MFP makes it so all I think about all day is eating

Anyone else have this problem?? This is my second attempt at using myfitnesspal and all I wanna do it stuff my face. Does this go away? I try so hard to stay busy and drink tons of water to try and curb the appetite, but I just want eat!
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Replies

  • JDBLY11
    JDBLY11 Posts: 577 Member
    Anyone else have this problem?? This is my second attempt at using myfitnesspal and all I wanna do it stuff my face. Does this go away? I try so hard to stay busy and drink tons of water to try and curb the appetite, but I just want eat!

    I used to be like this. I don't feel like this now. I was being quite regimented about times I ate and what I ate and it did not work for me. I think you just have to let yourself eat more naturally but in smaller amounts.
  • smantha32
    smantha32 Posts: 6,990 Member
    Stuff your face if you want to. But log it.

    Eventually you'll get tired of seeing your calorie log in the red all the time and you'll start thinking about different food choices.
  • drusilla126
    drusilla126 Posts: 478 Member
    I found that too. All I thought about was food. It seems to be going away now that I've hit my goal. Now I'm a little worried that I'm becoming too lax, but I guess that's just called living. Know that I know what I know though I can't ever unlearn it and thus I don't think I'll ever be able to not count calories.
  • Shari325
    Shari325 Posts: 196 Member
    I had a little tantrum last night, slammed the computer closed and yelled, "I'm sick of thinking about food!"
    I'm constantly thinking about food, and planning a menu to go grocery shopping was just TOO much.
  • wakeupsleepyface
    wakeupsleepyface Posts: 18 Member
    Thanks guys, it's good to know I'm not alone!
  • prozac5489
    prozac5489 Posts: 33
    I did find it very annoying to be constantly running to my computer after every time I ate something, and it made me feel like all I was doing was eating and focusing on eating...which is really freaking hard if you're hungry! So now at the start of every day I plug into MFP what I intend to eat for the whole day. I keep a notecard in my pocket where I can write down the plan (in case I think I might forget), and where I can add unintentional snacks.

    I'm definitely not thinking about food 24/7 now, and it's a lot easier for me to keep to a pre-determined daily plan than it is to meal plan when I'm half-starved!
  • stongjos
    stongjos Posts: 63 Member
    Not me... It makes me want to exercise all the time! :happy:
  • LaurenEFord
    LaurenEFord Posts: 15
    Stuff your face if you want to. But log it.

    Eventually you'll get tired of seeing your calorie log in the red all the time and you'll start thinking about different food choices.

    This all the way. Makes you think twice about how much you really want something.
  • grimendale
    grimendale Posts: 2,153 Member
    I try not to let it make me think about food, but if I am about to eat something, I log ti first. That way, I see the calories before I eat and have to really think about whether I really want to eat that. I don't plan much beyond that, and it's been working for me. When I don't log before I eat, that's when I start to have a problem.
  • anon1901
    anon1901 Posts: 1
    You can still stuff your face even if you're cutting, but you have to stuff your face with healthy things. If you *must* have something sweet, go for the fruit - bananas are awesome. If you're talking about amount of food rather than taste, then buy a couple heads of lettuce or celery or some carrots, and feast away!

    And, I still have those cravings now, four days in. I want nothing more than to go to the nearest Five Guys and get the biggest size of french fries and a double bacon cheeseburger with everything on it, or have *all* those cupcakes just sitting on the kitchen counter, or eat all the chocolate bars left in my stash... But, I know that would be counteractive to my goals. You've got to tell yourself that, and follow it with single-minded devotion. Everything should be taken in moderation.

    Best of luck, OP
  • castelluzzo99
    castelluzzo99 Posts: 313 Member
    It's easy to start obsessing. I would ask, since no one else has yet, though, are you getting enough to eat? I eat quite a bit (2000-2100 calories, but I'm taking in extra for breastfeeding), and I am rarely hungry outside of meal times.

    If you aren't eating at a ridiculously low number like the notorious 1200 cal, here are a couple of thoughts:

    1) Try exercising when you are a little hungry. If you exercise in the morning, do so before breakfast. You can drink a shake or eat an energy bar or a slice of toast or whatever to fuel your workout, but then work hard. You're appetite will disappear for about half an hour afterwards. This might delay how many calories you get in overall.

    2) Try logging your meals before you eat them. Figure out how many calories you need for the meal (even if it's only 1/2 an hour before you eat) and then put only that on your plate. When you're done eating, ask yourself, "Am I satisfied?" Maybe wait 15 minutes before answering. If you are, then get up, wash the dishes, clean the kitchen, and get outta there! Go do something else. If you're still hungry, eat something nutrient dense, like carrot sticks or an apple. And be sure to log it!
  • Britty1225
    Britty1225 Posts: 8 Member
    I was that way at first too. I felt hungry all the time and then I felt horrible after I ate. I figured I only felt hungry because I was thinking about logging my food into MFP so I found things to do to keep my mind and hands busy. This helped tremendously and now I think about food much less and only eat when I absolutely know for sure that my hunger pains are because I truly am hungry and not just bored.
  • SurfyFriend
    SurfyFriend Posts: 362 Member
    Yes it makes me think about food all day.
    Sometimes it is just good enough for me to make a massive batch of chocolate brownies and I drool and it smells so good, I chop them up, put them into little packages and bring them to all my friends. They are usually studying for exams or just finished work and are really appreciative. It makes me feel so happy inside that I don't even want any of them, I would rather give them away :D
  • NoeHead
    NoeHead Posts: 516 Member
    i don't know if it makes me think about food all the time but i know that i feel like i'm always hungry lol. my solution that makes me feel like i'm not overeating is always having a salad whenever you're hungry if you can. i have spinach, romaine salad and a little bit of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and garlic and stuff my face. lol it fills me up and i don't feel bad.
  • wakeupsleepyface
    wakeupsleepyface Posts: 18 Member
    I'm definitely going to start logging my "projected" meals for the day and then fix it at night if it changed, that way food isnt all im thinking about all day.

    I'm also going to invest in lots of salad lol. It's wanting to partake in the act of eating that is really getting to me right now.
  • ThoseRabbits
    ThoseRabbits Posts: 65 Member
    Stuff your face if you want to. But log it.

    Eventually you'll get tired of seeing your calorie log in the red all the time and you'll start thinking about different food choices.

    good idea..
  • fitelisa
    fitelisa Posts: 11 Member
    It makes me want to workout and keep moving all the time. I think about food often and crave all kinds of stuff. Now I am on this low sodium diet per my doctors so its even gonna be harder. When i'm really hungry at night I have found distraction with a tv show, or drinking some flavored water with no sodium, or pieces of watermelon, grapes sometimes you just want to chew but the 'food thing' is mental you just have to learn to block it.
  • Kagemori
    Kagemori Posts: 88 Member
    I don't have this problem. MFP has actually helped me a lot with being able count calories and keep track of the food I eat. I tried keeping a food journal before I knew about MFP and it was very difficult for me and most of the time I would just get frustrated and quit. MFP not only makes it a lot easier to keep track of food but it also is extremely helpful because it logs exercise as well.

    If your tired of running to your computer all the time and you have a smart phone use their app. Its really helpful and I use it all the time throughout the day.
  • Bernadette60614
    Bernadette60614 Posts: 707 Member
    It will pass...really!

    It took about a month before it just became a part of my life.

    And, another month before I began to see it as simply information and not a way of making myself feel bad about my choices.
  • Latomian
    Latomian Posts: 11 Member
    Stuff your face if you want to. But log it.

    Eventually you'll get tired of seeing your calorie log in the red all the time and you'll start thinking about different food choices.

    This all the way. Makes you think twice about how much you really want something.

    It started like this for me too, but it's waning. For me, it's because it's something new. For instance, I'm really into hair so when I first started looking at health, checking length, etc, all I wanted to do was wash my hair! Eventually, life took over and I went back to normal.

    To the above, this worked for me because I had drinks and appetizers and Applebees with a friend from work and when I saw those calories, I was like, "Whoa."
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    That passes. I dont put any food in my mouth without checking my MFP first. I've been logging again for 40 days in a row. I watch what I eat still and make sure I hit my macros. I don't feel right if I don't log something.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    If you're struggling to stick with your goals, increase your target i.e. decrease your rate-of-weight-loss goal to 1/2 a pound per week. Once you're comfy with that intake (which will feel like a lot) you can reduce it to lose faster. But I find the infatuation is more when the restriction is higher.
  • kristafb
    kristafb Posts: 770 Member
    I've found that if i can sit down the night before or even in the morning and get the bones of my food plan into mfp for the day it helps. Yes, i often tweek it a bit here & there, but overall, i know what I'm going to be eating for each meal so all the over thinking is done. I do allow some "free" calories for the end of the day in case I get the munchies or go out with friends unexpectedly, so i can have a drink or a treat.
  • butterflylover527
    butterflylover527 Posts: 940 Member
    I've been on here for over 500 days and I am the same way. All I think about 24/7 is what I'll eat next. Trying to not focus on it soooo much, but it's hard.
  • ElaineRN100
    ElaineRN100 Posts: 201 Member
    MFP has had the opposite effect on me. Of course I'm extremely competitive - so if I log on, saw everyone eating healthy and exercising, I feel compelled to do same. Also, the encouragement and friendship I have found on this site is priceless. I hope you find a happy medium with your weight loss and the use of MFP.
  • tekwriter
    tekwriter Posts: 923 Member
    After a few days I found it liberating to understand some of things I was doing that sabotaged my diet. Now it just feels like the tool that it is to help me stay on track with my chosen calorie count. It does get better.
  • angelcurry130
    angelcurry130 Posts: 265 Member
    meh...i use mfp to calculate everything i plan to eat in an entire day...then i DON"T have to think about it. :)
  • I have found that if I really need a snack between lunch and dinner I make a smoothie with 1/2 skim milk 1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt about 1/2 cup fresh fruit like strawberries blue berries, or even frozen fruit, and 1 or 2 scoops of protein mix, and some ice to make it thick. That is a real big drink and it will last you and if you start doing something you seem to get some energy and want to do more. Then you feel better. And that kind of drink is about 250 to 300 cals. I may sound like a lot but they are not real bad cals. You get energy from them and it really fills you up so you don't want to eat all day or afternoon. I am one who will eat if I get bored and this smoothie seems to help me not want more.
    I am one who has a hard time sticking to things if they don't work like right now. But I am doing a little better this time. But I do have a treadmill at home so now I can get my butt into gear and walk on it for 1/2 mile and listen to a book I have on my kindle. And that helps me a lot . Because I also get bored and want to stop if I don't have something for me to do while walking. I think there are more people than not that have that problem. O not having something to keep their mind off food. Like the old saying go If I can do You sure can do it. Hope I didn't go on too much which I do often.
  • And you all can see how heavy I am with my youngest son at his College Grad. last summer. And yes he has to wear the sun glasses. Due to his eyes being damaged in the Army 10 years ago.
  • foxyv069
    foxyv069 Posts: 23
    It does also make me think about eating, but for me its a good thing. I used to eat without even thinking! lol now i am AWARE of when i eat and what im eating. It will get better. keep up with your logging of your food! it heps SO MUCH!