Help with not counting calories anymore

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leelxxsh
leelxxsh Posts: 28 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Hi everyone!

I'm getting really close to my goal weight and want to stop logging calories. I'm back at school now, which makes it harder to log, and I feel like I've learned enough that I can make healthy choices for myself. I want to come back in a few weeks or so and see what my progress is, but I'm not sure how long I should wait. Is one week enough? Is one month too long? I don't want it to be so short a time that the changes might just be normal fluctuations, but I don't want it to be so far off that I might gain weight without realizing it.

Thanks!
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Replies

  • RedHeadBrains
    RedHeadBrains Posts: 2 Member
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    Maintaining your goal weight can be a battle as well if you are not careful. It is so easy to lose track of what you used to eat if you are not logging it. I know it happened to me, my portion sizes slowly crept up in size and I didn't really notice until I started packing on the lbs again. I am sure if you are careful and maybe check yourself every week to see how your are progressing, and then maybe go back to tracking your food if it becomes a problem. Everyone is different though and there is no wrong or right answer that fits everyone's needs. I think if you are very mindful of what you are eating and keep checking yourself you will find a happy median. :)
  • missemmapeel
    missemmapeel Posts: 69 Member
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    Congratulations on reaching your goal! That is wonderful, and I'm sure you are feeling pretty spectacular. I reached my goal a few months ago and do have some advice.

    Maintaining your weight is something that you need to learn how to do, just like losing weight is. And this is for life. For me, I started with logging every week day and taking weekends off. After a couple months I relaxed to only logging if I feel my nutrition is slipping (for example, if I start eating ice cream every day). I also check my weight every morning on the bathroom scale. I only record it once a month, but if I gain more than a couple of pounds I go back to logging everything until I'm back at my goal weight.

    Sorry to say this, but I don't think stopping cold turkey from MFP would have worked for me. It has taken me some time to learn this new routine and find what works. And my weight does still creep up sometimes, so I just have to catch it before it gets too high.

    Hope this helps, and again- congrats!

    PS- Feel free to add me, I'm always looking for new friends :)
  • justmary4cm
    justmary4cm Posts: 29
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    I don't think you can stop logging your calories if that is what you are used to at this point. It is so easy to let one thing lead to another especially if you are back in school and not focused on your maintenance but on the important work you must do there. I have found that it is much easier to maintain with accountability rather than just wild hope that you will keep portions small and make the right choices. I don't know you or your circumstances but speaking for myself, the creeping in of mindless calories is insanely easy. So at least for several months, I wouldn't change what I am used to doing. I would log in every day and do my meals. It is worth it in the long run...just my humble opinion.

    Oh, I have been on maintenance for 6 years and lost 54 pounds originally.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
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    Keep logging. Once you do reach your goal? Keep logging. After you've met your goal and have stayed at maintenance for several months, then you can experiment with going off logging.
  • jvbrooks
    jvbrooks Posts: 82 Member
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    Sorry, how does being back at school make it harder to log calories? You're more likely to eat poorly at school (late nights, parties, etc), and updating MFP takes all of four-five minutes a meal, if you're working slowly.

    I do not recommend quitting MFP like that. If you do choose to do so, I recommend still logging your weight every week. If it starts going up, come back.
  • NRSPAM
    NRSPAM Posts: 961 Member
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    Congratulations on reaching your goal! I think maintenance can be just as hard, or harder than losing, in some ways. I wouldn't quit logging, atleast not yet. If you want to eventually quit logging, I would weight until you get used to seeing what eating at maintenance looks like. You're used to eating at a deficit, but you may not realize that eating at maintenance isn't that much of a difference. And trust me, from experience, the weight goes back on much quicker, and much easier than losing it does.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    A month sounds good. My opinion, if you keep the majority of your foods whole, real foods, it's easier to not log. Or if you eat a big percentage of your calories from the same stuff and you know what that is, then its also easy not to eat too much.
  • Mcgrawhaha
    Mcgrawhaha Posts: 1,596 Member
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    im in maintenance, and i still log. its so easy to lose track of what your eating... i dont want to gain 100 pounds again!
  • leelxxsh
    leelxxsh Posts: 28 Member
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    I definitely plan to continue weighing myself weekly to track my progress. My plan was to be a bit looser with the logging and not beat myself up if I missed a day or two, but if I saw the numbers start creeping up again, then I'd buckle down and be strict with myself again.
  • obrientp
    obrientp Posts: 546 Member
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    Maybe try weighing everyday? Even with normal fluctuations you should be able to establish a baseline, and if you see the numbers creeping up and not going back down, you will know to start back at it.


    Oops, you beat me too it!
  • TheRealParisLove
    TheRealParisLove Posts: 1,907 Member
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    I take time off logging on occasion (maybe 6 weeks a year), but can't stop forever. I literally have no "sense" of what or how much I've eaten if I don't log it.

    I've spent my whole life yo-yoing. Even now, after using apps in one form or another for 4 years, I still can't judge or guesstimate my calorie consumption. I just look at my food diary like my bank account. It's just something I need to keep track of, and if I don't I'm going to be in a world of hurt.
  • baptiste565
    baptiste565 Posts: 590 Member
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    i stopped counting cals after 2 yrs of counting. i am maintaining nicely. its been great being like everyone else on the planet. lol
  • 55in13
    55in13 Posts: 1,091 Member
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    I am doing it by watching the scale and clothing fit closely and mixing in days of light eating as needed. If you were logging this, you would call it calorie cycling. I don't know if that will work for you or not, but there is an important make or break concept in there - if you can't be sure you are having a light day (calorie deficit) without counting and logging, then I think you should log. Also use patience; don't do extremely light days back to back.
  • harleygroomer
    harleygroomer Posts: 373 Member
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    You should be to the point where you can SEE the calorie count in most foods. After having done this you know what you can have and not have--have some faith in yourself. And if it doesn't work, then start logging what you eat, but always ALWAYS keep a journal of what you are doing so you can see the holes that pop up.
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
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    Logging shouldn't be that be difficult if you've been doing it all along. But if you don't want to log, make sure that your meals consist of lean meats and lots of green vegetables. Starchy vegetables, breads, sugar, alcohol, and sweets should be kept to a minimum. Weight yourself three times a week so you can make a correction if your weight goes up.

    Kids gain weight at college because they're stressed and don't pay attention to what they're eating.
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
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    I log, but measure a lot less, as I've gotten closer to my goal weight. As long as the scale is moving in the direction you want it to - whether that's up, down, or maintaining - you're doing it right.

    If you fall off-track, you go back to logging to see what's going on.
  • BigGuy47
    BigGuy47 Posts: 1,768 Member
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    I feel like I've learned enough that I can make healthy choices for myself. I want to come back in a few weeks or so and see what my progress is, but I'm not sure how long I should wait. Is one week enough? Is one month too long?
    Test yourself. Take a break from logging. Give it a month and see what happens.
    I don't log, but I do weigh myself once a week and I weigh my food portions. It helps keep me on track.
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,650 Member
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    I was convinced I would have to log everything for the rest of my life, but after a year of consistent logging and measuring, I went on the 5:2 plan. I still planned to log everything on my off days, but I soon realized that I was easily staying within maintenance without much effort. I can go without logging for 2-3 days a week now and I do ok. I watch my weight closely for any continuous gains.

    If I were you, I would pick a couple days a week to continue measuring and logging, just to keep yourself on track.
  • eileen0515
    eileen0515 Posts: 408 Member
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    Statistically the odds are not in our favor to keep the weight off. It really is a small number, those that are able to not gain weight after weight loss. I guess there are some special snowflakes, but I will log, just as I did while losing. Sheesh if you have a smartphone nothing could be easier, and fast. Takes me longer to put on my shoes, than it is to log a meal.
  • stephiehampshire
    stephiehampshire Posts: 160
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    When I reached my goal weight I stopped MFP cold turkey and because I didnt see what I was eating every day I just assumed I was making the right choices very quickly I put the weight back on and now here I am for round 2

    I would recomend setting your goal at maintaining and continue logging for a few months until you are in a set routine that works for you and I would continue to weigh yourself once a week / month however often you currently weigh

    I have decided that this time round its a change for life and to continue with MFP for as along as it is running,

    Thats my personal opinion

    :)

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