Diary to hide, or not to hide?

bisquickshawl
bisquickshawl Posts: 29 Member
in Motivation and Support
I am still not comfortable making my food diary open for the MFP world to see.
I'm not sure exactly what I'm afraid of, I eat healthy (for the most part) and I don't have anything to hide, except for the occasional candy bar here and there. Has anyone else felt like their diary is not MFP worthy? If so, any advice??

Replies

  • kali31337
    kali31337 Posts: 1,048 Member
    I think it's a personal choice for everyone. I never think that my diet isn't worthy but I have been known not to log a meal (mostly due to the face that I'm not sure about portion sizes at all!) but I keep it open. You never know when somebody will be inspired by you. But if it works for you, then keep doing what works!
  • csuhar
    csuhar Posts: 779 Member
    I haven't really concerned myself with whether or not my diary is "MFP worthy". In general, unless you're asking for help and people will want to know what you're eating in order to give you an answer (such as the "why am I not losing" theme), there's no real need for them to see it.

    From rumors I've heard about strangers making unsolicited comments about diary contents, I figure it's easier to keep it closed and only open it if / when necessary.
  • xjoseyx
    xjoseyx Posts: 74
    i like to keep mine open so if im stalling on my loss i can ask people to check my diary to see if they can see any reasons.
  • chrisloveslife
    chrisloveslife Posts: 180 Member
    Mine definitely isn't worthy, but I've lost every week. I keep mine open because I love looking at everyone else's diaries and I would feel bad if they couldn't see mine.
  • willhope1212
    willhope1212 Posts: 6 Member
    On days when I would eat wayyy too much, I'd hate having to log it because I was worried about what my MFP friends would think of me... However, that is kind of an encouragement to not overeat in the first place (which has been a problem for me in the past). I view my diary as a personal thing and if I'm lying to myself, who can I trust? So I log everything I eat and I keep it public because I'm proud of myself for eating healthy and working so hard! Also, seeing other people's diaries gives me ideas for meals and such, so I hope I can do the same for other people by keeping my diary public.

    I hope this helps :)
  • jennifer_255
    jennifer_255 Posts: 86 Member
    i keep mine open to all but when i have bad days i tend to dissapear like im hiding it from myself not everyone else!!!! i have at least realised what i have been doing now lol

    its your decision at the end of it what makes you comfortable x
  • rosy003
    rosy003 Posts: 251 Member
    Mine is private. I know myself- if I want my logging to be totally honest, it has to be for my eyes only. Otherwise I will be embarrassed if I have a cheat day or just slip up and I will feel like I shouldn't log what I ate because I don't want others to see my mistakes. I think you should do whatever keeps you honest with your logging. Some people do better with having accountability from others.
  • norahwynn
    norahwynn Posts: 862 Member
    I opened mine a couple weeks ago and log everything. The good, the bad, and the ugly. I'm pretty lucky I guess, because I don't have judgmental MFP 'friends' and if I go over or eat something that most might not consider 'healthy', I'm not being called out on it.

    Don't open it if you don't feel comfortable doing so. I don't see it as that big of a deal either way...
  • drojen
    drojen Posts: 203 Member
    It's not that I don't think it's worthy of MFP, it's that I don't feel it's anyone's business. If there ever comes a day when I post a question about what I'm eating, then I'll make it public. I don't see that day coming any time in the near future. I'm just not that likely to ask anyone's opinion about my food intake, therefore, no one needs to see it. If there comes a day when I'm not happy with my weight loss or I hit a plateau, I'll discuss my food intake with a professional - Dr, dietician etc. not strangers on the internet....
  • g33kmommy
    g33kmommy Posts: 104 Member
    I had my diary open for everyone to see for quite a while, but then I closed it because I had some snarky/rude comments. Any time that I would eat under (which my daily goal is 1200) people would tell me how horrible I was being to my body, etc etc. The fact is, none of them knew how busy I was that day, none of them knew when I had a bad cold for a week, etc. They just jumped to conclusions and tried to tell me what to do. I really didn't like that.

    I eat pretty healthy. I cook all my meals, I watch my sodium levels, and I don't eat a bunch of junk food (which if I do, it's a Special K snack or Skinny Cow ice cream), but I believe you should reward yourself somehow once in a while. I can't live on fruit and granola, I'd fail on my diet like I have all the other times.

    If it wasn't for that I'd always leave it open. :)
  • determined_erin
    determined_erin Posts: 571 Member
    I have mine hidden. I don't eat clean and don't pretend to, but I'd rather not be scolded if I have a bad food day. I've already come this far with some cheat days and can continue to do it. 65 lbs gone! :) I just feel like it's called a diary for a reason. Diaries are meant to be personal and private.
  • ninjakitty419
    ninjakitty419 Posts: 349 Member
    It is totally a personal preference...you are here for motivation, support, and encouragement. So it really just depends on what you need at any point in time. Some people hide them because they are embarrassed. Some people hide them because they know themselves well enough to know that they will probably not be totally honest if other people can see it. Other people keep them open because they want people to look at them, either because they want to share their own recipes and choices with others or because they feel something is lacking but aren't sure what and want input.

    I have seen where people will refuse to be friends with someone who has a private diary. While that seems silly to me (as i never look at other people's diaries), it apparently is something important to them. People have different ideas of what they need/want to be successful.

    I personally dont know or care who has their diaries open.
  • Lupercalia
    Lupercalia Posts: 1,857 Member
    I used to have mine open to friends, but keep it private now. I didn't like comments (both positive and negative) on what I was eating. I don't care to read other people's diaries unless they've specifically asked me to for some reason.
  • conniemaxwell5
    conniemaxwell5 Posts: 943 Member
    Mine is open to my friends but not the public. I log everything and although I eat lots of fruits, veggies and lean meats I also eat ice cream and other treats. I stay under my calorie goal most of the time and it doesn't bother me if my friends ask about my choices. So far no one has been judgmental but if they are, that's their problem, not mine.

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