Pre-Logging

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  • craftywitch_63
    craftywitch_63 Posts: 829 Member
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    I always pre-plan by logging in all my food for the day before. Being a compulsive overeater, I tend to obsess on food but if it's already all planned out, I stop worrying about it. Logging in every mouthful that I eat and eating on a set schedule keeps me from bingeing. Or at least, it has for the last 47 days, which is the longest streak I've ever had (I've been dealing with binge eating for >30 years, just sayin'.)

    If you're asking for ideas, though, the advice that I give is this: Try prelogging, try logging as you go and try never logging in. Whatever fits into your life and is sustainable for you long term - years, not days or months - that's what you should do.

    Good luck!!:flowerforyou:
  • RUNNING_AMOK_1958
    RUNNING_AMOK_1958 Posts: 268 Member
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    I do it all the time. That way I can make adjustments throughout the day if necessary. No surprises!
  • FoxyLifter
    FoxyLifter Posts: 965 Member
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    I pre-log whenever I can. Sundays include grocery shopping, meal prep, and pre-logging my breakfast, lunch, and 2 snacks for Monday thru Friday. It helps me stay on track.
  • misscem94
    misscem94 Posts: 114 Member
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    I do this most of the time. It prevents me from indulging, and it means I can work out my exercise times in advance.
  • thatpixichick
    thatpixichick Posts: 77 Member
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    I usually pre-log breakfast and lunch for weekdays, these are my super healthy veggie-full meals, and leave dinner and weekends open to play with and have what I fancy :smile:
  • sodakat
    sodakat Posts: 1,126 Member
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    When you say you log your coffee, do you mean you literally log in "coffee" or do you mean you log the creamer/sugar? I've only been logging the vanilla flavor creamer I use on my morning coffee as part of breakfast. Sometimes I do use the same creamer on my oatmeal so log it then also, but I've never logged coffee. Should I?
  • Azurite27
    Azurite27 Posts: 554 Member
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    I pre-log a majority of my food and then make adjustments through the day if needed. Otherwise I would never get enough protein.
  • salvationsdying
    salvationsdying Posts: 205 Member
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    My hubby works a second shift job so I normally find out what he would like for dinner before he leaves and logg it it. And if I pick I try to do so after breakfast when I'm full so I don't end up making this huge dinner that ill be full half way through but try and clear my plate anyways. It also helps me to plan it out in advance so I can log everything in and see what I can have for lunch and a snack (I'm normaly up at like 10am with my 2yr old and I'm up until sometimes 4 or 5 am with the hubby, cooking dinner and spending a little time. He doesn't get home until close to 2am) so I have to make my 1800 calories last 18hrs (like most people id guess) and still try and keep myself under that
  • jenna762001
    jenna762001 Posts: 27 Member
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    I nearly always pre log meals the night before or first thing in the morning so I have my calories and macros in check. I add in my snacks throughout the day.
  • dlionsmane
    dlionsmane Posts: 672 Member
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    Does anyone log the food they know for a fact they will eat the next day? Like if you pack your lunch, go head and log it for that day, even if you haven't eaten it yet but will later that day (does that make sense, I think I may be over-explaining) Has it helped or hurt your weight loss efforts or with binging?

    Thanks in advance
    ~Houston

    I log it ahead , usually at breakfast but sometimes for the next day, since I plan, pre-cook and package meals for the week. It helps me to know how many calories I may have 'left over' at the end of each day, so I know if I can have a treat or not if I find I want one during the day or after dinner. It's been working for me.
  • airangel59
    airangel59 Posts: 1,887 Member
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    99.9% of the time I pre log/pre plan the next day(s) meals. What I do is put a bunch of stuff into nite snacks, far more than I'd ever be eating and I use that as "place holders" for cals/carbs etc. I work from home and am a grazer when bored with sitting at the work desk, so this way I know in advance what I'll be eating and if I need to adjust thru the day, I just change/delete some of my late nite snacks.

    I've done this since day one and it works for me. I have pre planned and then totally changed an entire meal so nothing is set in stone till the end of the day of course. But this way I'm covered if I eat something I didn't plan on, or if I forgot to log something I ate earlier in the day, I'm still able to make adjustments and not go over my daily goals.
  • CarolinkaCjj
    CarolinkaCjj Posts: 622 Member
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    Prelog when it is something out of the norm. I often eat roughly the same thing for breakfast and lunch but dinner varies and dining out, I always plan ahead. Tonight is a wine tasting so I will do some prelogging to see where I will be (always add a full bottle of wine on these nights) so I can try to adjust my work out accordingly. Like airangel59, I try to overestimate so I have a little wiggle room. Keep healthy snacks in the house and bring them out - a whole pound bag of baby carrots may be 200 calories but it is a heck of a lot less than a sleeve of crackers (even if they are reduced fat).
    Find what works for you but the prelog can be a huge help.
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
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    I prelog my day out in the morning for the rest of the day. I find I stay on track more if I already mapped it out. :)
  • ScifiGirl1986
    ScifiGirl1986 Posts: 104 Member
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    I'm pretty new at this (only at it a week), but I like to pre-log because it helps me not to overeat. If I know what I want to have for my meals, then I won't deviate unless something drastic happens. It also tells me just how much I can snack during the day and if I can have that can of coke with dinner, especially if I pre-log my workout as well. Today, I know that I could basically have a 4th meal (not that I'm going to do that) because I'm going to burn over 600 calories later.
  • liftingandlipstick
    liftingandlipstick Posts: 1,857 Member
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    When you say you log your coffee, do you mean you literally log in "coffee" or do you mean you log the creamer/sugar? I've only been logging the vanilla flavor creamer I use on my morning coffee as part of breakfast. Sometimes I do use the same creamer on my oatmeal so log it then also, but I've never logged coffee. Should I?

    My Big coffe cup (14 oz) has about 5 cals in it, without cream or sugar. I always log it, just to be in the habit of logging everything. Just like I log it if I literally only have a bite of something. Or the flavor packs that go into my water. It's totally up to you, but somedays I'm on a coffee kick and have quite a bit of it, and it does add up, especially when you look at your week as a whole. So . . . up to you, but I say log it.

    ETA: I even log zero calorie food items, like I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray. Habit.
  • ejdp254
    ejdp254 Posts: 342 Member
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    I find if i don't pre log i get nasty suprises and find i've run out of calories before dinner, only happened a few times and i still had dinner!! But i'm more careful now and try and pre log as much as possible :smile:
  • Blokeypoo
    Blokeypoo Posts: 274 Member
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    I do my food the night before M-F and never deviate from it - no need as I make sure I have nice stuff in it! I did it 7 days a week when it wt loss but leave w/e's more open now I'm maintaining.

    It means I can see on the Fitbit site that I'm def being active enough to cover my food as the day goes on and also earn some extras for evening treats/snacks.

    I think pre-logging stops me making bad choices and also finding myself in the canteen at work faced with temptation. Better to have it all sorted and say "not on a weekday" to anything not planned for.
  • linsey0689
    linsey0689 Posts: 753 Member
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    When I was better at logging everything I did this regularly. Or tell myself this is all I will eat tonight and finish my diary for the day. I think it's good. Keep doing what you are doing if it works. Best of luck to you :)
  • Myhaloslipped
    Myhaloslipped Posts: 4,317 Member
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    I tried pre logging this week, and I just don't care for it. Somehow I ended up eating more calories than I normally do when I log as I go. However, my fridge is always stocked with healthy food, and I have a pretty good handle on the caloric content of the foods I eat on a regular basis.
  • CallMeCupcakeDammit
    CallMeCupcakeDammit Posts: 9,375 Member
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    I do that in the mornings on work days. While I'm drinking and logging my coffee, I'll log my lunch, too. I already brought it to work with my, so it won't change. Unless I don't eat all of it (which rarely happens) in which case it's easy enough to delete. I also have the same thing or slight variations of, so it's simply to just log it from my recent foods. (Tuna or chicken salad with crackers, if you're interested.)

    I don't do it for dinner or on weekends, though, because I usually don't know what I'll be having that far in advance. I keep several easy to fix healthy options around so I can just mix and match whatever sounds good at the time,

    What she said ^^^ Fits me to a T

    Me, too, except I can usually pre-log my dinners. Weekends right now are too up-in-the-air for me to pre-log. Only same day, though, I don't pre-log the next day.

    ETA that it helps me see what I've got for the day, and I can switch things around if I don't like how my macros look before I've eaten. Also, if I end up having to change my dinner plans, I know what I've got to work with.

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