If you're looking for weight loss help read this..

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deshaine
deshaine Posts: 195
in Food and Nutrition
There are lots of people on there that really want to help you lose weight, but if your food diary is private makes us wonder how in the world can we help you? Why do you hide your food diary? What are you afraid off?

I think it's funny that we go out in public and shovel food in our mouths like it's our last meal, we are not afraid to been seen gorging our selves and wearing clothes that don't actually emphasis the positive...

But when we are surround by people who have been successful at losing weight we all of a sudden get all self conscious? Really? Come on people... There are days when you just can't, won't, don't stick to a rigid food plan... You can lie all day long on here, but the scale will tell the truth.

If you SERIOUSLY want to lose weight...

PUBLICIZE YOUR FOOD DIARY. :mad:

Face the problem head on and get SERIOUS!

There... rant off. :flowerforyou:
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Replies

  • Aeriel
    Aeriel Posts: 864 Member
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    I can't remember what it was set to when I started the site, but I think the diary is set to private? Maybe people don't know how to change it to public, or even realize it is an option.

    Mine is public, as I have nothing to hide...good or bad days! :drinker:
  • Amarillo_NDN
    Amarillo_NDN Posts: 1,018 Member
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    I agree with you. Also for me, it people who hid behind pictures of kids on their profile or animals. Untill they can except who they are and allow others to see them, they will always hide in the dark and will never be able to what they need to.
  • Raychel_xoxo
    Raychel_xoxo Posts: 51
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    I do seriously want to lose weight. But I don't need my journal to be completely public for me to become serious about it. I am facing the problem and dealing with it, you really have no idea how each person decides to go about their weight loss.

    I used to just carry a notebook around in my purse for me to track my calories and exercise, and that helped me quite a bit. What I like a lot about this site is how it calculate your carbs and fiber and sodium and stuff for you. It's much easier for me to upload my food into here, than look up all the food labels of everything I eat on my own.

    I think this post was very unnecessary.
  • Natural
    Natural Posts: 461 Member
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    mine is public to my friends, i think, but i doubt just because someone's diary is private that means they are not serious about losing weight. we don't have to share everything here. if someone wants help, then they can open their diary, but if they're not asking for help, but only support, i don't see why it's a problem. i don't have time to go through people's food diary anyway. :)
  • Raychel_xoxo
    Raychel_xoxo Posts: 51
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    And BTW, I don't LIE on here. I use my food journal for my own use. I don't need other ppl to see it and give feedback. And I listen to what the scale tells me, whether I like it or not. I have been sucessful in my weight loss, this past year especially. I don't need someone who doesn't know me to generalize me as someone that does not take it seriously.

    This post has really really irritated me.
  • Nikki2Fit
    Nikki2Fit Posts: 30 Member
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    My diary is open to friends however some of my friends have theirs private and fine. I have come across many people who are doing fine and are here for support. If their current habits aren't working and they need/want advice they will ask for it. If we need to know what they are eating to help, tell them. Its that's simple. No ones life or lifestyle is a public display and it doesn't have to be. Its a choice. We are entitled to make ours just as you've made yours. Instead of dwelling on what some choose to not do focus on what is being done. We've all acknowledged or problem, accepted it as an issue and found a SUPPORT system to help us fix it.
  • caribeals
    caribeals Posts: 105 Member
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    wow. this was a dissapointing post! i thought i might get a useful tip or info that might actually help in my weight loss journey. some of us are not as technologically advanced as you, apparently. i do not have access to a digital camera to upload a picture from, i do not have a web cam, i do not have a scanner. that makes it fairly hard to upload a picture. its not that i'm hiding anything. i mean, i weigh 255 pounds.... there's really no point in hiding! i did not even know making the food diaries public was an option. i use mfp as a food and exercise diary. i read some of the (helpful) posts. so far, i have been successful. even though i have only lost 5 pounds in 3 weeks, i have a lot more energy, i feel better, and i am making healthy food and life style choices. i think this site is a VERY helpful tool and i am very happy that i found this site, as i do not have much of a support system in "real life". but reading offensive posts like yours, makes me even more thankful for the supportive people there is on this site.
  • kristinlough
    kristinlough Posts: 828 Member
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    I kind of agree with Raychel. Mine is private. And it's not that I don't want people to see it, it's that I don't want OTHER people's ideas of nutrition to get in my way. I know that if I don't eat a higher-than-normally-desirable number of carbs, I have issues all over the place. And if I left my diary open to people who are judgmental (perhaps present company included), I'd have to back up my why rather than celebrate the victories and work together with my friends for our goals.

    Thank you for your thoughts, but for me, they're unhelpful.
  • Julesaf
    Julesaf Posts: 36
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    It's more like I'm NOSY, and that's why I'm sad when people don't have it public.

    And when I see people who are very successful at weight loss, I wish theirs were private so I could see how often they eat their exercise calories and what not.
  • Oldbat61
    Oldbat61 Posts: 141
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    There is being supportive and there is bullying; I believe your post is tantamount to bullying and is unlikely to achieve anything., let alone the help and support you purport to be giving.
  • lilyinlove
    lilyinlove Posts: 441 Member
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    I thought I was going to read a helpful tip..... I guess not.
    I do the food log on my i phone and I cant be bothered to sync with my computer...that would take me hours of time I don't have. My food is my business anyway...must be doing something right...lost 20 lbs so far.
  • MissAnjy
    MissAnjy Posts: 2,480 Member
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    I completely disagree with this post. I'm here for support, not help. I like to be surrounded by people who are going through the exact same journey as I am so that we can relate to eachother and have a common interest/goal. When i see success stories on here, I don't automatically go to this persons profile and check through their food diary so that I can mimic their eating habits and lose the same. Everyone loses weight differently, everyone eats differently, everyone does what works for them!! I'm not hiding ANYTHING by having my diary private. My diary is for my personal use. It is for me to log everything that I eat and to be more aware of what's being put into my body on a daily basis. It gives me direction and It helps me travel the right roads. I've been logging since August 29th, 2010 and have lost 18lbs....all the while my diary has been kept private. Does this make me any less SERIOUS about losing weight then someone who is willing to show exactly what they eat every moment of the day? NO of course not. It's a personal choice. Some people like to share with the world, others keep successes to themselves and use it for their own personal gain. If someone wants to share their diary, that's wonderful. If someone doesn't feel comfortable and wants that diary merely to hold themselves accountable by doing so, that's wonderful too. Don't take away from people who choose to have it remain private. They are doing the work and putting in the effort and fighting the fight just as much as the next person.
  • Vans
    Vans Posts: 388 Member
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    I am not too sure why there is a desire to look at what others are eating.

    I come here to use the diary as a TOOL for my PERSONAL goals....

    Also I have used this site for some time....when I first signed up viewing others' food journal was not even an option. Therefore I am not sure why you are so aggravated over something most people don't even think about......
  • sonocarolina
    sonocarolina Posts: 1
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    I don't think the original comment was bullying. Which ever way you do your diary private or public just be honest to yourself. I believe the 8 glasses of water a day will help, but space them out over the day, take a small bottle of water when you go out anywhere. Keep a photo of you when you were slimmer or lovely item of clothing thats now too small and view them whenever you feel your not doing well to help spur you on!:drinker:
  • heathersmilez
    heathersmilez Posts: 2,579 Member
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    And BTW, I don't LIE on here. I use my food journal for my own use. I don't need other ppl to see it and give feedback. And I listen to what the scale tells me, whether I like it or not. I have been sucessful in my weight loss, this past year especially. I don't need someone who doesn't know me to generalize me as someone that does not take it seriously.

    This post has really really irritated me.

    A++ on this post and your previous. I use MFP for its calculator properties. I'm only here to loose 8 lbs and have never had poor eating habits (my favourite food in the world is All Bran - I like to think that says a lot about me) so I'm not in it for the support but for those who need it, by all means this is the place for it.

    I don’t think opening up your diary for others to critique is warranted or helpful unless you are looking for help b/c you can’t balance proper nutrition. I’ve eaten 960 calories a day for 3 days now so if I opened up my diary I’d get belittled on how unhealthy that is. I’m getting all my nutrients and I only intend to eat that way for 5 days so that’s justification that wouldn’t be required if my diary was private (which it is).

    I see from your profile that you lack self confidence and that’s huge part in loving your self regardless of size. Work on that with friends, family and even strangers - be the social person on the bus it will help and you won't feel stupid if its people you don't know.
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 21,732 Member
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    I think it's important to remember that MFP is a tool that can be used many different ways and that we shouldn't make assumptions about why someone's diary is private. I can feel the OP's frustration in the original post, and I'm sure she's probably right that some people are only fooling themselves. She probably didn't think about it from different perspectives, but I think we're all guilty of that from time to time. Live and learn, right? :smile:
  • heathersmilez
    heathersmilez Posts: 2,579 Member
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    Oh this topic is great! I just read through some of the other posts and am so refreshed to see some angry opinions out there on MFP. Every other topic is so super nice and I love how people are being real here :)
  • Raychel_xoxo
    Raychel_xoxo Posts: 51
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    Oh this topic is great! I just read through some of the other posts and am so refreshed to see some angry opinions out there on MFP. Every other topic is so super nice and I love how people are being real here :)

    Hahah i agree! And thanks for your comment earlier!
    There's bound to be conflict on here sometimes and reading this post just brought out some of my rage!! Haha!
  • NutritionDivaRD
    NutritionDivaRD Posts: 467 Member
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    Wow! I read you as a positive and upbeat person but you are seriously bent on reading other people's diaries. Is that why you are here? Is that the only way you can find success here is by reading what other people are doing? You see, I have a mother who is my best friend and I completely adore. But she is pushy and bossy and CRITICAL. Always has been. I grew up with her criticizing everything that went in my mouth and every decision I made. I know she was trying in her own way to protect me. But it had terrible effects on me emotionally. I was skinny until high school when I gained a little bit but was still small. When I got out of high school and out on my own I absolutely rebelled and started doing things the way I wanted to. The results were disastrous as I made many mistakes in life and also gained a lot of weight. Do I blame my mom for my weight gain? Nope. I am responsible for my decisions. But I'm bearing this part of my soul so that you can see that in some (but not all) areas of my life I shrink in light of criticism. Especially when it comes to food. This is deep-seeded in me.

    Originally my diary was public. But I saw someone get very critical about the choices in the diary of a friend of mine one day. My friend didn't ask for opinions that day. So I made my diary private. If I have a question, I'll post it and take the criticism that comes. I'm here for support, not for someone to critique my food choices. I post on various topics because I am educated in nutrition and I try to put the facts out there to help others. If someone wants ideas for things to eat they can ask and I'll share! There is no need for me to share my diary. I never read other people's diary. Unless they specifically ask for help.

    I came to this site because I could log my food and exercise. I find it a very helpful tool and the support I have received here has been an added bonus. No one is going to push me into doing something I don't want to do. You can say I'm not serious about my weight loss. My numbers speak otherwise. And as the weeks and months tick by my numbers will be an even bigger voice as to my seriousness.

    Everyone is entitled to their choice and to choose a level of privacy they are comfortable with. Shame on you for trying to make others feel guilty. Haven't we had enough of that? Do you really think that helps?
  • kimjoan
    kimjoan Posts: 192 Member
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    I agree with Raychel - I think that this post is unnecessary. As anyone who is battling their weight knows, you have to do you you do for you and you only. Making your diary public is no more going to make someone succeed than telling everyone you are on a diet. Successful weight loss has to come from within - if you don't want to do it for yourself and truely believe that you deserve it you will not be successful, especially for people who are seriously overweight.

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