I don't want to keep track of everything!
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so don't do it
find another way that works for you to maintain a calorie defecit
or stay fat
really that's the choices0 -
I'd prefer to not have to count calories but... it just works. I log, I stay under my calories, and I lose. I can't really argue with that. Honestly I've gotten so used to logging it doesn't take much time any more. And I'm a creature of habit so most days I just need to click "copy to today'' from yesterday's diary.0
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Alatariel75 wrote: »Losing weight is hard. Being fat is hard. Choose your hard.
This.
That being said - I felt the same way. It took a week or so before I realised it's not THAT much of an issue. MFP does most of the work, I just tell it what I've eaten and it tells me how much fat/carb/sugar that is. It's a few minutes a day.0 -
booty4days365 wrote: »The idea of written down everything I eat and counting calories, carbs and all that seems confusing to me. Having to add everything up is taking away time to eat more. I always think one more bite won't hurt and here I am now 225. Has anyone tried weight loss surgery? Why can't I stop eating????
Weight loss surgery patient here ... or I would have been. My Weight Loss Surgeon's office assigned MyFitnessPal as homework because after the surgery, you have to track your food. I did very well on MyFitnessPal (down 72 lbs. so far) that my surgery has been postponed indefinitely.
Log your food. It takes 5 minutes and has so many benefits.
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"funchords wrote: »
I did very well on MyFitnessPal (down 72 lbs. so far) that my surgery has been postponed indefinitely.
This is AMAZING - well done!0 -
I don't think the problem is the tracking, I think the problem is your perspective on dieting. You can eat a lot of the foods you currently enjoy, you just need to have less of those and add in more healthy stuff. Tracking can be a very valuable tool in this regard because, as you've poitned out, it makes you more aware of what and how much you're eating and then you can start making changes.
Your profile is private so I've no idea what you eat but let's say you have frosted flakes with whole milk and a banana and toast with butter for breakfast. A lot of that is high sugar carbs and will likely leave you hungry. Protein and healthy fats will keep you full longer and having several small meals rather than a few large meals may also help (note for nitpickers, I said "may"). Try having a couple eggs with wholewheat toast then have some yogurt and fruit a couple hours later. For dinner, fill your plate up with more veg and less pasta/potato and go with leaner meats.
Best of luck!0 -
I started my weight loss journey because my doctor and I thought I should have weight loss surgery. I have serious heart problems so I easily qualified. I started the whole process of exams, psychiatrists, etc. My BMI was 45. (Most doctors insist on a BMI of at least 40 to perform surgery, unless you have a serious weight-related disease and then they will drop it to 35 BMI).
After losing 8 pounds by just being careful, I finally got to see the surgeon. She said that even after surgery, I would have to stick to a 1200 calories a day diet and walk every day. Additionally, I would have to take the myriad of pills I take for my heart and RA one at a time with 15 minutes in between and I could not drink anything with meals. (Those were harder to accept than the exercise and 1200 calorie a day). I was going to have sleeve surgery (as the surgeons here aren't doing lap band much anymore). I asked her if there was a website that would help to discipline myself and she told me about MFP.
I left thinking that I would need to try the 1200 calories a day and the exercise since there was no use to committing to surgery if I could not do what I needed to do afterwards. So mid-January, I came here with a BMI still at 43.5 and I buckled down. However, I was still planning on having the surgery.
As I limited myself to 1200 calories a day, started walking every day as much as I could (which wasn't far back then), logging here everyday, and making friends, I really started to lose weight. However, I also kept going to groups and check-ins in preparation for surgery. Well, I stalled that. By mid-June (only 5.5 months after coming here), my BMI was down below 35 and I no longer qualified for surgery -- even for health reasons!
10 months later, I have lost a total of 78 pounds (70 of those here at MFP)! I only have 1.5 pounds to get out of the obese range!
The moral to this story is: Even with weight loss surgery, you must work very hard. You must limit your intake and you must exercise. So, why not try those things now? Logging helps us realize how much we are actually eating.
With that said, weight loss surgery IS right for some people. It is the impetus they need, but for it to work, it still needs dedication. Recent studies show that it can really have a positive affect on diabetes in just 48 hours after surgery. They don't know why, but it isn't the weight loss for it to be that quickly. However, surgery is expensive, time consuming, painful, a 6-week recovery and you should still end up here at MFP post-surgery to track calories and record exercise!
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You can count calories, or you can go strict some other way (low carb, Dukan...) but if you're going to lose weight you're going to need to create a calorie deficit.... it's not easy. if it was, the world wouldn't have so many overweight people. If you want it, you'll make it happen. good luck!0
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booty4days365 wrote: »The idea of written down everything I eat and counting calories, carbs and all that seems confusing to me. Having to add everything up is taking away time to eat more. I always think one more bite won't hurt and here I am now 225. Has anyone tried weight loss surgery? Why can't I stop eating????
If you honestly, no kidding, find tracking that much of a burden there is a solution that can still help contain eating, and while weight loss is slow as hell, it does work.
The No-S Diet.
It's not for everyone, but the real power of it is that instead of tracking macro or micro ANYTHING, it's utterly and completely about habit.
It might work for you. While yes, you do have to reduce your intake to lose, no question, for some people the level of tracking done at MFP isn't going to cut it.
This ain't a quick fix. It's about long-term habit change, but it's not very intrusive, so might work for you.
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So don't, and see what happens. I'm so thankful for my friend who directed me here three weeks into my journey. Otherwise, I probably would have given up a long time ago.0
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Keeping track and recording it in MFP is not that bad. Truthfully, I probably cut out about 1500-2000 calories a week using it. I'd have a sandwich, which is not bad, but I'd have a bag of chips, which would add 200-300+ calories to the meal. Cutting that out (and I don't even really miss it, to tell the truth), and not snacking as much has made a *huge* difference. Adding exercise on top of that, and I've lost 10 pounds in 2 months. And I still eat regular, normal meals that I'd been eating.
If you're motivated, you can do it. You've gotta change your attitude and be accountable. Otherwise, you'll look back on 225 as when you were 'thin' one day.0 -
So don't, and see what happens. I'm so thankful for my friend who directed me here three weeks into my journey. Otherwise, I probably would have given up a long time ago.
You're so right! She can choose to NOT calorie count. She can choose another method. And, in 5 years, her chances of keeping the weight off are as good as any of ours.0 -
I think a simple solution for you would be to start with setting specific windows of a day that you're allowed to eat within. See how that goes with out tracking (keep tabs on your weight once a week for a month or so - if it goes up, then next you reduce portion sizes, down then you know you're on the right track and you make changes later when your weight loss stalls).booty4days365 wrote: »michellemybelll wrote: »if you don't want to count calories, don't do it. no one's holding a gun to your head. it's definitely not confusing. it's actually about as simple as it gets. it is also a very affective way to control intake and aids in weight loss for many people.
I don't want to count BECAUSE I would be writing all day long since I eat all day. I need to come face to.face with how much I'm actually eating. A little here and a little there adds up. I'm in denial. I never thought I would be addicted to food! I'm 225 now and I'm scared. I need to try harder. Thank you
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"You can't manage what you can't measure." - W. Edwards Deming0
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Okay - assuming this is not a troll.............
Come on - you're acting like it takes all day to log your meals.
It takes me about 5 minutes a day to log -
It keeps me on track, I've been in maintenance for a year.
Sometimes it takes a little bit of work (i.e. - 5 minutes of logging, plus the effort of eating well and exercising) to achieve something...................!
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trinatrina1984 wrote: »I'm suspicious of this thread but I'll go with you for now.
No one is making you do anything, to be quite honest you don't sound as if you are ready to start taking control of your life all i'm hearing are excuses and searching for quick fixes.
If you are serious then try it for a few days so you can actually see how much you are consuming, it definitely helped me to think about what I was eating.
If you do not believe another word written on this thread, believe this......WEIGHTLOSS SURGERY DOES NOT MAKE WEIGHT LOSS EASY!!!!!!!!!!!!! You still have to count calories and exercise, etc. WLS is a tool to be used exactly like MFP. There is no magic elixer. Otherwise, there would be no need for WLS or MFP. Suck it up Buttercup!!!!! You either use the tools available to you to the best of your ability or continue eating yourself to death. The choice is yours and yours alone. No one can do it for you. No one can want it for you. Hello personal accountabilty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-1 -
that which gets measured, gets improved.
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booty4days365 wrote: »... counting calories and working out seems easier. I mean it's not that hard... I need self control. I have a little boy and he should be the reason also however I continue to eat. I'm glad I joined this.sight. less time on Facebook and more time with you.guys.... thank you
That's the right idea. And I personally agree with you about less Facebook more MFP! What we feed our minds, motivates our habits. I think I'll do the same.0 -
Using MFP to track your eating habits is eye opening and it's dead simple. Like, I honestly couldn't think of an easier way to do some of it. If you don't want to do it, I think you're in the wrong place. P.S. Weight Loss Surgery isn't a walk in the park and requires even more intense monitoring of your food intake. Oh, and it's a life long commitment.
Some people's kids. *sigh*0
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