pre-logging: motivating or an opportunity to let things slide (sabotage)
4leighbee
Posts: 1,275 Member
I hear lots of well-respected folks in MFP offering the advice to pre-log your day. I think, for me, part of the motivation of staying on track is sitting at the computer a few times a day and holding myself accountable for the choices I have already made. If I pre-log, I think I might be inclined to take a don't-tell-me-what-to-do attitude and I'd be changing my pre-logged stuff around every time. Also ... and I'm not a cheater ... if I've pre-logged my day, an extra handful of M&Ms could be more easily brushed aside as an "ooops..." ... what do you think? Just curious to hear from the pre-loggers who love it and maybe also those who tried it and found it wasn't for them.
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I find pre-logging helps me know what my planned calories will be and make sure that I don't accidentally go over.0
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Do you ever find yourself going in and making changes midday?0
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I just do it so i know what to eat tomorrow and wont have to log tomorrow0
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It's 9:30 am here, and I pre-logged my day an hour ago.
For me, it helps keep me accountable, like this is what I'm eating today and that's that! It also allows me to tweak things if I'm over or under. Right now I'm 80 calories over but I'll make that up with exercise plus a tonn more by days end. Obviously on days I'm not going to exercise I would have had to subtract a food to get me down to my goal calories.
I'm not saying i eat perfectly to exactly what my diary says, some days I'll add chocolate or whatever, but I do try to stick to the plan as best I can
Either everything i have just written has helped or confused you lol
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sometimes i delete some things or add it doesnt rlly matter0
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Sometimes at lunch I will pre-log my dinner if I've already planned it out. But usually I don't pre-log unless I've weighed everything before hand. If you try it and find that you're snacking more to rebel against yourself then definitely don't do it, UNLESS you're staying within your calorie goal. That brings me to my next point, if pre-logging gives you an idea of what you could (or could not) have left over, then maybe you can plan your snacks or meals better around what you want/need. Am I making sense? lol. Try it out and see if it works for you!0
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it's good as a device for meal planning more generally0
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christinev297 wrote: »It's 9:30 am here, and I pre-logged my day an hour ago.
For me, it helps keep me accountable, like this is what I'm eating today and that's that! It also allows me to tweak things if I'm over or under. Right now I'm 80 calories over but I'll make that up with exercise plus a tonn more by days end. Obviously on days I'm not going to exercise I would have had to subtract a food to get me down to my goal calories.
I'm not saying i eat perfectly to exactly what my diary says, some days I'll add chocolate or whatever, but I do try to stick to the plan as best I can
Either everything i have just written has helped or confused you lol
No - it makes perfect sense. I might try it for a week to see how it goes. I'm kind of sneaky and anti-authority (authority = myself here), lol ... so I'm just not sure it's the best option for me. It might be a personality thing - or it might really be the best way and I should give it a shot. I appreciate the responses! 0 -
I'm still pretty new to the game, here, but I sometimes do pre-log (especially if I know I have a particularly tricky day coming up). On those occasions, it kind of gives me an idea of what options I have within my calorie goal, which in turn lets me decide if I want to allocate some extra calories that I'll make up for at another point during the week. With that said, I do frequently make adjustments during the days that I pre-log to make sure I'm staying on track with what actually happens as well as my actual hunger levels (sometimes I end up not wanting much for breakfast, for example, and thus don't take in as much as I planned, or sometimes I'll unexpectedly be ravenous in the middle of the day and need to account for an extra snack). So it's definitely not a set-in-stone situation for me, but it can be a useful tool as well. But that's just me. *shrug*0
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I make changes if I need to -- but I also don't map out the entire day. Breakfast, lunch & morning snack are logged, because I have to bring them with me to work. But, if something in the cafeteria looks good, and fits my calories, I might change things. I don't always know what I'm having for dinner, but by the time I have to make it, I know how many calories I have to work with, because I know early on how much I will have eaten.0
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I make changes if I need to -- but I also don't map out the entire day. Breakfast, lunch & morning snack are logged, because I have to bring them with me to work. But, if something in the cafeteria looks good, and fits my calories, I might change things. I don't always know what I'm having for dinner, but by the time I have to make it, I know how many calories I have to work with, because I know early on how much I will have eaten.
This leads me to another question - those of us with predictable schedules (office workers, etc.), how often are you on MFP? I keep mine up all day as a constant reminder. That sounds a bit obsessive and unsustainable, so I don't see myself doing that once I hit goal weight. At some point, we just know ... or do we? How long do we carry on like this ... There are so many of us who must by now be in maintenance. Are they/you logging faithfully daily as well?0 -
I pre-log everything each morning, and I feel like I'm doing myself a favor by doing that. I get to plan out a bunch of food for me to have, so I know I've made really good choices that let me eat as much food as possible (to me, it seems really disappointing to have chocolate or some other high-calorie snack which would replace a much larger volume of delicious low-calorie food). I actually feel like I get to eat tonnes of food this way, rather than just leaving it until the afternoon/evening to total everything up and then realize that I have no calories left for the day.
I think that's what helps me not feel that "you can't tell me what to do!" thing - I actually feel like I'm beating the system, so I work with myself and stick to my plans.0 -
christinev297 wrote: »It's 9:30 am here, and I pre-logged my day an hour ago.
For me, it helps keep me accountable, like this is what I'm eating today and that's that! It also allows me to tweak things if I'm over or under. Right now I'm 80 calories over but I'll make that up with exercise plus a tonn more by days end. Obviously on days I'm not going to exercise I would have had to subtract a food to get me down to my goal calories.
I'm not saying i eat perfectly to exactly what my diary says, some days I'll add chocolate or whatever, but I do try to stick to the plan as best I can
Either everything i have just written has helped or confused you lol
No - it makes perfect sense. I might try it for a week to see how it goes. I'm kind of sneaky and anti-authority (authority = myself here), lol ... so I'm just not sure it's the best option for me. It might be a personality thing - or it might really be the best way and I should give it a shot. I appreciate the responses!
I like routine and predictability, which is probably why it works for me. Plus I have the same breakfast ( which is 6 cups of tea with 600ml milk all up) and lunch everyday, which makes logging my days even more simple.
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Certainly there's no hard and fast rules and you should do what you think works best for you.
Having said that, pre-logging helps to prevent going over because you can see whether or not you've gone over before you actually eat the food.
Logging after you eat, for many people, gives them the opportunity to go over.
At the very least it may be helpful to pre-log the last meal of the day to make sure it doesn't put you over.
Also, it's fine to pre-log and then change things if you decide you are going to eat something different -- especially if you're making minor changes like switching the vegetable choice or whatever. But the habit of pre-logging can still be helpful as a preventative measure to stop from going over.0 -
if i make a plan i stick to it.
but i'm not so rigid that i can't make a change on the fly if something comes up.0 -
Certainly there's no hard and fast rules and you should do what you think works best for you.
Having said that, pre-logging helps to prevent going over because you can see whether or not you've gone over before you actually eat the food.
Logging after you eat, for many people, gives them the opportunity to go over.
At the very least it may be helpful to pre-log the last meal of the day to make sure it doesn't put you over.
Also, it's fine to pre-log and then change things if you decide you are going to eat something different -- especially if you're making minor changes like switching the vegetable choice or whatever. But the habit of pre-logging can still be helpful as a preventative measure to stop from going over.
Bam!! You just said everything I was trying to say, in a more concise way
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Pre-logging keeps you accountable!
Like some of the people said above, 1. They know what they will eat for the day, 2. They won't have to log during the day...etc!
And just because you prelogged doesn't mean that you're going to max out your calories either!! I often have 300-400 calories at the end of the day that allows me to add stuff during the day, like M&M's.
I often change my portion sizes at dinner depending on the amount of calories left over too!
Like last night, I was scheduled to have a slice of pizza and a salad for dinner, but I had enough calories left from the day that I could add another slice and still not go over!
Just have to make sure your "OOOPS!" are occasional and a ritual! It can be self defeating when you are not reaching your goals. Just something to think about.
Good luck with your journey!0 -
I make changes if I need to -- but I also don't map out the entire day. Breakfast, lunch & morning snack are logged, because I have to bring them with me to work. But, if something in the cafeteria looks good, and fits my calories, I might change things. I don't always know what I'm having for dinner, but by the time I have to make it, I know how many calories I have to work with, because I know early on how much I will have eaten.
This leads me to another question - those of us with predictable schedules (office workers, etc.), how often are you on MFP? I keep mine up all day as a constant reminder. That sounds a bit obsessive and unsustainable, so I don't see myself doing that once I hit goal weight. At some point, we just know ... or do we? How long do we carry on like this ... There are so many of us who must by now be in maintenance. Are they/you logging faithfully daily as well?
I'm in school, so I can't have it up all too often. In the morning I pack my pre-logged food for the day, and my prepped dinner if I have late classes/work. Then that's what I eat. On the weekends I have to be a bit more flexible. Even on my higher calorie day I tend to pre-log, just to make sure that I will hit my calorie/macro goals with what I intend to eat. That way I know what kind of wiggle room I have for snacks and whatnot.
If it doesn't work for you, don't do it. There is no right or wrong, just figuring out what strategy gives you the best adherence.
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I was pre logging for months, but I hit a stand still in my weight loss. I cannot trick my brain, it won't allow me too, and I would log everything for the day. Doing so, I would know what I can eat, but I would eat all my snacks and things so quickly just because I was bored or whatever, and after dinner through he night when I really should have kept them for, I was messing up and by then it was just '*kitten* it' and I would eat whatever. So now, I haven't been logging for about two weeks. If I do, its around dinner time and I put it in just to see more accurately what I have left. I've been going through the days calorie counting in head, and it's making me cautious of what I should pick up because I have no sheet telling me what I can eat so Im forcing myself to eat more carefully, and to hold off longer so I dont eat when bored. I round up when I calorie count in head, so if I log it later during the day, I usually have those extra calories now. I'll spread some jam on and english muffin. It's about 130 calories, but I'll count 150 in my head since its easier to add onto. I've finally started dropping again, and for that matter I've been switching up my food more too so I'm not eating the same things over constantly. Plus, when calorie counting in head, I don't feel as obsessive about counting calories, like I might use this site till the end of my days. I'm forcing myself to rely on me rather than a website. Pre logging was good for a long while, but I have to take a break from it right now, and it's working.0
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Thanks, everyone - always helpful.0
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I don't prelog the whole day; it would probably feed a need to rebel. I do, however, frequently review the day late afternoon, make a decision about dinner and any further snacks, based on calories still available, and sometimes log them in advance so I'll stay with those choices. 0
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I only recently started pre-logging and I love it. I used to be annoyed by people's "pre-logging" answers and posts, probably for the same reason you mentioned. But now I think it's fun...and I can pre-log those M&Ms or ice cream I want and work around it. Sometimes I change up my lunch a bit, or I leave 100 calories to play around with here and there. Anyway, it gives me something to do on my train ride to work.0
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I pre-logged the other day, and it really helped me stay focused. I teach Kinder and there is some candy in the treasure box. When I hadn't pre-logged, I was like "oh, it's just xyz calories, I'll be fine" and found I cut it close by the end of the night. When I pre-logged, I saw that I didn't have much wiggle room left and wanted to save that wiggle room in case I was still hungry at the end of the night. I think I am going to try doing that more. My breakfast, lunch and afternoon snacks are predictable, it's dinner that's going to be tricky. I usually don't know what I'm going to have until it is time to cook it, lol.0
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I agree and appreciate that everyone seems to agree there is no one right way to do this.
I am surprised at myself a bit that I am so connected during the day with MFP. I never saw my weight loss as something I needed support for ... uber-independent ... but I was wrong. I need no motivation to train - and I train hard, always pushing. But my diet has been just awful my whole life - just doing what I want, when I want - no discipline in that arena. My 40s have been a bit of a wake-up call, I guess. Anyway, MFP has provided for me unexpected support and guidance when I didn't even know I needed it. That was a bit off-topic. Hope they don't put me in "jail" for it.
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Good grief - could pre-logging make me a better mother, haha! Perhaps a bit dramatic? I might actually know what we're having for dinner before 20 minutes before we eat it ...0
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Capt_Apollo wrote: »
Whoa. Could you come run my life, please? K thx.0 -
Capt_Apollo wrote: »
Whoa. Could you come run my life, please? K thx.
haha, and then mine :bigsmile:
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I prelofgged most of the week. I may not stick to it completely but I can always change it and the prelogging helps me stick to what I've logged meaning what is in the fridge/freezer and helps ensure I've hit my macros.0
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I always pre log my food the night before or in the morning. and I meal Prep every sunday so I know what I am working with calorie wise. I pre plan ad pre log about 80% of my calories and leave the "treat" or "snack" ones open to what my taste buds want. That allows me to be in control but also have some flexibility in the snacks I want. I would say 95% of the time I stay to what I logged and about 5% of the time I change my mind when the meal comes and I go in and change it to what I actually had. No matter if I pre log or not when I hit complete on my diary it always reflects what I ate. If it didn't the only person I would be cheating is myself 0
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