I can't decide if this site is right for me...

hypersensitiveb

I totally feel you I'm going threw a rough (whiny) stage my self. I go to the store walk threw it like for 30 min can't find any thing that falls into the sure go eat it and it will fill you up too list. Example I looked at fruit and nut mix (what I thought was a single pack) it was 100 cal ok sure I can eat that ohh wait that's 3 servings! 300 cal! Ohh hell no. So I walk out the store deciding not to eat. Or I get really frustrated and eat a bowl of pasta and regret it later. Now I'm on here today trying to log in even tho I fully know I ate more than 1cup of pasta , I personally think I would die if that's all I ate for dinner even with salad. But I logged most every thing in . Also I will exercise tonight to try to make up for some of the extras so keep it up even tho its hard I'm sure it will be worth it. Good luck.

CallmeSbo

I can only speak for myself. Calorie counting is the ONLY thing that works. I did not know how much i ate, until i started counting. I used to think i did not eat much, any was i wrong. It also keeps me accountable. Give it a try for one month and see how it works out for you.

xdaysbingefree

I think I'm gonna give myself a couple more weeks to get into it. But if I still feel obsessive/stressed about it, I may just end up using this site fore the message boards rather than nutrition/exercise tracking

Lena1967

Hang in there! It sounds like you are a college freshman, or maybe sophomore? You're in a stressful time of life, when a lot of people have issues with binge eating. Maybe you can find a source of support on campus targeted to your eating disorder (i.e., support group, counseling), in addition to MFP?

Best of luck to you! :flowerforyou:

becoming_a_new_me

I think I'm gonna give myself a couple more weeks to get into it. But if I still feel obsessive/stressed about it, I may just end up using this site fore the message boards rather than nutrition/exercise tracking

I'm glad you are going to keep going...tracking your calories helps you to make more mindful food choices. You can avoid some of the stress by planning your meals out in advance so you know what your calorie intake is for the day ahead of time so you can adjust meals before you are starving and just want to eat. You will learn things like substituting a cup of black beans is a much better choice than a pile of rice. You can do this, it just takes a little planning.

paeli

When I first started using MFP I did not log food, I used it for the community mainly. Only when I did start logging more regularly did I realize I was undereating! Now that I've been amping up my workouts, I care much more about the breakdown of my calories as well, it's impossible to tell whether I'm eating the right amounts of each nutrient without logging.

vim_n_vigor

I don't know if you have a diagnosed eating disorder from your profile, or if you feel like you binge a lot. If it is diagnosed, or you feel like it should be, I would advise working with specialists on what the best way is for you to get to your goal. If it makes you more obsessive about food, it may not be the best tool to help you.

cantobean

Set your calorie count higher?

I'm not sure what you're at now, but if you set it to lose 2 pounds a week, you may have set yourself up for failure. Try 1 pound a week.

deadstarsunburn

thanks for the honesty guys. how long did it take you to get used to counting calories like this?

It took me about a month lol. It took kind of awhile to make it part of my day.

Also I saw someone else said make the calorie count higher, that's a great idea you really should consider that. I would say 1400-1600 is very manageable and under most people's TDEE.

engineman312

i felt pretty bad about going over on calories ( i DO NOT worry as much about the other macro nutrients), and one thing that helped me out was looking at my maintenance calories. i figured out that even if i ate over my calorie goals, as long as i was under my maintenance calories, i would still be eating at a deficit.

and don't worry so much about those macros. track things like carbs, sodium, protein, and fiber. don't worry about fat, as most fat is actually good for you. track saturated fat instead.

Lesa_Sass

I see you are 18 with a binge eating disorder, does that mean you are also purging? Are you seeking professional help for your disorder?

This very well may not be the right site for you. If you are getting counseling for your problem, have you discussed this site with your therapist?

If you are not getting professional help, please do so today. You, by no means, need to lose weight if your profile pic is a reflection on what you look like today.

BerryH

I had no idea how I ended up borderline obese as I always made healthy eating choices and did a lot of exercise.

Turns out I could easily get through 3,000 calories a day without thinking twice about it, my portion sizes were massive and the exercise I was doing barely made a dent in my consumption, to the extent where I got to my heaviest weight while marathon training!

If I had my time over again, I'd start tracking every single thing I ate for a week BEFORE following MFP's recommendations, to identify where I was going wrong before I started making it right!

helenoftroy1

I think you have to start off a little obsessed unfortunately. It's all about changing habits. I use MFP for the support, motivation and for reigning me back in sometimes.

After a while it becomes natural to think about what you're having for dinner, and knowing what calories are in what and getting excited about what to eat.

However, I admit, I do spend a large chunk of my time on here, but I'm down 41lbs.... so...... I weigh(!) up the pros and cons and think I'd rather break some habits and be a little obsessed to begin with if it means a healthier life and the chance to have kids, live to see grandchildren and run up the stairs without taking a break half way.

The compliments go down quite nicely as well!!

:glasses:

Di3012

I know this sounds weird, but I find this calorie counting and weightloss business quite exciting. I like being accountable and recording my food and drink, I like being accountable and recording my workouts and I love seeing "if everyday were like today you will weigh blah blah pounds..."

I have tried losing weight without recording it all and I fall by the wayside time after time.

I just like it all, plus it is an enormous personal challenge.

All depends on how you look at it I guess.

kittenmitton

Using a calorie counter makes me super anxious too. I've gotten better though. When I first started I couldn't bring myself to eat more than 600-700 calories/day. Now I'm up to 800-900. I know that doesn't seem like a lot, but adding 300 calories/day is pretty big (a 50% increase from what I was eating).

thepetiterunner

I really love the idea of having friends to help keep me motivated here online, but I feel like tracking calories like this is too stressful. Everytime I go over, I feel bad, and I feel like it is making me obsessive over every little bit of food that I eat. Does anyone else feel this way? I can't figure out if this site is actually not for me, or if I'm just being a baby because staying under my calories is too difficult, and it would be easier not to bother.

I also love reading the message boards on here and looking through my newsfeed thing, but I feel like this just makes me spend a large block of time thinking about weight loss, and it stresses me out

I was thinking of just keeping an actual journal of my daily food intake, but not tracking the calories alongside it. Any thoughts on this idea?

Like any other new change you make in your life, it takes effort. It's difficult, You are SUPPOSED to be struggling. This is how this works. If it were easy, everyone would be able to be fit and healthy and in shape all the time.

It's good that you're being aware of what you're eating, particularly if you weren't before. Awareness takes effort as well. Remember when you first started driving? How hard it was? How much attention you had to pay to EVERY little detail? It's the same with weight loss. You need to pay attention. It's hard and time consuming in the beginning, but eventually it turns into habits and takes less energy as it becomes second nature to you.

Keep at it. You'll get this. Don't give in. You deserve more than that.

Lesa_Sass

ARE YOU GUYS EVEN PAYING ATTENTION OR ARE YOU MORE CONCERNED IN EXPRESSING YOUR FANTASTIC LITTLE OPINION!!!!!!!!!!!!

THIS CHILD HAS AN EATING DISORDER AND NEEDS PROFESSIONAL HELP,!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please check out her profile, notice she does not need to lose weight.

WAKE UP PAY ATTENTION!

Not everyone here needs to lose weight. There are lots of people here that have eating disorders, pay attention please.

bhalter

It's definitely a lot to take on at first....but if you're serious about weight loss and fitness, making it your top priority is the only way you will be successful. For me, being this "obsessed" about my weight and food has helped me drop other bad habits. I no longer sit there and eat because I'm bored or be lazy. I am CONSTANTLY aware of fitting in more activity, what I'm putting in my mouth, and how my choices are affecting my goals.

Stick with it and you'll see results.

grinch031

You don't really need to count calories if you are eating mostly natural whole foods and meat. People just don't get fat eating these types of foods because they are satiating. If you want to continue to eat packaged processed foods, desserts, and other junk, then you have to restrict calories or you'll get fat.

anave285

I was doing well on the site and lost like 12 lbs. I'm in school and got too busy to track my calories and I gained 10 of them back... quickly. I've been back on the site for less than a week and have lost 3 of those lbs already. Track... track... track. But, that's only if weight loss is that important to you. If not, then don't stress yourself over it.