Women that don't live by calories- are you out there?

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Picola1984
Picola1984 Posts: 1,133
in Food and Nutrition
Hello

As I become closer to my goal and becoming happy with my body I'm starting to wonder if I now need to really log everything I eat/ burn
I have a clear cut frame of mind of what is healthy, what benefits my body and what not to eat. I stick to a high protein, good carb diet full of veggies, some fruit and extras like flax, apple cider vinegar, supplements and all that gubbins. I can now and again give in to my chocolate cravings but I know how to swing it around and recover from a mini binge. I don't let it ruin my day now like it used to, hey we are only human after all!

I will be going abroad in 2 weeks and probably won't have access to the interent so will break my, what will be, 334 day run of logging in to MFP
I was thinking to use this as a break away from the monotony of logging every day and see how I go.

Are there any other females out there that do this, or males for that matter! And have you succeeded with your goals without logging your expended and consumed calories?
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Replies

  • lisav6
    lisav6 Posts: 56
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    Bumping, still quite a way off my goal but want to see what people have to say.
  • kmumansky
    kmumansky Posts: 119
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    Im only 53% of the way to my goal...but stopping the counting is what has failed me in the past. So I will for the rest of my life log what I eat. Did you know that over eating by 100 calories a day can make you gain 10 lbs in a year? Obviously when I reach goal, I'll eat more because I wont be trying to lose weight anymore, but I'm still going to log it.
  • ObtainingBalance
    ObtainingBalance Posts: 1,446 Member
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    Bumping this...

    Yes. I've heard people just eat inituatively . I would love to be able to do that ; ONCE I am at my UGW.

    It seems harder, I don't trust my body and I'm not good at "listening" to it.

    Your body is smart, you will be fine... just eat balanced meals and listen to hunger and fullness cues. :)
  • runzalot81
    runzalot81 Posts: 782 Member
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    I would say go ahead and try it! Live on the wild side if you're ready :)
  • ObtainingBalance
    ObtainingBalance Posts: 1,446 Member
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    Im only 53% of the way to my goal...but stopping the counting is what has failed me in the past. So I will for the rest of my life log what I eat. Did you know that over eating by 100 calories a day can make you gain 10 lbs in a year? Obviously when I reach goal, I'll eat more because I wont be trying to lose weight anymore, but I'm still going to log it.


    Yes, I know. BUT If you weigh every week or every month -- you would catch that weight gain BEFORE it becomes 10 lbs in one year.
    When I'm done losing, I will just keep track of the scale - eat lighter if it goes up one week/month .

    Calorie counting can distract you from life sometimes... it's sometimes a stress , I seem to want to measure everything.
  • kmumansky
    kmumansky Posts: 119
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    Im only 53% of the way to my goal...but stopping the counting is what has failed me in the past. So I will for the rest of my life log what I eat. Did you know that over eating by 100 calories a day can make you gain 10 lbs in a year? Obviously when I reach goal, I'll eat more because I wont be trying to lose weight anymore, but I'm still going to log it.


    Yes, I know. BUT If you weigh every week or every month -- you would catch that weight gain BEFORE it becomes 10 lbs in one year.
    When I'm done losing, I will just keep track of the scale - eat lighter if it goes up one week/month .

    Calorie counting can distract you from life sometimes... it's sometimes a stress , I seem to want to measure everything.

    It's just a personal preference. I dont stress about logging what I eat..and if I go over I go over, I don't stress about that either. My problem is the scale and I gain a lb and I'll be like "eh...its just a lb" and then that adds up over time. It will be different for everyone, but me personally I'd rather just hold myself accountable and log what I eat.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    I take every weekend and holiday off from logging, and sometimes take prolonged breaks from logging. I took about a month off from logging and exercise last winter when I had my stress fracture, and my weight stayed pretty much the same. But I like having the safety net of logging every so often.
  • lauraniwa
    lauraniwa Posts: 131 Member
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    Nice streak BTW.
    I think they are two different goals, but once you are near your target, as you are, experimenting with not logging will probably be good for you. You might find you are able to listen and gauge appropriately. Just know that if it doesn't work for you you can always start logging again, it can be a helpful refresher/reminder if you get off track.
    Enjoy your trip!
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    i don't know about women, but from a man's point of view:

    i logged every last crumb for about nine months, and every work out. i denied myself sweets, sodas, cake, and alcohol. then i started re-introducing them into my diet as treats and special occasion items. hell, i even learned how to splurge while still maintaining control.

    i pretty much changed the way i look at food and fitness, and developed new eating habits that i think are here to stay.

    at the moment, i don't log as carefully as i should, but i also know that i'm on the right track.

    at my lightest, with only doing massive cardio and light body weight work outs, i weight 215lbs. now i'm doing cardio and heavy lifting, and working out 5-6 days a week, and i weigh about 225, but my pants are still loose.

    my shirts are getting tighter in my shoulders, although no one seems to mind.
  • slrrese
    slrrese Posts: 180 Member
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    I am almost 50. Last Jan was the first time in my life that I ever counted calories. My weight has been up and down in my life but I have always been active and always able to take it off. I have learned SO much from logging my calories and exercise!! Honestly though, I have not decided how long I will do this or at what consistency when I get to my goal (to be stronger and the most fit of my life).
  • mrsains
    mrsains Posts: 104 Member
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    Oh, I most definitely take a break from logging on holidays, and some weekends too if I'm away from home. That doesn't mean I go for an all-out pig fest, but I try not to stress so much about it. You are on holiday after all! :smile:

    Have a great time!
  • Rynatat
    Rynatat Posts: 807 Member
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    I take my breaks here & there: I do prelog during the week for what I take to work for breakfast, lunch & snax but usually "forget" in the evenings when I get home. I've plateaued for the last several months (granted I go up & down by the proverbial 5 pounds depending on certain factors but I don't freak out). I workout A LOT - it appears you keep a good regiment as well, so I wouldn't worry. Keep up with eating what your body knows you like, workout at least a little when you can & you'll be fine.

    I know if I buckle down, I can get rid of this last 10 that plague me, but it's good to know that I can forgo logging sometimes & as long as I keep up with my workouts I keep the same weight.

    Enjoy your time away - a change of scenery is always good physically, mentally & spiritually :flowerforyou:
  • MinMin97
    MinMin97 Posts: 2,676 Member
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    Hello

    As I become closer to my goal and becoming happy with my body I'm starting to wonder if I now need to really log everything I eat/ burn
    I have a clear cut frame of mind of what is healthy, what benefits my body and what not to eat. I stick to a high protein, good carb diet full of veggies, some fruit and extras like flax, apple cider vinegar, supplements and all that gubbins. I can now and again give in to my chocolate cravings but I know how to swing it around and recover from a mini binge. I don't let it ruin my day now like it used to, hey we are only human after all!

    I will be going abroad in 2 weeks and probably won't have access to the interent so will break my, what will be, 334 day run of logging in to MFP
    I was thinking to use this as a break away from the monotony of logging every day and see how I go.

    Are there any other females out there that do this, or males for that matter! And have you succeeded with your goals without logging your expended and consumed calories?
    Yes, I would say mfp has helped me regain boundaries around my food intake....and it's becoming more second nature all the time.
    Possibly over time I will only log for periods of time, just to check in, or to obtain a fitness goal.
    I definitely worry less about a higher-intake day, because I have perspective (like, I know what my TDEE is, and also I know that one day over does not equal 4lbs of fat gain lol!).
    And sometimes a good full-tummy fun-eating day is great, and healthy!
    I have better eating habits, and eat healthier combinations!
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    If you are eating as natural as you mentioned in your post, stop eating when full there is really no reason you need to count calories.

    You are opting to QUALITY over the QUANTITY so you should be good to go.
    Hello

    As I become closer to my goal and becoming happy with my body I'm starting to wonder if I now need to really log everything I eat/ burn
    I have a clear cut frame of mind of what is healthy, what benefits my body and what not to eat. I stick to a high protein, good carb diet full of veggies, some fruit and extras like flax, apple cider vinegar, supplements and all that gubbins. I can now and again give in to my chocolate cravings but I know how to swing it around and recover from a mini binge. I don't let it ruin my day now like it used to, hey we are only human after all!

    I will be going abroad in 2 weeks and probably won't have access to the interent so will break my, what will be, 334 day run of logging in to MFP
    I was thinking to use this as a break away from the monotony of logging every day and see how I go.

    Are there any other females out there that do this, or males for that matter! And have you succeeded with your goals without logging your expended and consumed calories?
  • impyimpyaj
    impyimpyaj Posts: 1,073 Member
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    I haven't been logging, unless I start to feel bad health-wise. In that case, I log so I can see patterns in what I'm eating to see if that's affecting me. I haven't gained weight. I do consistently weigh myself every week or two, so if I do start gaining I can nip it in the bud. I have developed some "food rules" that help keep me from going back to the way I used to eat which caused the weight gain in the first place: I try to stay away from bread (not all the time, but I do limit it severely), I make sure I'm eating protein foods with every meal, I try to limit my dairy as much as I can (more due to allergies than anything else), I work on eating plenty of plant matter, and I don't eat sweets unless it's a special occasion, like yesterday was my and my dad's birthday, so we have cake and pie and I'm eating that. Those are just my rules though, and they might not be right for everyone.
  • Iceman1800
    Iceman1800 Posts: 476
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    Probably no need in your case. You know how much you can eat and have a basic knowledge of the calories in what you eat. For someone starting out and having trouble knowing how much they actually eat, they need to log everything. But once you've figured it out, the need to log diminishes.
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    I stopped logging about a month ago. Sometimes I add things up in my head to see where I am. The only draw back is now I don't think I'm getting enough protein and I forget to take my vitamins (logging them helped me remember). I'd like to lose more but am not terribly concerned with it at this moment.
  • roachhaley
    roachhaley Posts: 978 Member
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    I can do that but I prefer to log to be safe. I'm at a point now where if I KNOW I'll be under my calories (just because I've mentally added up what I'm eating) then I wont log it. But if I've had a bunch of junk and need to do damage control, I'll log it.
  • emnk5308
    emnk5308 Posts: 736
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    Honestly.. this is our ultimate goal! To lose the weight and then be able to maintain a healthy weight without sitting in front of MFP to see if it 'fits'. It sounds to me like you are ready to leave!! <3:drinker:
  • pkw58
    pkw58 Posts: 2,038 Member
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    If you figure this out , let me know. Logging gives me comfort and keeps me cognizant of what I am eating. Some days I am under my calories when I feel very full …so it helps me both ways, staying on the right calorie count, not over or under.

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