Tired of logging
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jordymils
Posts: 230 Member
I have been casually logging on MFP for about 8 months now but for the most part I wasn't very strict and used it more as a guideline than anything, however for the last 3-4 months (including the last 8 weeks which has been my reset) I've been logging religiously and I'm just getting tired of it. Some days I just can't be bothered logging.
Actually, it's not even so much that I can't be bothered logging, more that I can't be bothered being so specific with my eating to make sure all of my macros and calories are right. I really just want to be able to eat when I'm hungry and eat what I feel like, but still focusing on a balance of protein, carbs and fat. Problem is that I know if I don't log then my numbers will be way off. I'm vegetarian and have to work hard to get enough protein as well as carbs. And given that I'm still on my reset (I figure I've got about 2 weeks left) I don't want to stop logging now and risk stuffing it all up.
Sorry, I know this isn't really a question for help, more a general complaint :P
But I'm wondering if anyone else got to this point with logging and found something to make them power through??
Actually, it's not even so much that I can't be bothered logging, more that I can't be bothered being so specific with my eating to make sure all of my macros and calories are right. I really just want to be able to eat when I'm hungry and eat what I feel like, but still focusing on a balance of protein, carbs and fat. Problem is that I know if I don't log then my numbers will be way off. I'm vegetarian and have to work hard to get enough protein as well as carbs. And given that I'm still on my reset (I figure I've got about 2 weeks left) I don't want to stop logging now and risk stuffing it all up.
Sorry, I know this isn't really a question for help, more a general complaint :P
But I'm wondering if anyone else got to this point with logging and found something to make them power through??
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I hear you!!! I just got so tired of focusing on the numbers!!! I thought for a second there I was going to go crazy! With me what I have found really helps is not focusing so much on calories but writing down everything that goes into my mouth and an estimate of the protein value for each meal. I try to aim for 100 to 120g of protein so towards the end of the day I just tally it up on a piece of paper. Having one number to focus on has really helped me. Set a protein goal for a few weeks and just write it down on paper old school style
it may help? 0 -
For me it is like putting together a puzzle--it is a challenge to get everything to fit. So for me it does not seem like a chore, it seems like a game.
But I definitely devote more time to it than I would like!
Also, for me, instead of feeling like it is restrictive, logging and budgeting my calories can be freeing--for instance, if I know something will fit my calorie and macro goal, I eat it without guilt. If I were just going on how I feel I would either overeat or constantly deprive myself because of worrying about going over my calories.
So for me logging is a very positive thing.0 -
I've developed some tricks and shortcuts to make logging a bit easier. Things like:
- I have a whiteboard on the fridge, so while I'm cooking or putting my meal together I can scribble it down and enter it in later when I have time.
- Recipes that I make frequently I enter into the "My Recipes" tool in MFP. Enter it once, save time from then on.
- I've built up a mental list of default meals for when I'm too rushed or lazy to put thought into what to eat. For example, my favourite default breakfast is a serving of oatmeal and a half-cup of plain greek yoghurt with a teaspoon of jam. I enjoy it, it's easy, and it's well-rounded nutritionally. If you take the time to think of a couple tasty default meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner that are nutritionally balanced, you can use them as a fall-back for those days when worrying about macros seems onerous.
- I measure things with a precision appropriate for the caloric density of the food. The lower the caloric density, the less precision I need. So low calorie foods like spinach I just eyeball ("meh, that's about three cups") to save time, because it barely matters - the difference between three cups and four cups of spinach is something trivial like 12 calories. For higher calorie foods like cheese, meat, olive oil, etc. I measure precisely.
The one thing that keeps me logging, however, is the fact that without it my eating is just nowhere near as good. I've tried a couple times to go for the more intuitive approach, and every time the quality of my nutritional choices has decreased. I still have hope that someday I might be able to eat well without logging, but for now this is what's working so I find ways to make it a non-stressful part of my life.0 -
For me it is like putting together a puzzle--it is a challenge to get everything to fit. So for me it does not seem like a chore, it seems like a game.
But I definitely devote more time to it than I would like!
Also, for me, instead of feeling like it is restrictive, logging and budgeting my calories can be freeing--for instance, if I know something will fit my calorie and macro goal, I eat it without guilt. If I were just going on how I feel I would either overeat or constantly deprive myself because of worrying about going over my calories.
So for me logging is a very positive thing.
In a lot of ways, I feel exactly the same as you. It is like a puzzle, trying to get all my macros to fit within my calories and vice versa, but puzzles get tiring after a while!! Haha. Some days I just can't be bothered with both calories and macros and would prefer to just concentrate on one or the other. That said, I haven't given up yet and am still tracking both calories and macros.
I totally agree when it comes to not feeling guilty about eating something that doesn't necessarily fall within your 'diet', and I love that aspect of tracking macros and find that I have far fewer urges to binge, given that if I feel like something 'naughty', I have it and just count it towards my macros/calories.
It always feels like such an accomplishment when I get to the end of the day and my macros and calories match up almost perfectly, but getting there just seems like a hassle some times. AND I'm still trying to understand how, on some days, all of my macros can be bang on and yet my calories are a little under or over. Weird.
Anyway, I'm trucking on and will probably continue to do so. But it's nice to know I'm not the only one that finds it a bit of a struggle some days!! 0 -
I stopped counting cals earlier this year after about 2 years of doing so. I only do it occasionally every few months to check in. The transition takes time, but it helped that I am a creature of habit and frequently eat the same thing most days. If the counting is getting to you, try it out for a few weeks and see how you do 0
