Open Diary vs Closed Diary

msmayor

I wonder why some come here for support and advice but hide their diaries.....They want you to say how well they did but with a closed diary you really don't lknow - I think opening my diary made all the difference for me I am not perfect nor do I eat perfect but I do try to balance my cals and at times I ask for advice from fellow MFPer's and I look at my friend diaries as well to get ideas..... like changing my meal names to times of the day I eat. How do you feel about it?

H_Factor

I agree that having an open diary helps folks give you advice...and helps you be accountable.

However, to answer your question, I suspect some folks don't know that (or how) they can make their diary public.

MissMaryMac33

Primarly because the default settings are closed -- and most people have no clue their diary isn't open.

My Home > Settings > Diary Settings

Umeboshi

Mine is public to my friends. I really don't care to have non-friends snooping through it.

rockylucas

Most folks don't realize how to make their diaries public... But then there are the few that ask for help, dont understand what mistakes they are making in their diet, etc, and then refuse to let anyone actually look and see. Those folks got issues lol

texancountess

Some of us have it open to friends only because we've received unwanted comments from people we don't know that were unkind, unpleasant, and sometimes all around nasty. Some keep them closed privately due to such a reason.

pjdamico

I'm open and invite anyone and everyone to look on in. I do respect those that don't want to open their diary. Many reasons for this I'm sure. I think overall it is a matter of respect for others choices. When they want to share, they will. Those of us that prefer to be open, great!

morganadk2_deleted

mine is always open, and i like looking at other peoples diary's they give me ideas !

Contrarian

My diary is private. Like a diary. I don't need anyone else to hold me accountable and I don't care if people comment on what I have eaten.

If I need advice, I will open it, but at the moment, I do not. It's a personal preference.

sangelic

I started with a closed diary because I was somewhat self conscious of everyone seeing what I was eating. I finally got over it and am really glad I did as I find I knowingly make better choices because of the fact that people will be seeing what I eat everyday! I definitely need to be held accountable or I won't succeed so it works for me.

rmartin72

Mine is open for anyone too see, I am here to be accountable and help others and give support and hold them accoutable too. We need to have the mind set to help each other!! Healthy Journey!!

chefchazz

I'm open and invite anyone and everyone to look on in. I do respect those that don't want to open their diary. Many reasons for this I'm sure. I think overall it is a matter of respect for others choices. When they want to share, they will. Those of us that prefer to be open, great!

well said and................GO BEARS!

lor007

Mine was open for a really long time, but it closed now.


I know what I'm doing and when something that I eat is/isn't healthy, I don't need other people to tell me those things.

juliesummers

Not everyone comes on here for advice! I don't have mine public because what I put in my mouth is my own damn business and I don't need anyone chiming in with their unwarranted opinions.

msmayor

Mine is open for anyone too see, I am here to be accountable and help others and give support and hold them accoutable too. We need to have the mind set to help each other!! Healthy Journey!!

I so agree with you .....

mermx

My whole profile is private,. I don`t add `friends`

I don`t ask for advice privately. If I ask for advice then I give all the info and it is public but nothing to do with my food / exercise diary.

Some may disagree, but I feel it is not facebook, and I do not want to add a bunch of strangers to be my `friend`

misty_meadows15

Well mine is open and all, but It's true people do judge you on what you eat. All the time people are telling me that I don't eat enough, or that I should do this or that. But I know what I'm doing. I'm probably going to be closing my diary soon.. lol. But It's your decision to make.

asyouseefit

Do people really go and look at everyone's diary? I never do, unless someone request help or say they're not losing...

katrina1025

I'm a closed diary person. I've open and closed it again and again. Right now it's currently closed. I don't always make the best food choices and I'll admit that. When my diary is closed I tend to log EVERYTHING and plug along with my poor choices from time to time. When my diary is open I tend to omit my indiscretions. Which I know is no good for me. That is why mine is closed.

rockylucas

Asyouseefit.. good point! How boring to sit around and look at random people's food diaries. AND... if some random person wanted to look at mine, why on earth would I care?

fithealthygirl

Agreed!

shesblossoming

I'm open and invite anyone and everyone to look on in. I do respect those that don't want to open their diary. Many reasons for this I'm sure. I think overall it is a matter of respect for others choices. When they want to share, they will. Those of us that prefer to be open, great!

I was so worried about my diary not being up to standards when I first started, but I realized that the only way I could learn was to let other people see and recommend to me what they felt I was lacking. Also, it keeps me from eating crap, as I like to see a good looking diary!

I agree with what this poster said the most. I think it's important that if you're asking for advice to open your diary. You know it's not good when someone is refusing to open it (just from my experience). But for those who don't want to, that's definitely their choice. However, I feel like you miss out on a very important experience when not keeping it open. It's not only accountability, but I get to see recipes I never heard of and find new foods that could make my daily eating more well rounded and delicious.

But it's all up to the person.

TheBraveryLover

Mine is only open to my friends since they're the only ones I care to comment on it.

adjones5

Not everyone comes on here for advice! I don't have mine public because what I put in my mouth is my own damn business and I don't need anyone chiming in with their unwarranted opinions.

Agree times a million

therealkittymao

I have never judged anyone's diary that I have peeked at (anyone who eats Taco Bell daily needs to NEVER, EVER judge ANYONE), but I have definitely gotten good ideas for things to eat from other people's diaries.

mrspenton2009

mine is always open, and i like looking at other peoples diary's they give me ideas !

Ditto....when I begin MFP in August of this year, it took me a while to work out the kinks but my diary is now OPEN FOR BUSINESS...to my friends only!!

Scott613

Mines open and I could care less what others think of how or what I eat! It works for me so I'm good with it. Others opinions don't matter it's not their body it's mine...... and it's a well chisled machine that trial,error and time have accomplished.

Jennloella

I think that if they're not asking you for advice, help, or your opinion on their food, then it really doesn't matter

girlypop

what an interesting post. I like having my diary open for the sake of transparency. I know sometimes in the past i have hidden food, ate late at night when no one else was awake, and slipped into the kitchen without being noticed to grab some junk food. I think this was really bad. I shouldn't feel guilty about eating. If i'm hungry I need to eat and if I want a treat well I deserve it from time to time. So i keep my diary open because even if I eat too much; it's not a secret. I'm not happy that I ate too much, but I'm human so it happens. This reminds me of a quote I heard one time 'you can hide the food but not the weight'. I think it's soo true because even if no one ever saw you eating your weight tells it's own story. Anyway I have my diary open for me.

Although sometimes I feel weird if I know someone looked at all the food I ate during the day. You can always tell if they make some specific comment. I dunno tho, cuz if I ever look at someone else's diary it's usually a quick glance and checking out the calorie totals, so I assume that's exactly what others do. Although my diary often has random foods listed. Like 1tbsp peanut butter as my only snack for the day or something, but I swear it's 100% true, except maybe for the actual time I ate.... (sometimes i log lunch items under dinner cuz or whatever)

carolina_r

Looks like the neat thing about this site is that there is no ONE way to do it. So many different people are using it in a variety of ways to meet their own needs. Whatever works for you, great!:happy:

seal57

I have mine closed to all.....It's my choice......

If I wanted advice about something then I would ask......