Will you log forever?

Probably. I think I need it. I lost 80 pounds about ten years ago by tracking my food in a handwritten diary. Eventually I stopped tracking food (and exercising) and over the years gained all the weight back and then some. I will have to do some type of logging. It may not be as strict as now once I reach a good maintenence weight but I need something to keep my weight from getting out of hand again.

Sad to say, I lost 60# and thought that I could stop logging. 20# back on and here we go again. I'm either compulsive about it or I lose the battle. Some day it would be nice to be able to maintain without pulling out my phone at a restrauant or scanning the UPC code on everything that I use.

I think so. It's become like FB to me!!Plus, like many others, it's easy to do at home and on my phone and I know from past experience that if I don't keep track somehow it will all come back and more. I also like the feeling of being in control. Before...the food was in control.

Well as long as I can... Eating in moderation is good in theory, but until you see it written down its hard to know exactly what you have been eating. It's too easy for those calories to creep up on me especially since I am petite.

Addicted.. Although I am slowing slacking off.

Great question. I've been doing it for about three years now... with some consistency. I went through a brief period when I stopped logging my food and just tracked exercise. Then I quit smoking and needed to keep on top of what I was eating to avoid the dreaded weight gain. (Which still happened, despite my best efforts!)

It won't be forever. You'll automatically just start doing it in your head eventually. But hey, if it keeps you honest, why not? Even if I don't log it in MFP it's in my head! Check!

I will keep logging because it helps me to be mindful of what and how much I am eating. When I don't log, I find that I go too much off my diet and gain weight (which I have done recently).

I don't know forever is a long time but it has been a large part of my success, I tend to over eat therefore I need to track what I eat. So, as of now yes, I'm a lifer!

I know from experience. I stop logging I gain back the weight. I plan on logging for the rest of my life in some way.

Yep. After logging on "splurge" days and seeing the amount of calories I used to consume; I will never not know how much I am eating again.

This is such a good question to ponder. I know I won't do it forever...I know I won't be able to because it makes me insane. Logging does work for me, is the only way I've had success, but I can get a bit obsessive about it and it becomes hard to maintain. Once I get to my goal weight I would hope that by continuing to exercise and eat pretty much the way I am currently, I can maintain my weight without logging. But it's too early to tell...

I have OCD, so probably.

I was just thinking about that the first time I saw the thread.
MFP brings on the best of my OCD. I could weight and track all my life.

But I know that nothing lasts forever. I have been on different sites, different online communities, althought not loosing weight related... and even after 3-4 years of beng active I just stopped.

I would like to think that I just might do this all my life, especially when (hopefully) I will only be maintaing. But I know things just change eventually.

I've only been here a little over a month so I don' really know, do I? Right now I love it, I'm not stressed by the logging, I'm starting to have an idea in my head of how much I'm consuming so that when I input my food it's around about where I thought I would be.

When I first joined I set a goal of where I thought I could get, you know, hey I was that weight 4 years ago, that should be my goal. But from being on here and seeing a few particular people my goal is likely to be different - much smaller than i initially believed possible but fit and strong and defined. I kinda think that ultra goal me will still want to log because I'll still be involved in the process of being as strong as I can.

Baby steps, but baby steps get you there in the end

I'm going to log on and off my last couple of kilos to learn for myself and then have MFP to fall back on, like if I gain some weight or just want to track my intake for a while.

Probably! First - I like it. Second - it works.

I reached my goal weight almost two years ago, and have been logging since the beginning (I started out doing it manually using a mini notebook I carried everywhere). After two years of logging, it's an established part of my daily routine. I'm good with it.