Really do not want to track

I don't count calories, and I'm successfully losing weight anyway. I mainly joined this site for the discussion forums. I imagine I could be losing weight more efficiently if I worked out all the math, but I'm simply not willing to be that obsessive about food for the rest of my life. That said, if you're one of those people who believes, "But I eat healthy! I don't understand why I can't lose weight! Must be poor metabolism!", then I think it would be very beneficial for you to write down everything you eat and figure out the calories, at least for a little while. Because when people say those things, the problem is almost always that they're eating way more than they think they are. Showing yourself that will help immensely. It will make weight loss more straightforward, less mysterious. Me, I have no delusions of that kind. I know I ate too much before. I eat less now.

I track for me. You can set your diary to private for a while until you get into a habit and you can banish the embarrassment...but I also have to say, I don't go through peaking through diaries and judging people unless someone asks, they are a friend and I know they are struggling with something, or ...well that is it. There is not enough time in a day for me to monitor your diet along with my own so don't worry that people will look and judge...unless you ask questions that people looking will give them insight to help you, or you whine and complain a lot and spew a lot of wisdom about how much you know but you are incorrect about..then people might go see what you are eating to see if you are making stuff up or living what you preach.

Smartphone app nukes your "lazy" excuse. I've found it pretty easy - if you're actually weighing your food and taking it seriously then the inputting into MFP is a breeze.

In the end, if you don't do it, you'll likely see poor results. So do it.

I just signed up. I don't want to write down everything I eat out of embarrassment and laziness. Help and motivation appreciated , new so please add me! Thanks

You don't actually have to open your diary. Or you can open it just to friends, or you can have a code that you give to select individuals.

But until you do log what you're eating - that and measure and weigh everything - you're not in control of your food. I'm not a researcher, someone else can quote you the science, but I think that it has been proved that people who keep food diaries do better with weight loss and healthy eating than people who don't.

And the MFP food diary has excellent tools to help you - you can enter recipies to work out the calories - if it's high you can see why and think about substituting ingredients to lower it cals. You can save regular meals to save time. And it adds it all up for you, so you can clearly see your daily calorie budget and what you can afford each day, and how much exercise you need to do to earn more calories.

I started on here by downloading the App to my Android phone - that's how it worked for me, my phone was constantly at my fingertips, it was sooooooo easy! I never would have written it down in a book or logged on to the website every day. That worked for 4 months till my phone died, so I no longer have the app, but it worked so well, and the weight fell off, so I continued on my laptop. It's just a habit, and when you get into it you'll never remember what it was like when you thought you couldn't!

I've learned a lot too by logging my food - I've learned a huge amount about where the calories are, where they aren't and portion size and how to keep enjoying my favourite things in moderation without piling on weight. I couldn't have done that without logging my food. I kept my diary closed to start with - when my phone died and I started on the website instead, I started looking at the forums, made more friends, and decided to open it.

I eat rubbish still! Yesterday was a horrible slobby day, nothing of much nutritional value at all! But I'm not embarrassed - everyone else is like me! They have virtuous days where they eat lots of healthy stuff and they have slobby days where they indulge.

Smartphone app nukes your "lazy" excuse. I've found it pretty easy - if you're actually weighing your food and taking it seriously then the inputting into MFP is a breeze.

In the end, if you don't do it, you'll likely see poor results. So do it.

It's even easier when you can just copy your meals from someone else :P

I personally think it makes it more fun and interesting. Try to do it all in one setting for 2 reasons. It makes it quicker and more accountable for the duration of the day. It also keeps you on track. I think of it like someone just gave me $xxxx.xx to spend of food and this is how I am going to do it. When it is gone, it is gone. You can always go back and tweak your diary as you see fit. I follow these rules daily and have lost 30lbs in 6 months.

I just signed up. I don't want to write down everything I eat out of embarrassment and laziness. Help and motivation appreciated , new so please add me! Thanks

Embarrassment? Keep your diary private.

Do you want to lose weight? You need to track. Otherwise, you have no idea, really, what you're eating.

I hate tracking because there is too many inacurate entries in the database they need to fix this problem. I don't log but I use the database as a nutrition guide if I'm not sure if something is good for me or not. It seems to work for me

Why on Earth are you here then?

That's kind of the point of tracking: it makes you accountable, and also more aware of how much you are actually eating. It's not fun exactly, but if necessary, then do it. Maybe this isn't the right program for you?

Writing down everything is kind of the point. You have to know how many calories are going into your body if you are trying to change.

I just signed up. I don't want to write down everything I eat out of embarrassment and laziness. Help and motivation appreciated , new so please add me! Thanks

Perhaps share your reasons for joining this site, or what it is you hope to gain?

If you're not logging... then....

Just asking.

As difficult as tracking is it really opens your eyes to everything your putting into your body. If you have the APP on your phone tracking is VERY easy as you can scan the bar code on products.. I am doing much better tracking calories with this then i was doing tracking points on Weight Watchers.

You just need to put your mind to it. You can do it!!

Feel free to add me if you'd like.

You may not have to track forever. A few days will open your eyes to what is going in your mouth, and a few weeks will have you tracking without having to write things down. But give Myfitnesspal a try, because it is the easiest tracking tool I have ever used. It saves your favorites, it has EVERY kind of food listed (even homemade), and you will be impressed with the charts.

Just commit to a few days and see if you aren't hooked.