Fudging numbers

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  • marhattap
    marhattap Posts: 149 Member
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    I used to fudge numbers, then I noticed that I was starting to gain weight. Fudging numbers only hurts you in the long run. If you see a negative, go out and take a 10-20 minute walk. Much better than lying to yourself.
  • __Aid__
    __Aid__ Posts: 72 Member
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    No but MFP gives you a Target to aim for . I believe its somthing to aim for not to get 100% . Everyones body works differently if your 50 or 100 calories over it's no biggie
  • rumplesnat
    rumplesnat Posts: 372
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    Nope. If seeing negative bothers me that much, I hop on the elliptical or go for a run to burn it off!
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
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    How does that help you lose weight?
  • lilbearzmom
    lilbearzmom Posts: 600 Member
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    why on earth would you lie to yourself like that? I don't see the point. At all.

    ^ This. Totally. Please tell me you're not one of the people posting about not losing weight...God.
    Seriously, it's borderline psychotic.
  • gretchenk77
    gretchenk77 Posts: 13
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    No, although it's been tempting. There are days I've just said 'eff it, and those are the days I've ended up pretty deeply in the red. But one of the reasons I started using MFP is to become more aware of what I was eating, and when, and why.

    In the end, I want to lose the weight more than I want that mental pat on the back.

    You can do this!
  • carolyn0613
    carolyn0613 Posts: 162 Member
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    In the android app there is a Weekly tab on the home page. You can see a graph of Monday-Sunday and it shows if you've gone over and gives you the total calories you are over/under for the week. It's useful to keep that weekly perspective on things since one bad day won't harm but it's the bad weeks and months that add up.
  • Ophidion
    Ophidion Posts: 2,065 Member
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    I used to tell MFP everything I ate, and that got very annoying, but I did loose 40 lbs and counting since January. Now, I only report “man-made” calories: margarine, bread, cheese etc. I have stopped logging entries that consist of veggies or fruit. They are naturally low in calories, so why record them? I’m not going to gain extra weight from having a cucumber. It is also very eye opening to see how quickly a slice of bread, 1 tsp of margarine, jam etc really adds up, so I make a point of having less of these foods.

    If logging only "man-made" calories works for you, great!

    I differ since a large portion of my diet consists of fruit and veggies.

    here's why...

    banana (medium)=105cals
    avocado=276cals
    date=66cals
    100grams almonds=611cals
    100grams raisins=324cals

    It adds up if you eat a lot of whole fruits and vegetables.
    And you said you are going to have less of the high cal "man-made" food that means more fruit and veg...it is going to catch up inevitably.
  • cmeiron
    cmeiron Posts: 1,599 Member
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    why on earth would you lie to yourself like that? I don't see the point. At all.

    ^ This. Totally. Please tell me you're not one of the people posting about not losing weight...God.

    Actually, she posted this on another thread just today:
    I started about six weeks ago and started losing weight quickly but then stopped and now I am plateaued at this weight even though I'm still controlling my calorie intake and exercising almost every day. I know there's gonna be a breakthrough soon! The important thing is to change your lifestyle and your way of looking at food and exercise. If you change that, you will be healthy no matter what.

    This is why fudging your numbers is a bad idea. You're kidding yourself.
  • Lauran845
    Lauran845 Posts: 71 Member
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    The only numbers I "fudge" are not recording the smear of mustard on my sandwich or sometimes I just do not feel like recording the lettuce in my salad...I don't record every step I take so I figure I have at least 100 calories to work with that will NOT make a difference.
  • sarahDickson501
    sarahDickson501 Posts: 87 Member
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    yeah, I do but in the opposite direction...if I have have had a certain amount of something that im not sure about how to count it, I will count it higher than I think (like if I have 3/4th of a serving:75 Cals. I call it a whole serving: 100 Cals.... etc.)
  • da_bears10089
    da_bears10089 Posts: 1,791 Member
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    your body keeps an accurate record of calories taken in, regardless of whether you do the same. Instead of fudging your numbers if you are over... go burn some more if it really bugs you that much. THAT should be your motivation.
  • katicasi82
    katicasi82 Posts: 121 Member
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    I record my calories as accurately as possible. It helps me be mindful and accountable. Sometimes it's not pretty, but I own it and try to do better the next day.

    I feel the same way, like I owe that to myself!!! Also once you realise that this is not a sprint you can forgive yourself a bad 'un!
  • SanteMulberry
    SanteMulberry Posts: 3,202 Member
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    No offense intended, but I can't imagine why I would want to do that--it would seem pretty pointless. I have the problem of knowing that I have been accurate in measuring and recording my food and exercise and still my weight loss has been painfully slow for the last two months. At least if I knew I had fudged the data, then I wouldn't feel so disappointed when I stepped on the scale and saw that my weight was the same yet again. Even though my measurements continue to slowly decline (I can now fit comfortably into the too-tight jeans that I bought a month ago) it would be nice to see it reflected on the scale. :ohwell:
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
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    Anyone else out there that "fudges" numbers?? For example, if at the end if the day I have a negative calorie count, in other words: I ate too much, I will go back and tweak my food/exercise amounts to achieve the daily goal. I know I'm basically lying to myself because I'm the only one who's looking, but I can't stand to see that I've had a bad day. How can I stop myself from over-eating so that I don't feel the compulsion to fudge my numbers??
    Start with not fudging the numbers. Try to change how you view food and eating. Stop telling yourself you've had a "bad day" if you've gone over your calorie goal. You're viewing things in very a extreme black/white way, something that's very common with dieters, but seriously counter-productive. If you're a little over your goal, it's ok. If you're a little under, it's ok. If you're seriously over or under, and on a regular basis, then you need to make changes, but how can you do that if you are pretending that everything's fine?
  • bobf279
    bobf279 Posts: 342 Member
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    If it looks like I may go over I just try to fit in an extra walk otherwise it goes over and stays over. I do watch what TDEE-20% is though and aim to stay below that even if MFP says I am over for the day
  • Wizard87
    Wizard87 Posts: 21 Member
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    I don't think you are alone in that, despite most posts here. What stopped me is that no matter what numbers were in MFP, my gut was going to react to what I really ate, not what I entered. The only thing fudging numbers does is make you wonder why you aren't losing weight.
    I suspect part of your problem may be that you see busting your limit as a failure that day. But you should stop making each day a contest. I mean yes, revel in the days you stick to your plan. But really, you didn't start this to lose an ounce yesterday, did you? You started to lose 20lbs (or whatever) over 3 or 4 months. A day up or down really isn't a big deal.
    It's the number on the scale that matters, not the number in MFP.
  • esme1983
    esme1983 Posts: 60
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    Anyone else out there that "fudges" numbers?? For example, if at the end if the day I have a negative calorie count, in other words: I ate too much, I will go back and tweak my food/exercise amounts to achieve the daily goal. I know I'm basically lying to myself because I'm the only one who's looking, but I can't stand to see that I've had a bad day. How can I stop myself from over-eating so that I don't feel the compulsion to fudge my numbers??

    Could you go for a run round the block at the end of the day if you're over instead?
  • ellend17
    ellend17 Posts: 58
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    Yepp i did this!
    But now if i've gone over on my calories, or if i just need to splurge a little bit by eating something extra (or if i do that and then regret it afterwards cause i didn't actually need to) I just add it to tomorrows calories so I know it evens it out.
    I did increase my calories from 1200 to 1400 too which I found really helped - not only kickstarting weight loss again, but i feel i have so much more room for those calories i couldn't squeeze in before.

    Good Luck, hope that helps!
  • otterish
    otterish Posts: 50 Member
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    I will sometimes move a late snack over to the next day's diary. If it went into my face it goes into the diary. Why would anyone ever lie, especially to themselves and especially over something this important?

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