are judgmental and often rude about it. I am an extremely picky eater who eats the same things everyday. I also consume far more calories than a lot of people on this site do. I used to let people have access to it, but when they get it in their head that it is okay to offer me advice or whatever -- I shut it down. I've lost 60lbs and I am currently maintaining my weight. If I don't ASK for your opinion or advice - I'd appreciate you not commenting on what *I* choose to eat.

    Easiest way to eliminate that? Not letting people see what I am eating. Am I embarrassed about what I eat? Nope. Am I trying to hide behind a private diary? Nope. Do I do it try and keep my crappy eating private? Nope. Because for ME, I do not eat crappy. I keep a food diary for me and me alone. What someone else thinks of it is of no concern to me. :)

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