Logging food regularly... NOT...hellllllp

Options
MyFatAbsz
MyFatAbsz Posts: 6 Member
in Getting Started
I have tried to log my food on a daily basis and I just can not seem to keep it up. I think it has alot to do with the size and how much I've eaten. When I cook, I don't measure how much I eat and I definitely do not measure how much I've cooked. I'm not a go out and eat type of person so I find myself cooking the majority of the time. If any of you have any tips or ideas on how you log every single thing you eat, snack or sip on every day, I'd like to hear about it. Thanks.

Replies

  • seska422
    seska422 Posts: 3,217 Member
    Options
    I think of my calories/macros like money that I have to spend.

    I don't eat anything until after I've logged it and double-checked that the amount that I plan to eat fits in with my consumption goals for that day. That way, I can adjust my portion or decide to eat something different before I've spent those calories.

    Logging and weighing need to become a habit. Practice and repetition are needed to form habits. Don't worry about being perfect (ever) or even very good at first. It's a learning process. Don't let "perfect" get in the way of "good enough".
  • MyFatAbsz
    MyFatAbsz Posts: 6 Member
    Options
    seska422 wrote: »
    I think of my calories/macros like money that I have to spend.

    I don't eat anything until after I've logged it and double-checked that the amount that I plan to eat fits in with my consumption goals for that day. That way, I can adjust my portion or decide to eat something different before I've spent those calories.

    Logging and weighing need to become a habit. Practice and repetition are needed to form habits. Don't worry about being perfect (ever) or even very good at first. It's a learning process. Don't let "perfect" get in the way of "good enough".

    Thank you, I'll give that a try and see if it works. I will log for like a day or two and then after that it's like, whatever.
  • courtneyfabulous
    courtneyfabulous Posts: 1,863 Member
    Options
    I log everything - I actually find it easier to log my own cooking than when I go out to eat. If cooking a recipe with several ingredients keep track of everything you put in it and how many portions you divide it into. If cooking single items it's a little easier - I tend to cook a main protein and eat it with a carb and a veggie- it's pretty easy to measure that way just don't forget to include any cooking oils or butter etc.

    Get yourself some measuring cups (1/4 cup, 1/3 cup, 1/2 cup, 1 cup), some measuring spoons (teaspoon, tablespoon, etc) and a digital food scale. That way you can measure everything easily.

    Some foods are easier to measure before cooking (veggies mostly) and some are easier to measure after (meat, rice, etc).

    You'll get the hang of it, just start doing it or there's really no point to using myfitnesspal. Remember to stay within your macronutrients ratios too, not just calories!
  • 603PIPER
    603PIPER Posts: 115 Member
    Options
    If you can do it for a week straight it starts to become a habit. Eventually you will be able to recognize and estimate different sizes. If you eat a lot of the same meals, you can save them under your recipes which make it easier for daily logging!
  • sugaraddict4321
    sugaraddict4321 Posts: 15,801 MFP Moderator
    Options
    Two things that help me. First, I keep a sheet of scrap paper with me all day and write down everything I eat and drink. If I'm home it includes the grams and mls consumed, but if I'm away I estimate. I don't take a food scale to work and I don't always pack my lunch. If I don't feel like logging, I just save the paper for when I feel like it. I also pre-log the foods I know I'll eat, because there are several foods and beverages I consume daily.
  • Firefly0606
    Firefly0606 Posts: 366 Member
    Options
    My kitchen food scale permanently lives on the kitchen bench now. I weigh everything. Every ingredient in a dish, then write down all the weights of each. When I serve it up, say I eat one third of the contents of the dish, I'll divide everything by 3.

    I also put my plate on the scale and zero the weight. Then weigh the rice I put on, record it in the app on my phone. Zero it again, weight the next thing.

    Pre-logging is great too. It gives you a chance to play with the calorie amounts to fit other things in. For example, say in the morning I pre-log in 220g of meat for my dinner. But then I decide that a couple of squares of chocolate would be a nice treat today...I can then reduce the amount of meat a little to allow the treat to fit without going over in my calories for the day. The weight of all of my food matters when I want to treat myself, not feel deprived, but still lose.

    It takes practice, and seems tedious at first. But then it becomes habit - especially when you realise that it works ;)
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Options
    You either make the commitment to log, or you don't.

Categories