Getting carried away....

UrbanSpaceman75

I joined MFP in mid-May and have had a fair bit of success so far in losing weight. I've got a way still to go to get where I want to be, but I'm pleased with the new routines and habits I've established, the new knowledge I have about relative calorie content of different foods and about what I call 'calorie-fillingness-deliciousness' ratios. However, I've got a bit of a nagging worry that I'd appreciate some advice about.

The other week, I found myself in a shop looking for some lunch, and spending more time then I really should have done looking at calorie content of different sandwiches and crisps (chips, for non-UK readers). I won't say I was quite paralysed by indecision, but certainly I found myself thinking over it more than I should have, especially as it was only lunchtime. Should I even have a sandwich and crisps at all? If they don't have my usual brand of rice-based crisps that are much lower in calories, should I go elsewhere to track them down? And so on.

I like not just meeting the daily calorie targets and getting a 'green number' most days, but I like undershooting by 200-300. I like how good I feel about the weight I've lost, I like the changes I've made, I like feeling fitter and sharper. Like everyone, I like feeling good about myself. But I've got two worries - one is about under-shooting too much, too often, and the other is being this slight obsessiveness that I seem to have. One of the reasons that I think MFP works for a lot of people is the 'game' or 'challenge' nature of it.

While I don't think that I'm likely to move from being overweight to having an eating disorder, I think it's probably important to be aware of what's going on in my head and that there will (I hope) come a point at which I switch my target to "maintain current weight" and aim to come in more or less on target most days.

So.... does anyone else have this experience? Has anyone who's been using MFP for longer had it and dealt with it? Should I be reassured by the fact that I'm thinking about this now, and am aware of it? Any other thoughts on this very welcome....

Mexie1

If you consistently undershoot your target cals, maybe manually change your target to a couple of hundred higher.

I prefer to overshoot by about 200 a day (don't really know why) so I brought my target down by 200.

You could also buy your non-perishable staples such as crisps in bulk and take them to work.

I too spend time looking at calorie contents on things like sandwiches and snacks and I don't buy the ones I really fancy if they are too high. I have a calorie cut-off for sandwiches of 375, this makes it easier to decide as it narrows down my choices.

UrbanSpaceman75

Thanks Mexie. Saturdays is my weekly weign-in, and I've lost a bit more and so the daily target has come down. This'll make it a bit harder to undershoot quite so much, so maybe that'll sort itself out. Hopefully if I'm aware that I might get carried away with this, it'll make it less likely, and I don't think my rate of weight loss is anything to be worried about overall.

I try to avoid having many snack foods at home - they tend to get eaten must faster!

JennetteMac

You are not alone.
I have been doing MFP for quite a while, and I recognised a time back that I am obsessive over my food numbers.
I will not eat anything over 200 calories on it's own, by that I mean a single item, and no meal should top 450 for me. I don't buy or eat food with more than 3% fat, I just can't cope with the idea of caving in and eating it. Most things I buy for me are fat free varieties.
Then I have to buy things for the family, and occasionally I'll binge, eg an ice cream with 230 calories. After which I feel guilty and cut everything else back.
So I do think there is a risk of obsession, I know I spend far too long in the supermarket trying to find the absolute lowest calorie count on anything, (even 10 calories makes a difference) and I think I probably need to get a grip!!!
Good luck with your weight and try to keep a level head!