log in food before or after?

littlems
littlems Posts: 28
edited September 21 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys and gals! Just wanted to know if you all log in your food BEFORE you eat it for the day or do it do it after you eat it. I am not sure if I should try and plan on my meals for the day. just wanted to find out what works for other peeps.
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Replies

  • Amandac6772
    Amandac6772 Posts: 1,311 Member
    PLAN!!!! I can't stress that enough. I will 100,000 times stick to my calories better if my day is planned rather than waiting until the end of the day...there is no way to make corrections after you have already ate it other than exercise more and I'm doing all of that I can do.
  • Sparklewolfie
    Sparklewolfie Posts: 271
    I tend to log it after each meal :3 This way I do not forget what I ate. Most of the things I eat I already have an idea of the nutritional value so I have a general idea whether it is a good choice or not. If it is something new then I will log it first to see how it would affect my daily report, then change it or keep it depending on if it is good or not :)
  • carolinamoonface
    carolinamoonface Posts: 3
    I also log it after I have eaten the food. I usually know what I am going to eat through the day but if I have calories left and I have used up all my protein then I would aim for a carbohydrate type snack to maintain the balance. I would sy do it how it suits you best - you will know what works for you in the end.
  • jrkingery
    jrkingery Posts: 107 Member
    I tend to log it after each meal :3 This way I do not forget what I ate. Most of the things I eat I already have an idea of the nutritional value so I have a general idea whether it is a good choice or not. If it is something new then I will log it first to see how it would affect my daily report, then change it or keep it depending on if it is good or not :)

    Likewise.

    I log everything I eat just afterward so I don't forget anything. Having the MFP App on my iPhone helps a lot with this since I can enter food into my diary any time or anywhere. I don't really plan my meals beyond knowing where I stand for the day as far as calories left for the day. Then again, I'm not really on a "diet", I'm on a calorie budget.
  • FoamyRiver
    FoamyRiver Posts: 276 Member
    I log after I eat each meal/snack.

    I don't usually eat breakfast until after I get to work...so I do tend to pre-plan my breakfast, lunch and daily snacks. But because I eat the same thing for supper that I fix for my husband I try to save more than 1/3 of my daily allowances for that meal. If I'm lacking in one area I just make a substitution for myself rather than changing the entire menu for supper.
  • Kate_UK
    Kate_UK Posts: 1,299 Member
    I plan my meals in advance so that I know how many snack calories I have left. Then I log my snacks after I've eaten them early in the day, but as I get close to my limit I work out the last few things to make sure I don't go over.
  • rockinmomto3
    rockinmomto3 Posts: 97 Member
    I log my meals after I eat, mostly because I don't always eat everything that I prepare. I plan out what I'm going to have when I do my weekly shopping, but each meal I have a couple different choices so that I'm not always bored, and I get what I'm craving at that particular time.
  • jantawa
    jantawa Posts: 182 Member
    Before...so I can get an idea of what I'm doing for the day.
  • momtofour
    momtofour Posts: 97 Member
    hi i plan my days meals the night before, i have to know what im eating the next day to keep me on track i find it a lot easier too with the family i can ask what they fancy or would they like this etc and once agreed i log it all, i find i am more disiplined this way and it helps me stay on track, i would go right off the rails if i logged after id eaten it and like it has been said you cant take off what you have already eaten if it was a no no, i also do my own cooking and make my own meals, stews, casseroles, chasseurs, sheperds pies etc etc, so i make sure i have the fresh stuff in too, if not i walk to the shop to buy fresh 1 1/2 mile round trip thus incorporating towards my ecersise too,
    but all to their own
    X
  • allief
    allief Posts: 16
    On weekdays I log everything in in the morning before I put my lunch in the fridge at work. Dinner is always more of a challenge so if I can I add those the next morning.
  • crazybxrmom
    crazybxrmom Posts: 62 Member
    On a work day I typically log all my food before I leave for work, I eat lunch dinner and my snacks at work so I have to be ready. If there are any changes or substitutions I make those before I log my journal after I get home.

    This has worked out well for me as it prevents me from stopping at the vending machine since I know everything in the fridge at work has me at my calorie limit. Sometimes I even leave a few extra calories so I can have some ice cream or pudding after I get home.

    You have to just play with it and see what works. This is what works for me, when I was putting it in after I ate I had a day where my "sensible " option turned out to be the worst item I could have eaten it had more calories than anything else on the menu. So for me lesson learned, even when eating out...PLAN AHEAD.
  • christopher_stockdale
    christopher_stockdale Posts: 27 Member
    I log it on my iphone literally right before I eat it, breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Too much stuff goes on during the day, and I don't want to miss something I ate, or put in something I end up not eating. Also, if you see you're way over on fat, carbs or sodium, you can usually plan your next meal to accomodate that, or at least know to max out your water for the day.

    We literally plan our dinners out Monday-Thursday at the grocery store, so it's easier to be really, really good during the week, and then allow some slack-off/breathing room on the weekends.
  • TateFTW
    TateFTW Posts: 658 Member
    I'm usually pretty obsessive about logging smething before I eat it. I'll still eat something if I don't have access to a computer, but I really prefer adding it before I eat it. Then on days where I know where I'll be I'll plan almost the whole day ahead of time and go ahead and enter it. Why not? You can always change an entry if you want to. Like today, I know when I get off work I'll go home for a secant for a protein shake, then head to football practice (coach), then to the gym. After I get home from the gym I always have my cup of chocolate milk.

    The only thing I'm not sure about is dinner, which works because I can wait and see if things change before then. If I happen to move more or less then expected at practice I'll log my exercise accordinlgy, then eat accordingly for dinner.
  • JustCarly
    JustCarly Posts: 3
    I find breakfast to be the easiest meal of the day. But planning dinner {I cook for 4 others including a 2 year old grandson} makes it easier to decide on lunch & snacks.
  • ProTFitness
    ProTFitness Posts: 1,379 Member
    I eat then enter it as soon as I can.
  • SP0472
    SP0472 Posts: 193 Member
    I'm new to this so it's been helpful to log it before I eat it this way I get an idea of just exactly how much I should be eating. If I eat a double helping of something and log it after I eat it and go over my calories....then I've screwed myself. If I want a double serving of something...like 6oz of meat instead of 3oz then I can plan for that better if I log everything and plan ahead.
  • sallyLunn
    sallyLunn Posts: 381
    I do both. I like to plan my meals on the log but then if I do something different or don't eat something I thought I was going to, I go in and adjust my log. I also play ahead what exercise I'm going to do so I can work those calories into my day. Knowing that I need to burn 500 calories is a great motivator.
  • littlems
    littlems Posts: 28
    thank you all. it has been most informative. i usually try and plan breakfast and lunch. i have a ruff idea of dinner but i also cook for 3 others.

    thank you all again!:bigsmile:
  • Beebee78
    Beebee78 Posts: 703
    I plan my meals for the week. But then when I am logging it's when I get online - before or after. I have a little notebook in my handbag in which I write everything I eat for reference xxx
  • kennedar
    kennedar Posts: 306 Member
    I do both. I put in my food for the work day when I get to work in the morning. At some point during the day I decide what I am making for dinner and put that in as well. But I do not log my exercise and snacks until after they happen. This is because I am terrified of logging exercise, eating for it, and then deciding not to go! Plus I do not know how many calories I have burnt until afterwards. My snacks change depending on what I am feeling like as well, so I don't want to add them becuase they will probably change! But do whatever works for you! I like knowing ahead of time how much I can eat of something.
  • kendra1976
    kendra1976 Posts: 90 Member
    I do it before I eat it..
  • dogdaze
    dogdaze Posts: 110 Member
    There are no hard and fast rules. I do both depending on circumstances. However, when temptation strikes, there is nothing like calculating the calories you are thinking of consuming to make you think again!

    I never log exercise until it is completed.....
  • lesleyuk
    lesleyuk Posts: 57
    I log in after every meal/snack if I can that way I make sure its all down there, and only log excercise I have done. I never log excercise that is part of my daily life like cleaning or stuff I do at work like moving boxes. I tend to over estimate my food portions (hardly ever weigh anything) and under estimate my excercise.
  • ChubbieTubbie
    ChubbieTubbie Posts: 481 Member
    I log it all in the morning, and then I use that as a guideline for what to eat for the day. If I don't eat all of my meal, I come back and edit it, or if I decide I have enough calories left for a snack, I come back and add it then. It's a lot easier to stick to a plan than it is to realize you messed up somewhere after the fact!
    I only log exercise after complete, though.
  • lethalbanana
    lethalbanana Posts: 17 Member
    I log my breakfast and my lunch since I pack my lunch and know what I'll be eating. Then when I come home I'll log whatever I have for dinner.
  • lilRicki
    lilRicki Posts: 4,555 Member
    I log everything I eat just afterward so I don't forget anything. Having the MFP App on my iPhone helps a lot with this since I can enter food into my diary any time or anywhere. I don't really plan my meals beyond knowing where I stand for the day as far as calories left for the day. Then again, I'm not really on a "diet", I'm on a calorie budget.
    [/quote]



    I like that thought "i'm not on a diet i'm on a calorie budget"...I'm going to use that
  • lina1131
    lina1131 Posts: 2,246 Member
    Monday - Friday - I know what i'm going to eat for the day and log it in the morning. Sometimes i'm not sure about dinner, but i'll know how many calories I have left and can plan accordingly.

    Sat and Sun - I log as I eat lol
  • dragonfly__
    dragonfly__ Posts: 172 Member
    I try to log in all my food for the day before I eat it. It helps me to stay on track. If I know I will go over with my choices I can switch things up and try to keep it under my goal. If I log it in after I eat then it is too late to make any improvements. That is the norm. Sometimes I have to wait until after, and sometimes when I have waited until after I don't log it at all because I know I have been "naughty" and I just don't want to face it!:sad:
  • Kappa124
    Kappa124 Posts: 24
    I like to log it as soon as I make/get whatever it is I'm eating. I don't like logging it ahead of time as it makes me feel restricted as to what i'm allowed to have for the day.
  • abbracadabra
    abbracadabra Posts: 33
    I log before for the most part because I Preplan EVERYTHING!! But allow myself a fair amount of play so I choose what I want for snacks and post workout food.
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