How do *you* track your foods/fluids when you have the flu?

TannaBanana27
TannaBanana27 Posts: 18 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am just over 3 weeks into tracking my foods on MFP and I have come down with a little bug or something. I've tried searching the forums for old posts on 'vomiting' and such and I have to be honest----I had no idea those kinds of things went on! (shivers)

SInce this is just part of life, and I suspect will happen once in a while I'd like your opinion. The most important thing is rest and plenty of fluids like you would normally do....but do you even bother to track the saltine crackers and nibbles of toast and banana? or do you just skip it for a couple days? (I hope I posted in the right 'section lol)

Replies

  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,097 Member
    I guess it would depend on whether I had the energy to log. When I've had the honest-to-goodness flu (not just a bad cold), I don't think I would have wanted to expend the mental and physical energy on going to my computer and logging what I was eating. When I've had the flu, it's been all I could do to keep myself hydrated and, as you say, have a few bites of bland things like saltines and dry toast. Under those conditions, I think lying in bed and resting would be more important than logging.

    That said, once I started to recover, I might go back and take a stab at logging as best as I could remember. I just like having the best numbers I can so I can calculate my actual TDEE, not the TDEE some online calculator predicts for me based on population averages.
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    Just eat normally until it passes, don't even worry about tracking, worry about getting better. Once you've recovered, begin tracking again.
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
    If I'm genuinely sick to the point where I'm in bed all day and/or pooping/puking most of the day, then I wouldn't bother logging. Since I'm unlikely to eat enough anyways, there's no point. Go back to eating normally once you feel better, or even eat a bit extra if desired to make up for the previous lack of food. Everything balances out in the end anyways.
  • Hell_Flower
    Hell_Flower Posts: 348 Member
    I was sick last week and I did log, but I gave myself a little more leeway and I was sat in front of a computer all day due to work deadlines I couldn't really stay home.

    Sometimes illness makes you lose your appetite, sometimes you could eat the very table top off. I wanted to eat the very table top off last week! I just made sure that when I went over (usually only 400 calories a day), it was with nutrient dense food - lots of fruit and green veggies in particular. It was mainly my normal food, but bigger portions and then some snacks (fruit and fruit juice i especially) which I don't usually have.

    I gained what I thought was 2lb in 5 days, but I weighed myself this morning and was 3lbs back down the way. You retain a lot of water when sick and, I feel anyway, that your body burns up a bit more fuel when it is fighting infection. So no gym and eating significantly more than usual and still a pound down! But the important thing is to get better :)
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    I would worry about getting better and not bother with tracking while I was vomiting.
  • joepage612
    joepage612 Posts: 179 Member
    I would stop MFP and all dieting until you recover. The flu can be very serious.
  • misskarne
    misskarne Posts: 1,765 Member
    I just completely ignore MFP when I'm sick. There's nothing you can do about being sick. Just deal with it, let your body do what it does to get better, and go back on track when you're well again.

    Don't push yourself. Let your body do what it does.
  • TannaBanana27
    TannaBanana27 Posts: 18 Member
    Thanks for the advice everyone.
    Just a fun little update...after being up most of the night with the flu I woke up to our cat delivering kittens!!! It's the first time for both of us and boy I feel just as tired and wiped out as she is looking! We thought she was acting 'funny' the last 48 hours but who knew!?

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