Transitioning from MyFitnessPal

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TraceyLynn089
TraceyLynn089 Posts: 11 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am a long time user of MyFitness Pal. I started a few years ago and successfully lost 75 pounds with the help of the app. I have been able to keep the weight off for over a year now. Since starting my weight loss journey I have become a runner and have taken an interest in nutrition. Over the past couple years I have read article after article about eating right, eating healthy, how many calories I should eat as a runner, what are the best snacks...etc etc etc. Needless to say, I know how to eat healthy at this point. I know what a healthy portion is. I know that I can indulge as long as I balance it out. Balance and moderation is key. This all being said. Why cant I seem to transition from using MyFitnessPal!? I know that counting every single calorie is not necessary and to a point not even healthy. Yes, it is extremely helpful when you are actively trying to lose weight and as a learning tool to see how many calories are in portions of foods, but I am past this point. It has almost become an unhealthy control in my life. I tried transitioning from inputting every single thing into the app and I felt out of control and even in doing so, after using for so long I know about how many calories are in everything so I found myself just adding them all up in my mind as I went anyway. Has anyone else gone through this mental transition and have any tips?
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Replies

  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    I did this the first time I went on a diet break. It took me three days to "stop calculating in my head". If you can't force yourself to walk away from it, (start with a week, when you just eat without thinking about "how many calories" are in something), then you might need to talk to someone.
  • racingislife97
    racingislife97 Posts: 40 Member
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    The easiest way to convince yourself that you don't need tech items is to go on a vacation without them. Spend a week or two without internet access, you'll be surprised how quickly the craving for it goes away, jsut like the cravings for soda, or doughnuts did a few years ago.
  • TraceyLynn089
    TraceyLynn089 Posts: 11 Member
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    Thank you for the suggestions! I gave it a shot for a week and it did feel good to not log every single bite into the app. However, an equal part of me felt out of control and I felt like I would start gaining the weight back. I think I just need to give myself more time to adjust.
  • Sophsmother
    Sophsmother Posts: 83 Member
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    I can't tell you how many people have told me that MFP is a gateway to an eating disorder.

    When I read on here how people knock every other way of eating as unsustainable for life, I cringe because they clearly think that weighing and measuring every solid and liquid that enters their body is something they should do for life. That's an eating disorder in the making and such unhealthy thinking.

    MFP is a tool, just like Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig ... Like them, it's not sustainable for life and shouldn't be thought of that way. but you don't need it anymore and everybody's goal on MFP should be to not need it.

    Transition slowly and trust that you have learned to intuitively eat well. If you get off track, you can start counting again. It's scary to give up something that served you well, but not doing it may lead to something unhealthy.

    Awesome job!
  • bwogilvie
    bwogilvie Posts: 2,130 Member
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    There are many responses to this question. I'll just mention a couple. One is the "intuitive eating" approach (Google it). Another is John Walker's take, in The Hacker's Diet: if your appetite is "broken" (in the sense that it doesn't correspond to what you need to maintain your weight), then you might need to control it externally for the rest of your life.

    I like Walker's take because he does emphasize that you can learn what reasonable portions are, with some attention. And because he notes that, as long as you weigh yourself daily and calculate the exponentially smoothed moving average, you'll be able to tell when you're gaining weight and deal with it before you gain much.
  • almondbutterbay
    almondbutterbay Posts: 221 Member
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    Sophsmother wrote: »
    I can't tell you how many people have told me that MFP is a gateway to an eating disorder.

    When I read on here how people knock every other way of eating as unsustainable for life, I cringe because they clearly think that weighing and measuring every solid and liquid that enters their body is something they should do for life. That's an eating disorder in the making and such unhealthy thinking.

    Truest thing I've read on here for a while. I've been on and off of here for three years and can't quit without feeling out of control so I just figured I won't quit *shrugs* I don't even know anymore.
  • brcossette
    brcossette Posts: 89 Member
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    There's an obvious counterpoint to this. Being accountable and honest about what you eat each day helps keep you on track. For some people watching their weight is a matter of life or death. For me i choose to error on the side of caution so i dont get obese again by logging in each day.
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
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    I have been maintaining a 35 pound loss for two years. One year to lose it, two to maintain so about three years here on MFP. I love my friends, I love the environment on MFP. I have also questioned myself many, many times about why I still check in. No one really knows me, I could check out and never log again. Yet I check my update list almost everyday. Then I remember why I came here. I read a "Success Story" about a woman who lost over two hundred pounds and I literally wept with joy at her life change. It's the people that keep me coming back. Older/more experienced people can help new MFP people be successful, with encouragement, advice or just being a friend. MFP can be intimidating at first.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    I've never even thought about leaving here, ever! :open_mouth:

    This may be taken out of our hands anyway once they introduce the premium pay mfp version.
    I've got a horrible feeling the forums as we know them are going to either disappear or go downhill :disappointed:
  • jeannettemancini
    jeannettemancini Posts: 58 Member
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    I personally don't see what's wrong with using it for maintenance once you are done. Logging your food is not an eating disorder. If you're eating at maintenance and you need to track that, you're doing something healthy. (and yeah, being obsessive is bad, as it is with anything)
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
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    What if you break from logging and, if it should come to pass that you find yourself over your maintenance range, you use MFP as a tool to get back in range? And then break again when you've accomplished that? I go long spells without logging. Eventually my weight will creep up (mysteriously never seems to creep down of its own accord, or if it does it doesn't trigger an intervention). Logging helps me get back on track.

    What is true for me is that even when I don't log, there is an element of mindfulness. Where do you draw the line between mindfulness and calculating in your head? Probably different for everyone, but honestly, the online tools are so good, tracking is less effort than the mental gymnastics of estimating. Logging isn't an onerous task for me. So it's an easy habit to return to when I need it.
  • girlviernes
    girlviernes Posts: 2,402 Member
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    Sophsmother wrote: »
    I can't tell you how many people have told me that MFP is a gateway to an eating disorder.

    When I read on here how people knock every other way of eating as unsustainable for life, I cringe because they clearly think that weighing and measuring every solid and liquid that enters their body is something they should do for life. That's an eating disorder in the making and such unhealthy thinking.

    MFP is a tool, just like Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig ... Like them, it's not sustainable for life and shouldn't be thought of that way. but you don't need it anymore and everybody's goal on MFP should be to not need it.

    Transition slowly and trust that you have learned to intuitively eat well. If you get off track, you can start counting again. It's scary to give up something that served you well, but not doing it may lead to something unhealthy.

    Awesome job!

    Although I think calorie counting can become problemac, I disagree that the goal should be to stop using it. Given how common it is to regain lost weight, if logging works why not stick with it. It also helps you pay attention to and meet nutrition goald. Certainly, we all need to have some flexibility and if you can't even take a day off that isn't a good sign.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    I don't see any reason to stop logging

    Maybe you should work on your feelings about that instead
  • uvi5
    uvi5 Posts: 710 Member
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    christinev297 wrote: »
    I've never even thought about leaving here, ever! :open_mouth:

    This may be taken out of our hands anyway once they introduce the premium pay mfp version.
    I've got a horrible feeling the forums as we know them are going to either disappear or go downhill :disappointed:

    That would suck :confounded:
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    christinev297 wrote: »
    I've never even thought about leaving here, ever! :open_mouth:

    This may be taken out of our hands anyway once they introduce the premium pay mfp version.
    I've got a horrible feeling the forums as we know them are going to either disappear or go downhill :disappointed:

    These are not great forums ...it is easy to set up a forum using free software ...don't worry about it ...no succesful business plan would stop free entry via fora
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,087 Member
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    Sophsmother wrote: »
    I can't tell you how many people have told me that MFP is a gateway to an eating disorder.

    When I read on here how people knock every other way of eating as unsustainable for life, I cringe because they clearly think that weighing and measuring every solid and liquid that enters their body is something they should do for life. That's an eating disorder in the making and such unhealthy thinking.

    MFP is a tool, just like Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig ... Like them, it's not sustainable for life and shouldn't be thought of that way. but you don't need it anymore and everybody's goal on MFP should be to not need it.
    !

    I disagree with this.

    If people want to wean themselves from MFP or MFP is becoming obsessive or problematic for them - fine, do so.

    But nothing wrong with logging long term in maitenance if that works for you either.

    I have been logging in maitenance for 18 months now and I don't intend to stop in the foreseeable future.
    If I go on holiday I sometimes don't log for a week and I don't meticulously account for Every single calorie at anytime but I do log estimates and approximate amounts ( like a small banana without weighing it) and weigh high calorie things like cheese.
    I certainly don't think I am on the gateway to an eating disorder.

    I believe weight watchers has a maitenance program too. People don't have to view WW as something they have to wean themselves off either. If they don't want to.

  • sweetd6
    sweetd6 Posts: 74 Member
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    Yes, Weight Watchers has a maintenance plan that is free as long as the WW member checks in every month (with a free weigh in) and stays within 2 lbs. of their goal. Many Lifetime members still track their food, whether it is on paper or with the WW e-tools (a WW tracking app) which is also free for Lifetime members. I wouldn't call maintenance tracking of any kind an "eating disorder". An eating disorder involves unhealthy things inflicted on the body, whether it's trying to weigh too little, throwing up to lose/maintain weight, or uncontrolled binge eating. If people feel scared about their eating possibly getting out of control if they don't track, I don't see any harm in continuing to track.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    Everyone has to do what works best for them.

    That said, I'm a LONG way from maintenance, so I don't know what I'll do. I guess when I get there, I'll figure out what works for ME. :)
  • grandma107
    grandma107 Posts: 70 Member
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    If it ain't broken, don't fix it. Blessings.
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,647 Member
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    Recipezaar used to be a great, free site with fun forums - that's all gone now that Scripps bought it. No more forums, period - and a boring new name food.com - but as far as MFP goes, I have a love/hate with it. It's great for accountability but it haunts me if I jump off for vacation or because I'm fed up (pardon the pun) with it. I need to work on my all-or-nothing issues. I understand what you're saying, OP. Don't have any suggestions, but I understand what you're saying.

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