Can you maintain your weight by not tracking food

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  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    No logging here. Maintaining just fine.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    I'm going to add in that if you're just logging without being mindful of forming better habits around food then it's not as likely that you would be able to maintain when not logging.

    But one could establish better eating habits while logging and potentially learn how to auto regulate (to some degree) your food intake through those habits so that perhaps one day you can get to a place that you can maintain without logging, or perhaps maintain with minimal or intermittent logging.
  • gelar93
    gelar93 Posts: 160
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    While tracking what you eat makes you more cautious about what you eat, if you track your food for a while, you get a good idea of how much you should be eating and then you can basically guesstimate and well if you feel a bit heavier, just work it out
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
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    Some people learn to get really good at "mindful eating" and just instinctively know when their limit is reached and when to stop eating. The only way to know for sure if you have this ability is to try to maintain on your own with no tracking for a month or two, and see what happens to your weight.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    Right now, my logging is especially helpful in making sure I eat ENOUGH calories. So it goes both ways.

    I maintained a healthy weight just eating and normal fitness until I was 40 and my metabolism slowed down. I was still okay until 50 when it really slowed down and I hit the top of the 'healthy' weight category.

    Lost it easily logging.

    I use my log now to help me stay mindful. I think I could maintain without it, but I would do it by weighing and going back to logging if my weight went up. And I just enjoy it.
  • themedalist
    themedalist Posts: 3,212 Member
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    I think it depends on the person. I now track my food, but I don't log my food. What's the difference? When I was in my weight-loss phase, I logged everything I ate using a food scale, measuring cups, and spoons. When I got to maintenance two years ago, I knew I couldn't keep doing that. For me, having a healthy relationship with food means not weighing and measuring everything. But I still wanted to track what I'm eating, to keep an eye on my macros and micros. So now I eyeball and guesstimate. Sure, it's not nearly as accurate calorie wise as before, but two years of maintaining my weight loss gives me a lot of confidence that this system is a good fit for me.
  • CleanUpWhatIMessedUp
    CleanUpWhatIMessedUp Posts: 206 Member
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    Sure you can. Millions of people maintain their weight every day and they don't track what they eat. Some people can and some people can't.
  • jeansuza
    jeansuza Posts: 148 Member
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    In the future I will try to do it, but not for a long time until I am confident that maintenance is deeply acquired. I have a lifetime of obesity and this won't be erased by magic! Got to learn and it will take time and efforts...
  • shayemimi
    shayemimi Posts: 203 Member
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    Weather you log on here or not, your body will log for you. If you eat over maintenance continually you will gain. Logging here (or anywhere) just keeps you mindful of where your at. If you can do that without using this tool, awesome. I like using the tool :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    I'm going to add in that if you're just logging without being mindful of forming better habits around food then it's not as likely that you would be able to maintain when not logging.

    as someone who doesn't log and has maintained for over a year, I just want to belabor this point. It is very important IMHO.
  • Jsoliz0525
    Jsoliz0525 Posts: 7 Member
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    I have tried tracking my food in the past...and it never fail that I gain weight! I do much better at maintaining/losing by just watching what I eat and not tracking.
    But as someone said in a previous post it's a personal preference...you have to find what works best for you
  • laynerich15
    laynerich15 Posts: 1,918 Member
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    You can Loose, Maintain or Gain with out logging- fitness didn't start with MFP.

    But I would ask this question.

    Why are you here?

    If you have a 100% handle on your weight and have a life style that support being healthy then why would anyone sign up to the internet to keep in shape?

    I guess what I am trying to say is "its your body/life" and you need to figure out weather out you have the knowledge or will power to maintain your weight/ fitness goals.
  • Tedebearduff
    Tedebearduff Posts: 1,155 Member
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    can you maintain your weight by not counting calories and tracking every bite you take as long as you keep up with exercise? When I was in my late teens and 20's andmid 20's .I would loose weight by just going to the gym without watching my diet.I would loose until I reach a healthy weight and just stop loosing and maintain my weight as long as I exercise without watching my diet and eating whatever I wanted.Everytime I get less active or stop going to the gym, I gain the weight back.Then again maybe my metabolism was high since I was younger. Now I am in my late 20's and I gained 2 5 pounds by not exercise and eating too much.So I started going to the gym again before I found this site and lost 10 pounds my own without counting calories. I even had 2 people at work told me that it looks like I am loosing weight.Then I found this site and have been tracking my food and still exercising. The weight is coming off even though the scale is barely moving .I am going to use my skinny jeans to see my progress. I will stop loosing when I can fit into them again. So back to my question, does anyone maintain without counting but keep up wth exercise?

    Yes I did for 5-6 months until I went on a bulk, just started counting calories again now that I finished my 10 month bulk and am back to cutting. When i hit 180 I will reduce cardio and continue to monitor what I eat but not weigh and measure everything.
  • lildee0216
    lildee0216 Posts: 16 Member
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    When I was tracking my food for a few months, I was in the best shape and my body was looking good. My progress pics showed and so did the scale. I went off the deep end....stopped logging in food but I still exercised! I still ran my half marathons and I went to the gym and I gained it all back. =(

    I'm back to the first week after a few months of not logging in. I think this is the best way for me to make sure I'm held accountable for the crappy foods I end up indulging in.

    -Diana
  • Siannah
    Siannah Posts: 456 Member
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    I have been maintaining for about 3 years. I weigh myself every now and then and whenever I go up more than about 3-4lbs, that's when I start tracking here again. As long as I'm at my normal weight, I don't log food/exercise.

    At the moment unfortunately I am slightly above my ideal weight, so I'm tracking and weighing food again and and log my exercise. But hopefully I can let it all relax again a bit more in a few weeks.
  • lavendy17
    lavendy17 Posts: 309 Member
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    I can.
    I do keep weighing myself periodically to see if there was an upward trend.

    Sorry to be annoying but can you please spell it L.O.S.E.?
    Loose is something that is the opposite of tight.
  • lavendy17
    lavendy17 Posts: 309 Member
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    I'm going to add in that if you're just logging without being mindful of forming better habits around food then it's not as likely that you would be able to maintain when not logging.

    But one could establish better eating habits while logging and potentially learn how to auto regulate (to some degree) your food intake through those habits so that perhaps one day you can get to a place that you can maintain without logging, or perhaps maintain with minimal or intermittent logging.

    YES YES YES very much so.
  • MindyG150
    MindyG150 Posts: 1,296 Member
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    I tried...now I'm working on 10 pounds....just saying :)
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    I think it depends on the person. I now track my food, but I don't log my food. What's the difference? When I was in my weight-loss phase, I logged everything I ate using a food scale, measuring cups, and spoons. When I got to maintenance two years ago, I knew I couldn't keep doing that. For me, having a healthy relationship with food means not weighing and measuring everything. But I still wanted to track what I'm eating, to keep an eye on my macros and micros. So now I eyeball and guesstimate. Sure, it's not nearly as accurate calorie wise as before, but two years of maintaining my weight loss gives me a lot of confidence that this system is a good fit for me.

    Interesting. This is almost exactly the change I made when I went to maintenance a year ago. I also stopped worrying about tiny things I knew added just 10 or 20 calories. Yeah, I ate both brocolli and cauliflauer mixed, but if I just log brocolli, it will be fine.

    Maintained for a year and now, without trying, I seem to have lost 5 pounds. That logging is helpful in making sure you eat ENOUGH. too.

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