Food Diaries

MikeyD1280

Mine is closed because I would occasionally accidentally click "complete this entry" on my diary after lunch instead of after dinners (I do 2 evening meals, so after lunch I'm usually at like 500-600 calories), and then I would get nasty PMs from people, saying I was anorexic and that I should be ashamed of myself and that I wasn't welcome on the site.

Because I clicked a button too early.

So the heck with that, diary's private now.

hmm.. I click completed for the day too around lunch time... I like that feature because it shows "this is what you will be if you don't eat"... so since I'm looking to bulk up, it's a motivator for me to eat more...

I guess if you are trying to lose weight, this can mess with ones mind... calorie intake is important..

scythswife

mine is open to all. i don't care if people see what i eat or not to be honest. it also helps cause i have friends on here that check it daily and they get on me when i am seriously low on cals which seems to be often and they give me suggestions to help out. if i was worried about it and didn't want others to see or offer opinions then i would close it but hey i am game for people to comment. lol i even enjoy the comments that aren't so nice cause usually it makes me laugh.

ready2tryagain42

Mine was private when I was on MFP last year. Figured it was better to have it open now.

irisheyez718

Mine is open! I love reading other people's diaries too, it gives me ideas on different foods that I should try.

PLUMSGRL

Mine is open, but-

Not everyone is gonna agree with what you eat (clean v. processed), macro settings, the amount you eat (to much, to little), tracking nutrients (sodium, sugar), when you eat (folks who want to skip breakfast, no snacks, ect), what you drink, how much you drink, you getting the idea yet? And there are those that will continually hound you about what you choose to do compared to what they are doing (they're way is always the RIGHT way).

Better to find people that have the same mind set as yourself (whatever that may be), friend them and share with them only~

MsMargie1116

Mine is open, so that if I have a gain that I can't think of WHY I gained, People can look at my diary and give me their opinions on why I could have gained.

Not to mention, I like to see how/what other people eat, to maybe get an idea of a meal I may be interested in.

pastryari

There is a notes section in your diary. I have some people on my friend's list who use the notes section to track pesonal things or thoughts they might have so they keep their diaries closed.

In the end, the diary is first and foremost for you. I choose to have mine open because I don't have personal notes in there and don't mind other people looking because it doesn't affect me if they do.

It's all about personal preference. Live and let live.

beebee0925

Mine used to be closed but I recently opened mine because my weight loss slowed up and mine was closed because I wasn't logging my food like I was supposed to. Now I'm logging it more and I feel more accountable for what I eat.

ampa916

Strangely enough when I opened mine up I suddenly became less diligent about logging. Not sure why - it wasn't like I was eating embarrassing stuff and therefore didn't want to log it. I just...I don't know...wasn't as good about it. So, I closed mine again. Maybe once I get in a really good rhythm I'll open it back up again and see what happens.

this is my thing...it's not that anyone ever says anything negative, because most people are here and nice. But I just don't put in what I eat if it's bad if my diary is open. I tend to be pretty (ok VERY) private anyway, and since I have had such a terrible time with food I prefer to just keep it closed, that way I can be honest with myself which is the most important

SocialRopes

i had to close mine temporarily because one of my "friends" was driving us both crazy comparing her diary to mine, in an unhealthy way. she was a little nutty so i made it private for awhile. she got offended and dropped me as a friend. it's open now and i have no problem letting anyone see what i eat.

Strobins05

My diary is open to my friends. I do not close it daily to be viewed or for comments. I also do not view others diaries unless they ask for suggestions. :flowerforyou:

siobhan478

Until now I had no idea mine was set to private. I've opened mine up, but I can see the appeal of setting it to private or just viewable to friends. There are a lot of judgmental people out there in the world and I prefer to give them as little ammunition against myself as possible.

Totally agree, I didn't realise until reading this thread that our food diaries could be seen by others, or that we had an option to share or not. I haven't opened mine up as I know I don't have the healthiest diet in the world (long story but I was physically force fed vegetables by a teacher 30 years ago because I wouldn't eat my greens, then projectile vomited over everyone at my table, was bullied about it for years and now can't put a vegetable in my mouth, I'm scarred for life, probably need therapy) I also have some food allergies and the last thing I want is grief from people because they think I should eat differently. But hey, I'm losing weight steadily and I haven't asked for help. Maybe I'll reconsider if I get to that point, but I would only share it with people I become friendly with, not the entire internet, lol.

BeetleChe13

Mine is open, but-

Not everyone is gonna agree with what you eat (clean v. processed), macro settings, the amount you eat (to much, to little), tracking nutrients (sodium, sugar), when you eat (folks who want to skip breakfast, no snacks, ect), what you drink, how much you drink, you getting the idea yet? And there are those that will continually hound you about what you choose to do compared to what they are doing (they're way is always the RIGHT way).

Better to find people that have the same mind set as yourself (whatever that may be), friend them and share with them only~

This. Instead of berating people for starving themselves, I just delete them from my friends. I will gladly find more friends who eat well and are healthy. I have never had anyone tell me that I am doing this "wrong" and should try "their way". If people are too judgmental for you to keep your diary open, find new (nicer) people!

elfo

I have mine open. I never thought about it, but some people on here are battling food disorders, and don't feel comfortable having them open. I can totally respect that.
However, I think that for those who don't and are serious about loosing and being healthy - it's important. It makes it harder to support friends who don't have it open, but I have found that people have their reasons, and they need to be respected.

maryjay51

mine should be opened ..i dont mind people seeing what i eat at all..sometimes people either take some of the stuff i do for themselves and or give me suggestions . im open to anything that either helps others or helps me which is what this website is all about..sometimes i think folks keep their meal intake diary private because they dont want to hear the comments or suggestions. typically --not always --they are hiding something in my opinion ..

MelMena

Mine is open. I like to look at what others are having because I need ideas for meals and snacks! I would never comment on someones eating habits or choices unless they ASKED for my opinion.

abbiepql

I personally don't care, although I always wonder why they ask to be friend for modivation and then they don't share. BUT don't you dare whine to me about not losing weight if you are not giving me all the information.

lc971

I didn't realize mine was closed until I got familiar with the site. It's open now, and I don't mind if anyone looks at it.

chi18

I personally don't care, although I always wonder why they ask to be friend for modivation and then they don't share. BUT don't you dare whine to me about not losing weight if you are not giving me all the information.

I'm not attacking you at all when I say this, but I think it illustrates an interesting point which is that everyone is motivated differently. Some people respond really well to accountability so they keep their diary open and post everything, even if that means they eat a Snickers at 3 AM. Some people won't post that late-night Snickers if they think people will read that and judge them for it - and if you're not being honest with the food diary you may as well not keep one. Some people consider it motivational to have someone post on their food, some feel better when they get an encouraging note for their exercise posts (which are separate from the food diaries). I think the motivation I get on here is great but I also know myself and what I respond to, and trust others to do the same. However, I can understand your frustration with someone who wants to talk about not losing weight but won't offer you the information to offer a solution.

It makes me think of professional sports - look at someone like Phil Jackson versus someone like Bill Belichick. Totally different coaching styles but with the right players who respond well to that type of coaching they can win championships. On here I think we just need to know our own strengths and weaknesses and what works best for us. If someone thinks that by keeping my diary locked for now mean I'm hiding something, I don't care, because I know what works for me personally, you know?

Shock_Wave

Hey guys! I was just wondering why more people don't share their food diary? I'm relatively new to MFP and most of my friends are people from my area and the majority of them have private diaries.

I share mine because it doesn't matter to me one way or the other and maybe someone will get an idea from my diary, even though it is rather repetitive.

So tell me, do you share or not and why?

Feel free to friend me

Maybe the people who do not share are not consistant and do not want to be judged by eating bad foods or low cals.. dunno just a thought.
I share my diary only with my friends because they can see my profile page and understand my goals. I try my best and so does my friends so we can all motivate each other and maybe learn new foods.

Helloitsdan

You can hop in my diary any day!
Enjoy!
Glean some ideas if needed!

bikinibeliever

Mine is open to friends. I didn't open mine to the public because when I first joined I heard people saying they get nasty messages if they ate cake, ice cream, chocolate. If I go haywire some day I don't need to hear about it. Cause those days happen to skinny people here and there too. Plus I try to make sure I have some calories left for a little dark chocolate.

I've never had anyone say anything negative so I might open mine to the public.

Fluxx2009

Thanks for your replies guys, didn't even realize how horrible some of the people on here could be to people who share their diaries! Guess I'm too naive to think that a website for weight loss support would not be supportive sometimes.

Fluxx2009

Mine is closed because I would occasionally accidentally click "complete this entry" on my diary after lunch instead of after dinners (I do 2 evening meals, so after lunch I'm usually at like 500-600 calories), and then I would get nasty PMs from people, saying I was anorexic and that I should be ashamed of myself and that I wasn't welcome on the site.

Because I clicked a button too early.

So the heck with that, diary's private now.

Wow, that's really awful. If someone doesn't have a lot of calories I normally assume they aren't very good at tracking them, not that they have an eating disorder!

Fluxx2009

I would bet a lot of people don't realize when they set up an account that the default setting is private. For a more personal perspective, I just joined and mine is locked. I may open it up to friends at some point when I'm a little more comfortable with this site and system. And I know that right now I'm more likely to be really honest and record everything (good or bad) when I'm the only one who sees it. Again, that may change when I'm a little more comfortable here.

I didn't even think of that. I made my account a year or two ago and had completely forgotten the standard settings.

Fluxx2009

Mine is open to friends. I didn't open mine to the public because when I first joined I heard people saying they get nasty messages if they ate cake, ice cream, chocolate. If I go haywire some day I don't need to hear about it. Cause those days happen to skinny people here and there too. Plus I try to make sure I have some calories left for a little dark chocolate.

I've never had anyone say anything negative so I might open mine to the public.

I love chocolate! I may be making life changes but I could never be happy in a life without some sweets!!

Fluxx2009

You can hop in my diary any day!
Enjoy!
Glean some ideas if needed!

Thanks I will!!

Fluxx2009

I started mine as private...I only had 2 friends to begin with, but added friends along the way. After trolling some of the forums, I noticed that there are some people that look for food ideas in other journals, so I just made it public.

i track every day and put everything in there. If I eat a handful of jelly beans, you'll see it. If I have a great night with Captain Morgan, you'll see it! Judge me if you want, but I know I only have to answer to me!

That's a fantastic attitude! Kudos to you!!

Fluxx2009

Mine is public, because I want my friends to be able to offer me helpful advice, and I also don't really care if other MFP members look at it from time to time. I've got nothing to hide!

CAUTION: Just remember if you look at someone else's diary and it works for them, it does not necessarily mean the same food choices will work for you too.

that's a good thing to keep in mind, thanks for the tip.

candctaber

Mine is open. I like to look at other peoples diaries to get ideas of something new to try & to help them if they are having problems.