Does everyone log their food?

taso42_DELETED

I lost the first 25 lbs or so without any logging, I did however plan my meals a day in advance for many weeks until I got the hang of it. I didn't do the planning in terms of calories, but rather in terms of what food I was planning to eat and at what time.

I was using the "Body for Life" system of eating; 6 "meals" a day. A meal is defined as 1 serving of protein + 1 serving of complex carbs. At least 2 meals a day include a serving of vegetable. A serving is defined as a hunk of food the size of your hand or fist. This worked splendidly for me.

I still eat pretty much the same exact way, but I am keeping track of calories just to attain a higher precision in meeting my goals.

SueInAz

Why would MFP members not log their food? Why be on MFP if you didn't use the power of logging food... I'm missing something.

Yeah, I'm in this camp. Just a rhetorical question but MFP is a logging tool, why is anyone here if they weren't looking specifically for a tool to log their food? :huh:

RocketsGirl75

is that why we are here to log food? I seriously thought this was a new age dating web site.....

:noway: :grumble: :noway:

stormieweather

I log every single thing I eat.

Rachaelluvszipped

I log in to keep myself accountable..no need to blame anyone for my crazy mistakes..Plus if I didn't..I would totally forget what I ate for the day..and then later that night I'd feel horrible.. Especially my downfall would totally be that oh so very tempting, melt in your mouth, creamy tasting..Costco Cheesecake..Alright I think I just gained weight thinking about it..lol, anyways..the holidays are coming up..now's the best time to keep track of what you eat..so that you know if you can splurge alil or what not..especially if your are watching what you eat and exercising..I don't know about you, but I don't want all the hardwork I put into this to go to waste.. I hope you do log..because it is very beneficial... this site is to keep you going the right path..:flowerforyou:

SexyCook

I feel like whats the point...I can respect if you log and have your diary private or with a key for those you want to check it out..But we started off not logging foods and not monitoring our exercise so....I LOVE LOGGING....I loss 29pds with MFP logging...Make you more aware of the things in your foods...

superteetee

I log everything, personally. And yes, I do "obsess" (as you put it) about it, but that keeps me focused on my goals. If I don't obsess, I start slacking, and the next thing I know I've gained weight. Until I get down to a comfortable weight and manage to keep myself there, I won't be able to skip logging anything.

peluzuff

The research on this topic is very clear. Self monitoring (logging) leads to the greatest success with weight loss. They say tracking food intake is effective and that tracking food AND exercise AND weight is even more effective. I think that is what this whole site is based on. This article from Weight Watchers explains some of it:
http://www.weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=22811&sc=804

NovemberJune

you'd probably have more luck finding people who have successfully lost weight without logging their food on a website that wasn't mainly for logging food
the main purpose of mfp (imho) is to log food and exercise so the majority of people here do that. i do and it works great for me but i know it's not for everyone. good luck!

LTrangsrud

I lost 37 # by having a food diary. When I quit logging, I gained 10 # almost immediately. I have had a food diary ever since (10 years) and just recently found myfitnesspal and love it. I now, log food and exercise. It keeps me reminded of what I have eaten just in case I forget that I already had a treat this week. Good luck to you!

venom74799

I log it in beforehand in order to make sure I am not getting something ridiculous. Once I have a hang on whats good vs whats bad and get within 20 pounds of my goal then I can let off the gas pedal a bit.

mrandolph69

I log everything. I find it to be educational in that it shows me exactly what I need to work on. For example, it never occurred to me that frozen chicken is loaded with sodium. After scanning the barcode on some chicken in order to log it I saw how much sodium there was. I then researched it and found out that most chicken is injected with a brine solution. I now buy chicken that is not treated loaded with sodium. That was a direct result of logging food. Of course, I do the same thing by paying more attention to food labels now but I still think I would not be as successful without logging my food.

bachooka

i couldn't have lost any with out logging...i cheat otherwise.

getting a scale has helped me with portions (especially peanut butter...32 g is NOT a lot!)

Agreed! I cheat like crazy... even now I do somewhat because I don't have a food scale... My momma is getting me one for my birthday tho, and then I have no excuse!

msblueyes5

Why would MFP members not log their food? Why be on MFP if you didn't use the power of logging food... I'm missing something.

I logged at first, now I don't. I just like to give some motivation now and then and read the forums to learn new things about nutrition. Works for me!

raevynn

I lost 80 lbs 14 years ago by just writing down everything I ate (and drinking water, and exercise..)

I slowly put it all back on over the years by NOT paying much attention (I had some other issues that were taking precedence).

I'm logging it all, and relearning what a portion size should be.

therobinator

I used to log relogiously, now I don't. Reasons are listed on my profile. So far, I haven't really gained anything back, and that's all I was hoping for until I start exercising again.

rml_16

Anyone out there that does NOT log food, just try to make better food decisions AND exercise?
If so, are you losing with this method? I find that if I work out hard I automatically make better food choices.
But I start to 'obsess' if I log....of course I want to do what is going to work for me so that I lose. I have about 60 lbs to lose!
Any suggestions??

My supervisor lost about 40 pounds that way. I can't do it, personally.

sfergie

Yeah, I know this website is for logging but I also notice that alot of people don't and they are just here for the support so that's why I asked the question. Thanks for all your responses!

lolainlondon

I logged absolutely everything to begin with. Now I'm a bit more relaxed about it. I think you begin to get to the point where you have a rough internal clock that tells you how much you can have. I've had days where I hadn't logged it at the time, thought I'd be a bit over, and then when I did go back and log everything (including portion size) found it to be just under my limit.

joakool

I log everything. When I eat at work (no internet access), I write everything down and log it at home. Logging helps me from cheating. I really think about how what I am about to eat will affect my calorie limit for the day. I also log to become more educated on portions and calorie content. Sometimes I am FLOORED at how many calories that "little" bowl of soup has, or that homemade casserole.