Anyone "done" with MFP and calorie counting?

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  • MayaSPapaya
    MayaSPapaya Posts: 735 Member
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    I still have about 15/20 pounds until my goal weight, but I'm pretty sure I won't stop logging for a longgg time after that. I feel like I would start eating way too much again, and plus, I'm pretty sure I'm addicted to logging :laugh:
  • muayqis
    muayqis Posts: 72
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    Every time I quit counting the weight begins to creep up so I don't think I will ever completely give up tracking my calories.

    Yep, I am with you
    me three.
    I always end up eating more when i'm not tracking.
  • simplynaturalfarm
    simplynaturalfarm Posts: 73 Member
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    Out of curiosity, those who had 30,40. 80lbs creep back on - did you stop weighing yourself when you stopped logging? I c an't imagine any weight creeping on because i do weigh myself weekly LOL.
    That would help me stay on target - if I gained 2lbs in a week I would know to get back to logging to see where the hidden calories are . . . not usually so hidden :)
  • 77tes
    77tes Posts: 7,849 Member
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    I'm a lifer! Maintaining is a challenge, perhaps a harder one than losing was. MFP has become part of my life.
  • Sparlingo
    Sparlingo Posts: 938 Member
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    I'm not there yet, but here's my maintenance plan:

    - Keep logging food for about a month or two into maintenance until I get a feel for what maintenance calories are so I can still keep rough track in my head
    - Continue to weigh (weekly instead of my current daily) and do measurements occassionally
    - If I see an unanticipated 3 lb increase from "goal" (i.e. if I'm not trying for muscle gains or something) I will return to tracking and weighing/measuring food meticulously until I re-reach goal.

    We'll see how that pans out. I find tracking quite easy, though, so there's a chance I may be doing this for years. It's worth the effort if it keeps me on track and feeling my best.
  • LesaLu4
    LesaLu4 Posts: 83
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    Bump
  • JeepBaja
    JeepBaja Posts: 1,824 Member
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    I have no intentions of stopping my calorie count but from Day 1 I have been consistent with making sure I always over-estimate my calorie intake just a little and my exercise just a little. Nothing major...

    I don't live or die by either count. I'm not going to lose weight or gain weight by putting down exact numbers. I know when I over-eat or not work out enough just as I know when I am not hungry, don't eat much then go for a hike...
  • slainger
    slainger Posts: 150 Member
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    Maybe this is just the accountant in me coming out, but i actually really like counting calories. I like putting in what I eat and seeing how many I have left for the day. I like putting in my calories and knowing that I'm where I need to be for the day. It's not a chore for me, really. It really keeps me accountable as well. If I know I'm going to log, I'm a lot less likely to eat that cheeseburger or piece of pizza. It's very easy to be in denial about "one meal" or "one cheat day"...which then continues on for weeks. However, I can stop that path in its tracks by logging all the food and going, "woah...that's a lot of calories".

    This is me! I've been able to maintain my goal weight within 5 lbs for a year-only because I've continued tracking. I believe I will track for life. It only takes a few minutes and it keeps me in line. I guess being an accountant helps! I love tracking numbers! Good luck with whatever you decide to do.:wink:
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Just a question for many of you. Don't you adopt an actual dietary and fitness lifestyle while you're doing this? Isn't it kind of the point...do this and sorta learn how to eat and learn what your body needs? I eat completely 180* differently than I did before I started calorie counting. I'm at maintenance and don't log...I eat a maintenance level of calories...I know what that looks like and feels like and I continue to eat primarily nutrient dense, whole foods. Do people really just go back to old ways that easy? Seems crazy to me...I could never go back to eating the **** I was eating (an amount I was eating). Heck, I'm having a hard time hovering at maintenance with the kinds of food I eat and the lifting I do..I keep losing little bits and I have to keep adding more calories to keep up with my strength gains in the weight room.

    It just seems crazy that anyone would or could count calories every day for the rest or their lives...makes me think people have learned zip on this journey. I'm not saying I'll never log...I probably will at some point feel my pants get a little tight and you better believe I'll be right back for a few weeks to correct whatever it is I'm doing wrong. Seems a lot easier to tweak things here and there before they get out of control than to actively log every day for the rest of your life.

    I'm just genuinely curious about this because I've always thought of MFP as a training ground.
    @cwolfman - have you ever been an emotional eater? I can't speak for anyone else here, but I suspect that might be at least part of the difference between those who are confident going it alone, and those who feel they need to rely on calorie counting. To answer your first question, I have made a complete lifestyle change since joining MFP. I act and think a lot differently about food and exercise, and I don't think I'd ever go completely back to my old ways. I'm do much more mindful about food now, and the consequences of over-eating, and so much more aware of the nutrients my body needs.

    However, food/eating has been the main way that I've dealt with negative emotions for 25+ years. Habits were learned and deeply ingrained in childhood, and I haven't yet been able to get rid of those responses from my brain. There is some evidence that there are genetically-determined differences in how people respond to food. Emotional eating is still very much an issue for me, and calorie counting is the best way I know to control it. It's not just about knowing how much energy is in each food, it's about knowing that I eat responsibly when I track, and I don't always when I don't track. Tracking holds me accountable. Not tracking makes me stressed and anxious and sometimes triggers me to binge. My aim is to get to the point where I can track some days of the week, and not others, and just keep eating as normal, with no anxiety. So, it's not that I haven't learned anything while on MFP, because I've learned a lot. It's just that the very process of tracking is - for me - just as important in managing my weight. I don't want to count calories for the rest of my life, but if that's the price I have to pay for a healthy weight, and peace of mind, then so be it. :smile:

    Never been an emotional eater. My problem was two fold...1.) I didn't know how much I was consuming or how much I should consume and 2.) I used to train like a mad man and eat like a mad man. I stopped weight training and working out about 10 years ago, but I kept eating like I was trying to put on muscle...so I put on fat instead.

    Mostly MFP has taught me about calories in/out and that if I want to eat, I need to train and that's just the way it is. Thankfully, I love to train. As far as eating cleaner and a more nutritiously, I have no option to go back to eating my old ways...in that RE, it's all about my blood work and I basically don't want to die just yet.

    Good job everyone...while I don't fully understand logging eternally, I can appreciate that maybe some people just have to.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    I have been doing this on-and-off since MFP first started up...I was 19 and now I am 26! I have taken weeks or months off in the past. My weight does tend to increase when I stop tracking but the highest I've ever gotten was about 136, still lower than the 154 I was when I started undergrad at 18 and began exercise. Generally I start tracking again around 132 which is my max 'comfortable' weight. I have been doing this for long enough that I know how many calories are in most foods and I can estimate my intake.
  • surfrgrl1
    surfrgrl1 Posts: 1,464 Member
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    I have fallen off the wagon lately in using MFP,, and it's not been a good thing. I feel that Moderation in everything is important, but if I don't keep strong with tracking, I will gain and that's not good for me. MFP and the friends I have made here are very important to me. MFP is easier to use than anything else I have tried before and I am here to stay!
  • fionarama
    fionarama Posts: 788 Member
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    i don't think I'll ever stop. I dont' count calories so much as I will always be managing my fitness and weight, and MFP is a great way to that . I'd feel sad not seeing how everyone else is doing and all the hard work everyone else puts in inspires me.
    I reckon when you get too lazy to manage your diet with a food diary of some sort, thats when you're other lazy habits wil slip in and you'll gain.
  • MindyBlack
    MindyBlack Posts: 954 Member
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    I have fallen off the wagon lately in using MFP,, and it's not been a good thing. I feel that Moderation in everything is important, but if I don't keep strong with tracking, I will gain and that's not good for me. MFP and the friends I have made here are very important to me. MFP is easier to use than anything else I have tried before and I am here to stay!
    ♥♥♥

    I used to think that I would get to a place where tracking wasn't necessary. I have found that when I am lax about it the weight creeps back up. I don't log every single day now but most days I do. it really keeps things in focus.
  • ptak1sm
    ptak1sm Posts: 172
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    i quit counting calories several months ago after i hit my goal weight. i've since added 5-10 pounds even though i'm working out (weights and cardio) 5-6 times a week. idk how much of it is muscle and how much of it is the fluffy stuff. i did get tired of tracking every bite, but since i stopped tracking my diet has suffered immensely. i still log in and share encouragement and success, but the food thing has been pushed to the side
  • laele75
    laele75 Posts: 283 Member
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    I may get exasperated by it, but it's like having an illness for which I would always have to take medication. Just part of what I personally have to do to live well.

    This is how I feel about it. If I have to log everything for every day for the rest of my life, so be it. It keeps me accountable and gives me a solid goal to achieve every day. It doesn't take that much time to do it and like the medication I have to take every day, it is a medical necessity.

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