Anxiety/Obsessiveness with Tracking
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establishingaplace
Posts: 301 Member
After seeing a couple of posts on my feed about tracking steadily vs giving into cravings or not tracking all, I'm thinking about my own path.
I've lost 24 pounds over the past two years, but 20 of those pounds dropped in the first six months and it's been a slow crawl ever since. I've pulled myself out of the rut of negative body-image chatter. I feel good in my skin and OK with where I am. I want to lose at least 20 more pounds for health reasons (I have PCOS, insulin resistance, some other endocrine issues), and while I certainly wouldn't mind the vanity benefits of losing that weight, it's not what's driving me.
That said, since my first six months of successful loss, I go through spurts of a few weeks of tracking perfectly, staying under calories 6 days a week and going over a little one day a week. Then I start to feel obsessive - like all I can think about is food and my diary, and I start getting anxious whenever I'm invited to go where there will be a lot of food that may be a pain to track. So I take a break for a couple days, and when I go back to tracking I get lazy, go over a little here and there, and abandon my food diary for the weekend. I do this for awhile and then get fed up with my lack of progress and start tracking perfectly again. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Then I see some of my MFP friends who have tracked perfectly for a long time and have clearly steadily lost weight and maybe now are going into maintenance. I start to wonder if maybe I should just go and be obsessive for a bit and get s--t done.
For those who experience something like this, how do you deal with it?
I've lost 24 pounds over the past two years, but 20 of those pounds dropped in the first six months and it's been a slow crawl ever since. I've pulled myself out of the rut of negative body-image chatter. I feel good in my skin and OK with where I am. I want to lose at least 20 more pounds for health reasons (I have PCOS, insulin resistance, some other endocrine issues), and while I certainly wouldn't mind the vanity benefits of losing that weight, it's not what's driving me.
That said, since my first six months of successful loss, I go through spurts of a few weeks of tracking perfectly, staying under calories 6 days a week and going over a little one day a week. Then I start to feel obsessive - like all I can think about is food and my diary, and I start getting anxious whenever I'm invited to go where there will be a lot of food that may be a pain to track. So I take a break for a couple days, and when I go back to tracking I get lazy, go over a little here and there, and abandon my food diary for the weekend. I do this for awhile and then get fed up with my lack of progress and start tracking perfectly again. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Then I see some of my MFP friends who have tracked perfectly for a long time and have clearly steadily lost weight and maybe now are going into maintenance. I start to wonder if maybe I should just go and be obsessive for a bit and get s--t done.
For those who experience something like this, how do you deal with it?
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Replies
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You can track consistently without ever becoming obsessive. Life happens. You will be places and eat things you can't weigh/track from time to time. This is not a big deal. If you are doing this all the time, then yes, it makes calorie counting a difficult way to lose weight. If on the other hand you only find yourself in those situations every so often, just do your best to estimate what you ate. If you really feel worried, go ahead and estimate, then add 10% to the number of calories you estimated just in case. Obsession is not a good thing. If you let it take hold, it can get worse and worse. For this reason, calorie counting just isn't for some people. I went through a period of time where I wouldn't eat at restaurants or family events based solely on the fear of inaccurate tracking. I've since learned a great many things. First off, those events don't occur regularly. For the most part I'm accurately tracking what I eat. When those events do occur, I just pay attention to what I eat, try my best to track it. I also plan ahead. If I know the choices of foods will be less than ideal, I make sure I'm not using up lots of calories before and after that meal. I also leave a certain number of completely free days a year because you sometimes you need those. Those are very infrequent but still important IMO. I usually relegate those to Christmas, Thanksgiving, my birthday, and vacation.0
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Don't worry about what other people are doing. They have to lose their weight and you have to lose yours. Do what works for YOU. And don't let the tail wag the dog.
If someone doesn't want to weigh their food, that's cool. If someone else does, that's cool, too. Many roads lead to thin.
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Well i mean..if you eant to lose weight yes, you can't get lazy about. Completely blowing it 2 or so times a month for me would negate any progress. I don't log every single thing that goes in my mouth, i had 1 gummy bear last night. But i also knew i was a hundred calories under for the day. If i had 0 calories, i would not have eaten it, oh..i had 2 mini m and Ms as well. ( i have kids, they were sharing). You can't turn a 3 year old down she gets sad.0
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You can track consistently without ever becoming obsessive. Life happens. You will be places and eat things you can't weigh/track from time to time. This is not a big deal. If you are doing this all the time, then yes, it makes calorie counting a difficult way to lose weight. If on the other hand you only find yourself in those situations every so often, just do your best to estimate what you ate. If you really feel worried, go ahead and estimate, then add 10% to the number of calories you estimated just in case. Obsession is not a good thing. If you let it take hold, it can get worse and worse. For this reason, calorie counting just isn't for some people. I went through a period of time where I wouldn't eat at restaurants or family events based solely on the fear of inaccurate tracking. I've since learned a great many things. First off, those events don't occur regularly. For the most part I'm accurately tracking what I eat. When those events do occur, I just pay attention to what I eat, try my best to track it. I also plan ahead. If I know the choices of foods will be less than ideal, I make sure I'm not using up lots of calories before and after that meal. I also leave a certain number of completely free days a year because you sometimes you need those. Those are very infrequent but still important IMO. I usually relegate those to Christmas, Thanksgiving, my birthday, and vacation.
Let me clarify that when I say tracking perfectly, perfect for me means sometimes I estimate because I buy lunch or dine out a couple times a week and almost never at chain restaurants. I always estimate high. I know that I can't weigh everything 100% of the time and would certainly not carry my food scale everywhere I go.
My problem is that after two weeks of consistent tracking, I *do* start to feel obsessive. Then I pull back for a day or so, and then I find myself not tracking nearly as well - going over my cals at the end of the day with one more treat, not tracking at all on weekends. I want calorie counting to work because it worked so well in the beginning and beats food restriction plans that NEVER worked for me.0 -
Accurate tracking requires a certain level of obsessiveness.
If obsessiveness is a problem for you then you need to experiment and find other ways to restrict your overall calorie intake without actually counting them.
You could pre-portion foods when you buy them (or just buy single-serving foods like frozen dinners) so that you have a good idea of you much you are eating without getting into the nitty-gritty numbers every day of the week.0 -
As someone with OCD, I understand. I've decided there are worse ways to obsess.
Does tracking take away from other activities I should be doing? No.
Does tracking produce results that are overall healthy? Yes.
As long as those answers to those questions remain the same, I'm going to keep tracking and not worry one bit about doing it. After the first couple of years, I discovered that obsessing over tracking was less stressful than not tracking. Again, there are worse ways to obsess. Good luck!
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alphaloria wrote: »...since my first six months of successful loss, I go through spurts of a few weeks of tracking perfectly, staying under calories 6 days a week and going over a little one day a week. Then I start to feel obsessive - like all I can think about is food and my diary, and I start getting anxious whenever I'm invited to go where there will be a lot of food that may be a pain to track. So I take a break for a couple days, and when I go back to tracking I get lazy, go over a little here and there, and abandon my food diary for the weekend. I do this for awhile and then get fed up with my lack of progress and start tracking perfectly again. Lather, rinse, repeat..
Try to mentally reframe tracking as not being obsessive, but accurate, and a tool needed for weight loss. Tools work better if they are accurate.
When I first started using a spring scale, I thought, "Wow, this is so much more accurate than cups" and when I switched to a digital scale I was amazed at how much easier and more accurate it was than the spring scale.
I've worked in kitchens that use scales and I know how important accuracy is for things like yeast bread, so it's easy for me to frame weighing as part of food prep rather than obsessiveness. I've incorporated noting what I'm using and then entering it into the computer as part of my food prep.
I have felt some mild anxiety about attending events where I won't be able to accurately track, but I exercise more on those days, and that also creates the happy hormones that help with anxiety.
I also feel better emotionally when I log accurately - I feel virtuous when I'm being honest with myself. Committing to logging accurately helps me to stay in a deficit because I hate to see myself in the red.
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kshama2001 wrote: »alphaloria wrote: »...since my first six months of successful loss, I go through spurts of a few weeks of tracking perfectly, staying under calories 6 days a week and going over a little one day a week. Then I start to feel obsessive - like all I can think about is food and my diary, and I start getting anxious whenever I'm invited to go where there will be a lot of food that may be a pain to track. So I take a break for a couple days, and when I go back to tracking I get lazy, go over a little here and there, and abandon my food diary for the weekend. I do this for awhile and then get fed up with my lack of progress and start tracking perfectly again. Lather, rinse, repeat..
Try to mentally reframe tracking as not being obsessive, but accurate, and a tool needed for weight loss. Tools work better if they are accurate.
When I first started using a spring scale, I thought, "Wow, this is so much more accurate than cups" and when I switched to a digital scale I was amazed at how much easier and more accurate it was than the spring scale.
I've worked in kitchens that use scales and I know how important accuracy is for things like yeast bread, so it's easy for me to frame weighing as part of food prep rather than obsessiveness. I've incorporated noting what I'm using and then entering it into the computer as part of my food prep.
I have felt some mild anxiety about attending events where I won't be able to accurately track, but I exercise more on those days, and that also creates the happy hormones that help with anxiety.
I also feel better emotionally when I log accurately - I feel virtuous when I'm being honest with myself. Committing to logging accurately helps me to stay in a deficit because I hate to see myself in the red.
So very well stated!0 -
In a way you can say it is obsessed yes...but if that keeps the weight off or lose the weight...what is wrong with that?
As long you dont go overboard with eating less or getting upset about eating out and have to questimate....everything is oke
It is just when you eat you weigh...so? no biggie there. I dont see the problem
and yes when you get all upset and cant sleep because of some numbers than you have a problem...but weighing ALL your food is no big deal.
Is done for a long time now when people do a recipe, but oh dear when we do it with our normal food...than suddenly we are all obsessed.
Well i have learned one thing pretty quick
I dont care what others do or think. This is my body. My excess weight will come off ( only some pounds to go after losing 105 pounds) and i will keep it off. So when i have to weigh my food everyday..so be it.
It only takes me a minute more in the kitchen to keep this body in shape. I gladly spend that minute towards my general health...and when eating out and i cant weigh my food..i dont get upset over it at all...
Because the next day i am back on track
I didn't get fat because i ate out sometimes...i got fat because i over ate over a longer period of time.
So yes i gain water weight when i am out ( 6 pounds is pretty normal for me) And the days after i lose it...simple I am back on track
I live my life and i count my calories, no big deal. What others think about it or find it obsessed or to much trouble is totally up to them as long it doesnt make me upset.
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Have you thought about setting up your meal plan for the week at the beginning of the week? And using a but of formulaic eating (breakfast smoothie, lunch salad etc)? Even if you can get 70% of your meals mentally sorted at the beginning of the week, this might help easy a bit of anxiety. I can get obsessive, too, and for me, having a plan for the week and knowing what trouble spots might turn up (meals out etc) mellows me out. I also tend to review menus before eating out to gauge what might be the best options. I feel more proactive than reactive this way. But keep in mind, the best plans change! Good luck!0
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Have you considered something like the 21-Day Fix? That's not quite as specific as logging a food diary and might feel less obsessive.0
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Have you thought about setting up your meal plan for the week at the beginning of the week? And using a but of formulaic eating (breakfast smoothie, lunch salad etc)? Even if you can get 70% of your meals mentally sorted at the beginning of the week, this might help easy a bit of anxiety. I can get obsessive, too, and for me, having a plan for the week and knowing what trouble spots might turn up (meals out etc) mellows me out. I also tend to review menus before eating out to gauge what might be the best options. I feel more proactive than reactive this way. But keep in mind, the best plans change! Good luck!
More meal planning would probably help out a lot. Breakfast is pretty set by habit, lunches are pre-prepared, but I get caught up with snacks, dinners, and really most of all weekends. Planning weekends would probably help me more than I want to admit!0 -
In a way you can say it is obsessed yes...but if that keeps the weight off or lose the weight...what is wrong with that?
As long you dont go overboard with eating less or getting upset about eating out and have to questimate....everything is oke
It is just when you eat you weigh...so? no biggie there. I dont see the problem
and yes when you get all upset and cant sleep because of some numbers than you have a problem...but weighing ALL your food is no big deal.
Is done for a long time now when people do a recipe, but oh dear when we do it with our normal food...than suddenly we are all obsessed.
Well i have learned one thing pretty quick
I dont care what others do or think. This is my body. My excess weight will come off ( only some pounds to go after losing 105 pounds) and i will keep it off. So when i have to weigh my food everyday..so be it.
It only takes me a minute more in the kitchen to keep this body in shape. I gladly spend that minute towards my general health...and when eating out and i cant weigh my food..i dont get upset over it at all...
Because the next day i am back on track
I didn't get fat because i ate out sometimes...i got fat because i over ate over a longer period of time.
So yes i gain water weight when i am out ( 6 pounds is pretty normal for me) And the days after i lose it...simple I am back on track
I live my life and i count my calories, no big deal. What others think about it or find it obsessed or to much trouble is totally up to them as long it doesnt make me upset.
Lots of great, sane replies here, but this one is probably my favorite. I don't know why I lose perspective because you're right, it's no big deal. What IS the problem? That's a good question.0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »alphaloria wrote: »...since my first six months of successful loss, I go through spurts of a few weeks of tracking perfectly, staying under calories 6 days a week and going over a little one day a week. Then I start to feel obsessive - like all I can think about is food and my diary, and I start getting anxious whenever I'm invited to go where there will be a lot of food that may be a pain to track. So I take a break for a couple days, and when I go back to tracking I get lazy, go over a little here and there, and abandon my food diary for the weekend. I do this for awhile and then get fed up with my lack of progress and start tracking perfectly again. Lather, rinse, repeat..
Try to mentally reframe tracking as not being obsessive, but accurate, and a tool needed for weight loss. Tools work better if they are accurate.
When I first started using a spring scale, I thought, "Wow, this is so much more accurate than cups" and when I switched to a digital scale I was amazed at how much easier and more accurate it was than the spring scale.
I've worked in kitchens that use scales and I know how important accuracy is for things like yeast bread, so it's easy for me to frame weighing as part of food prep rather than obsessiveness. I've incorporated noting what I'm using and then entering it into the computer as part of my food prep.
I have felt some mild anxiety about attending events where I won't be able to accurately track, but I exercise more on those days, and that also creates the happy hormones that help with anxiety.
I also feel better emotionally when I log accurately - I feel virtuous when I'm being honest with myself. Committing to logging accurately helps me to stay in a deficit because I hate to see myself in the red.
So very well stated!
+10 -
alphaloria wrote: »In a way you can say it is obsessed yes...but if that keeps the weight off or lose the weight...what is wrong with that?
As long you dont go overboard with eating less or getting upset about eating out and have to questimate....everything is oke
It is just when you eat you weigh...so? no biggie there. I dont see the problem
and yes when you get all upset and cant sleep because of some numbers than you have a problem...but weighing ALL your food is no big deal.
Is done for a long time now when people do a recipe, but oh dear when we do it with our normal food...than suddenly we are all obsessed.
Well i have learned one thing pretty quick
I dont care what others do or think. This is my body. My excess weight will come off ( only some pounds to go after losing 105 pounds) and i will keep it off. So when i have to weigh my food everyday..so be it.
It only takes me a minute more in the kitchen to keep this body in shape. I gladly spend that minute towards my general health...and when eating out and i cant weigh my food..i dont get upset over it at all...
Because the next day i am back on track
I didn't get fat because i ate out sometimes...i got fat because i over ate over a longer period of time.
So yes i gain water weight when i am out ( 6 pounds is pretty normal for me) And the days after i lose it...simple I am back on track
I live my life and i count my calories, no big deal. What others think about it or find it obsessed or to much trouble is totally up to them as long it doesnt make me upset.
Lots of great, sane replies here, but this one is probably my favorite. I don't know why I lose perspective because you're right, it's no big deal. What IS the problem? That's a good question.
yvw
weigh log and move on the rest of the day....:) enjoy life girlie.That is all there is to it.
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