Anyone on here doing this without logging? Or only logging certain foods?

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Replies

  • kcd1961
    kcd1961 Posts: 126 Member
    edited November 2014
    I think ultimately, you need to trust your experience. If it works, keep on doing it. If it doesn't, try something different. There is no doubt that accurate logging, whether by MFP or paper helps with weight loss. Most people fail because they are unwilling to do the discipline (including me for a long time). MFP (or other apps) make it as easy as it is going to get. Setting up meals and recipes is time consuming, but pays off in the long run. The phone app allows you to copy whole days, which you can modify aferwards if you need to (and that is coming for the web version). I think it's important to do it in detail at least for a few weeks in weight loss mode, then at maintenance, in order to learn what appropriate eating looks and feels like. And obviously do it any time you get off track.
  • Aiko831
    Aiko831 Posts: 9
    I log EVERYTHING... I sometimes have bad days... but I do "meal-prepping" early in the morning, or a day before to avoid binging... I change things as I go if it needs to be replaced.

    I do forget to click the "COMPLETE THIS ENTRY" button most days.. Not because I don't want to share, but I just forget about it... My diary is open, so if my friends want to see it they can give some insight.. NO need to hide what I eat- Am trying to eat better, and not starve myself because I don't want to gain all the weight back.. or lose muscle.
  • silentKayak
    silentKayak Posts: 658 Member
    I've gotten a little less strict with logging vegetables recently. I measure and log all high calorie foods - meat, eggs, cheese, oil, starches, even fruit. But I tend to make complicated meals with a LOT of ingredients. It's not unusual for my diary to have 10 ingredients for one meal. And I don't use recipes, so I can't just repeat them.

    So now I sometimes just put "one cup of mixed vegetables" for a stirfry or "small salad". I don't want to track "5 grams of garlic, 10 grams of green onion, 20 grams of kale, 30 grams of brocolli, etc".

    I don't track macros, just calories, so I think it's OK. It hasn't changed my progress at all.

    If it's working for you, then stick with it! If it's not, then consider tracking the high-fat foods as well so you don't have to guess how much you're eating during the day.
  • Mumzillah
    Mumzillah Posts: 15
    oxers wrote: »

    I'm back on the horse for the next few months while I take off my last twenty pounds, but after that, I think I'm gonna ease onto a plan more similar to yours :]

    Good luck with those 20lbs, I had around 14lbs to go this time last year, now everything has piled back on.

    I feel it's about me setting down habits for life. I can't imagine logging for life, or on holiday, or when someone else is cooking. Far easier for me to just know what i can or can't eat freely and make a choice. I am hoping this will work. if it doesn't I will just try something else.

  • beamer0821
    beamer0821 Posts: 488 Member
    i dont log my vegetables. i just track everything else. i don't know why just one less thing i have to look up! lol
  • silentKayak
    silentKayak Posts: 658 Member
    Delitebabe wrote: »
    I have tried logging everything but its just too difficult for me, I'm originally from West Africa and we cook without recipes and do not weight food per serving, everyone basically just dishes as much as they would like to eat. On occassions that I logged religiously, I had to just weight every ingredient then weight the whole food then divide into equal portions before throwing everything back into the pot after taking my portion, this is way too much work to do every single time.

    I do the same thing. I sometimes cook in one big pot. Then I count each ingredient separately, then estimate the portion size (did you eat a quarter or an eighth of the whole pot?) It helps if you dish yours up in the kitchen first so you can compare what you took to what's left, and try to get it right the first time instead of going back for seconds.
  • Mumzillah
    Mumzillah Posts: 15
    edited November 2014
    To clarify "freely eating" of oils and nuts. There is a difference between eating freely and eating liberally.

    Obviously I know these are high in calories, so I make afree choice to limit these, and I am confident I can to this without logging it.

    I would not liberally sprinkle oil over all my food, I rarely eat fried food anyway, and I know how much nuts I can reasonably eat. The most oil I would have in a day would be 2tblsp max as I only use oil in stir frys or to sautee onions, garlic, etc. I don't eat nuts every day -but as a vegan, having them as a snack when all that is available is chocolate bars and crisps (chips to those in the US) is a much better choice.
  • Mumzillah
    Mumzillah Posts: 15
    zarckon wrote: »
    I've gotten a little less strict with logging vegetables recently. I measure and log all high calorie foods - meat, eggs, cheese, oil, starches, even fruit. But I tend to make complicated meals with a LOT of ingredients. It's not unusual for my diary to have 10 ingredients for one meal. And I don't use recipes, so I can't just repeat them.

    So now I sometimes just put "one cup of mixed vegetables" for a stirfry or "small salad". I don't want to track "5 grams of garlic, 10 grams of green onion, 20 grams of kale, 30 grams of brocolli, etc".

    I don't track macros, just calories, so I think it's OK. It hasn't changed my progress at all.

    If it's working for you, then stick with it! If it's not, then consider tracking the high-fat foods as well so you don't have to guess how much you're eating during the day.

    Yes, I will keep doing it this way for four weeks. If it doesn't work, I will try something else. Even though I don't have a lot of fat/nuts in my diet, I may have to consider tracking it. I hear what you say about the food you cook, as the same applies to me and no two meals are the same as I just use what is in the fridge/cupboard. At one point I was looking up calorie count for chilli flakes - and I promised myself that I would find a better way ;)
  • Mumzillah
    Mumzillah Posts: 15
    zarckon wrote: »
    Delitebabe wrote: »
    I have tried logging everything but its just too difficult for me, I'm originally from West Africa and we cook without recipes and do not weight food per serving, everyone basically just dishes as much as they would like to eat. On occassions that I logged religiously, I had to just weight every ingredient then weight the whole food then divide into equal portions before throwing everything back into the pot after taking my portion, this is way too much work to do every single time.

    I do the same thing. I sometimes cook in one big pot. Then I count each ingredient separately, then estimate the portion size (did you eat a quarter or an eighth of the whole pot?) It helps if you dish yours up in the kitchen first so you can compare what you took to what's left, and try to get it right the first time instead of going back for seconds.

    I used to find the whole eating experience very stressy when I had to do that though. Plus I remember times when my husband would cook if I was late home, and i would quiz him about the contents of the meal, so I could estimate exactly how much I was eating...... obsessive much?
  • aloranger7708
    aloranger7708 Posts: 422 Member
    I "quick add" calories and it has worked great for me. I lost 50 lbs just doing quick add.
  • silentKayak
    silentKayak Posts: 658 Member
    My husband counts calories and macros, but I do all the cooking. As I cook, I write down an ingredients list for him with exact or approximate weights. I don't do the calculations for him, though.

    It's a pain in the neck but I want to support him.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Mumzillah wrote: »
    I am not logging everything, only the things that have a high carb and sugar content specifically, and have allocated a daily amount of calories for those foods.

    So I am logging all bread, pasta, noodles, grains, sugar or things containing sugar, alcohol, snacky food, fruit, starchy vegetables.

    The foods I will eat freely are non-starchy vegetables, beans and pulses, tofu, nuts, oils (olive oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil), salad ingredients (lettuce, tomato, cucumber, etc). (I am a vegan). And when I say "freely", of course I am aware that nuts and oil contain a shitload of calories.

    I would be interested to hear from people who for whatever reason are not logging, or only using MFP to log specific things. I am trying this because I think it might work for me. I know some people may not agree with this and I would urge you to continue to do what is right for you and wish you well ;)

    I dont log. I didn't log when I lost. I logged briefly when I started having menopausal symptoms.
    I limit refined grains, starchy carbs, added sugars, and some fruit. I try to avoid heavily refined convenience carbohydrates. They don't taste good, and they aren't worth the dietary hassle, imho. YMMV

    I don't limit greens, proteins, dairy, legumes, fats etc.
    I count nuts. I watch liquid calories from alcohol. That's pretty much it.

  • Mumzillah
    Mumzillah Posts: 15
    edited November 2014
    Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »
    Mumzillah wrote: »
    I am not logging everything, only the things that have a high carb and sugar content specifically, and have allocated a daily amount of calories for those foods.

    So I am logging all bread, pasta, noodles, grains, sugar or things containing sugar, alcohol, snacky food, fruit, starchy vegetables.

    The foods I will eat freely are non-starchy vegetables, beans and pulses, tofu, nuts, oils (olive oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil), salad ingredients (lettuce, tomato, cucumber, etc). (I am a vegan). And when I say "freely", of course I am aware that nuts and oil contain a shitload of calories.

    I would be interested to hear from people who for whatever reason are not logging, or only using MFP to log specific things. I am trying this because I think it might work for me. I know some people may not agree with this and I would urge you to continue to do what is right for you and wish you well ;)

    I dont log. I didn't log when I lost. I logged briefly when I started having menopausal symptoms.
    I limit refined grains, starchy carbs, added sugars, and some fruit. I try to avoid heavily refined convenience carbohydrates. They don't taste good, and they aren't worth the dietary hassle, imho. YMMV

    I don't limit greens, proteins, dairy, legumes, fats etc.
    I count nuts. I watch liquid calories from alcohol. That's pretty much it.
    So you are doing the same as I am then, apart from the nuts.

    I have lost three pounds since I weighed myself on Monday and have lost that horrible bloated about to burst feeling.

  • workout_ninja
    workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
    I dont log everything - i still weigh my food though, I logged religiously for over a year so i know roughly how i eat. When i make bolognese or chilli, i still like to weigh my pasta and rice as i simply cant eyeball it - i always want more. Ive been maintaining pretty well for a couple of months doing this.
  • girlinahat
    girlinahat Posts: 2,956 Member
    I don't log because I find I get stressed about it, and end up 'rebelling' about what I allow myself. It was the same when I tried to give up smoking in the past. I'd do really well and then have a devil on my shoulder telling me that I could do what I like and didn't need rules.

    I gave up smoking by not fighting myself about it.

    I'm losing very slowly, by paying attention to what I eat and asking every time I eat whether I need it, or whether I just want it. I don't mind the losing slowly - because I'd rather eat an unrestricted diet (ie. all things, just less). I wasn't losing when I logged.

    But different techniques work differently for people and for some, logging is essential.



  • meryl135
    meryl135 Posts: 321 Member
    edited November 2014
    I try to log everything, though I'm not always successful. However, I have reset my macros to 40% Carbs and 30% each of Fat and Protein (that works out to 120g of carbs, 40g of fats and 90g for proteins for 1200Cal per day) and I also track sugar and fibre separately.

    I am dysglycemic (meaning my blood sugar fluctuates really easily) and have a strong family history of diabetes, which I'm trying to avoid. Tracking carbs, in the context of my protein and fat content helps me regulate my blood sugar much better than before. What I mean by that is that I always feel worse (head spinning, anxious, craving more sweets, typical hypoglycemic symptoms) when I have a meal high in carbs and low in proteins/fats/fibre.

    For the astute among you, my macros do mean I typically eat more paleo-like (I do eat legumes, as there is lots of research to support their positive role in preventing diabetes) and I do my best to stick to a clean, wholefoods diet. Which really helps keep my blood sugar level and helps me lose weight.

    Track your carbs and see if you can spot a correlation with any cravings or a stall in weight loss when you have a high-carb day.
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