Why Would You Keep Your Food Diary Private?

Jenne1979

Why? Well because some people think they know it all... I am doing what works for me, and if that means that I have 1 coffee a day and a chocolate before bed to avoid a major bingefest than that is what I will do. I shared my diary at one point and people would say things that didn't fit in withwhat I am trying to achieve. On the other hand I have seen diary entries that are horrible....and kept my comments to myself! :happy:

rockangel8907

I have mine open and for the most part my mfp friends are supportive, but I do not enjoy nitpicking. If you have to point out one tiny thing I 'need to change' such as my water intake....then I think I'm doing pretty damn good. And please use common sense when critiquing, if someone doesn't log their water but logs every thing else they consume( I don't because it has no impact on my calories in or out) and they have logged only one other beverage all day it's pretty safe to say they are probably drinking water.

vicrandom

Judgment about what I eat is deeply tied to my shame/guilt complex about food, so for now, the diary is staying closed. I'm hoping that I can continue being totally honest with myself, whereas if I open it up, I'll want to hide my lower moments... or even worse, have moments I think of as "successes" be criticized as poor choices (I do rock some some "harm reduction" at times).

In addition, my macros are kinda weird - my calories are coming almost in thirds from each macro, rather than being heavily weighted towards carbs. If I were doing this with a nutritionist's supervision, I'd might be able to shake off any comments about it; as it is, I'm more doing it from a "this is working for me, I feel full after I eat, my bodily experience of high sugar has improved, I'm under my calorie goal, STFU" perspective. It's easy to say now, sure, but but I know I'm still at a point where comments about it could wreck me. And yes, I am planning to get back to a nutritionist/trainer at some point, but again, want to solidify the habits of tracking and portion control so that gentle professional criticism doesn't derail them.

Hey, I'm not ashamed of my thin skin. I fully intend to share my diary at some point - I have a tendency to hit a motivation WALL and just flip the proverbial desk of my health effort, and I know a few kind/inspirational/motivational words would help when that happens - but for right now, I think there's a greater risk of being derailed by someone's comment than re-railed by it.

kluvit

Mine is open to my friends who do not judge me for my "all things within moderation" eating style and do not tell me to eat less ice cream and more rice cakes. :happy: In fact, they are happy to learn that McDonald's small hamburger + small fry ~ 500 calories.

tikkathyme

I keep my diary private because i'm not interested in anyone's comments on what I'm eating. That's the short, straightforward answer.

To expand a bit on that...

If I was eating the way I think I should and still not losing weight I would consider making my diary public in order to get advice. I just don't want unsolicited commentary on my food choices. I want approval from *me* before I get approval from anyone else.

I understand that when people make their diaries public it doesn't necessarily mean they're looking for approval; that's just the way I feel when I talk to people about food. Then I feel like I'm giving them some power over me-- regardless of whether that line of thinking makes sense to anyone else, that's where my mind goes with it!

I got fat because I looked to other people to see if I was worthy or not. I always fell short and then overate to mask my feelings of sadness and loneliness. I feel that in order to get over that issue I need to be fierce about making sure I don't open myself up to wanting validation from others in this arena. Additionally, I have some serious shame problems about food and eating, and I can see how allowing people to make unsolicited comments on my food choices-- good or ill-- could activate some of that stuff.

Not that I wouldn't want congratulations-- of course we all deserve and need pats on the back and encouragement regularly! But for where I am right now it's just better for me and my success if I keep it private.

I agree 100% It's personal for me, and I'm not really looking for congrats/advice/criticism from anyone on here. I appreciate reading the message boards and learning from/contributing to the community, but my day to day is my business.

Sweet_Pea0107

My diary is private because I don't use it. I never changed the settings I really didn't see the point. When I was logging I found that too many people view their opinions as fact and tried to shove their "facts" down my throat. I will never have an open diaryagain because I am not looking for in put on the way I eat from strangers. I have medical conditions and have to eat a certain way so I can keep from having to take prescrition meds.

WickedGarden

Never got comments on when it was open so I locked it, didn't get any comments on why it was locked so does it really matter?

Cherbear67

I use my diary but keep it private.... I am on a program and people from what I seen have all kinds of things to say. What works for one may not work for another.. I have done fine on my own and just started to keep track for myself the last couple of months.. The last 2 years I haven't bothered.. To me it keeps me accountable for MY OWN personal routine.

wiltl

Because I'm accountable to no one but myself.

I started using this as opposed to a spreadsheet and Google/paper & pen because of the simplicity of use and I've gotten a lot of great information and chuckles out of the message boards.

This is an old thread, but I've seen the question come up quite a bit in the last 11 months I've been on here.

Hearts_2015

it's because i eat children, and dog food. ya caught me.

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

711llgisme

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711llgisme

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