Don't use scales, am I waisting my time?

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  • courtneyfabulous
    courtneyfabulous Posts: 1,863 Member
    Honestly it takes no time at all to measure and log.

    And a digital scale is much faster and more accurate than cups and spoons, and a whole lot more accurate than eyeballing.

    She already said what she's currently doing is NOT working.
  • courtneyfabulous
    courtneyfabulous Posts: 1,863 Member
    Basically you already answered your own question too- what you're currently doing isn't working so YES YOU ARE WASTING YOUR TIME.

    Honestly I don't know why people even bother to use myfitnesspal if they aren't going to log their food or measure it properly... ITS A CALORIE COUNTING APP. You wouldn't join weight watchers and then not bother doing the points thing and just eat whatever but still show up to the weigh ins. You wouldn't hire a personal trainer and then never work out but still expect to get buff. Why would you use a calorie counting app if you aren't even counting your calories????
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    edited October 2016
    I don't actually weigh anything. I go by labels and round up. Has it mattered? Nope, not one bit BUT if it wasn't working I would do one of two things. I would either start weighing or more likely, just adjust my calorie goal. The actual number is ultimately irrelevant. What matters is the deficit, assuming proper nutrition of course. This process doesn't have to be complicated.
  • NancyYale
    NancyYale Posts: 171 Member
    I don't own a scale and have been very successful. But if I hadn't been successful I would have gone that route. I tend to underestimate portions.
  • lissmayer
    lissmayer Posts: 86 Member
    I have small children, and I get it. One trick is to eat the same things generally so that you can log those things with more confidence. And skip things that are hard to log or that you can't moderate (I'm looking at you, chips). It just makes things easier when you are too frazzled to deal much less do extra steps.
  • lissmayer
    lissmayer Posts: 86 Member
    vingogly wrote: »
    If you're not willing to invest the few extra seconds a day it would take to weigh and log your intake for the sake of your health and being there for your kids, then yes, you're wasting your time.

    Seriously? You are going to guilt trip a stranger that not weighing her food means she doesn't love her kids enough? Klassy. I'm going to go out on a limb and say you either don't have children or were never the primary caregiver. God.
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    AliceDark wrote: »
    People managed to lose weight just fine before at-home kitchen scales were a thing. They're a useful tool, and if you have trouble losing weight without one I'd recommend getting one, but they're not required. (Although honestly, mine has saved me a ton of time because I no longer have to wash measuring cups and spoons every day).

    This is arguably the best case I have "heard" on behalf of investing in a scale.
  • kgirlhart
    kgirlhart Posts: 5,185 Member
    If you are being mindful of what you eat then you aren't necessarily wasting your time. But you could have better success if you did weigh at least some things. There are a few things I never weigh. If I had stalled in my weight loss then I would have started weighing them. There are some things that I will always weigh. Chips are one of them. It is so easy to overeat something like that and dumping a handful on the scale first helps me not to over eat them. I limit myself if I am drinking alcohol and I almost always measure it (I always do at home). If I were you I would at least start weighing the foods you have trouble moderating. People have lost weight without using a kitchen scale, and you can too. It is just harder to accurately judge your intake if you aren't weighing. If you feel frustrated that you aren't losing then it is probably time to start weighing your food. But if you are losing at an acceptable rate by estimating the there is nothing wrong with that approach.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,333 Member
    You answered your own question. Stop the chips, bread, and alcohol ..or limit them greatly. I don't log food or measure...just because I don't want to have to do it forever.. but I did do it for a long while to train myself to know what to eat.
  • alwinter09
    alwinter09 Posts: 25 Member
    Quick question about the HRM; if I get one, how exactly does it work? obviously it measures my heart rate, but do most then show you how many calories you've burned based off of your HR, or how does that work? I usually alternate between walking and running as my main form of working out right now. Thank you for any guidance!
  • spamanda53
    spamanda53 Posts: 86 Member
    If you truly believe that measuring/weighing things will take up too much time, would you be willing to weigh/measure for a short period of time at least? What I mean is for several days, weigh and or measure everything. This will allow you to see what a proper portion size/serving size is for what you're eating. Then when you don't have time to measure, you'll still be able to more accurately log what you're actually eating.

    I am assuming that while you are logging your food on MFP, you're simply estimating how much you're eating and therefore most likely under estimating the amount of servings you're having and ultimately the amount of calories. So, by weighing and measuring everything, you'll know in the future that "one fistful" of crisps is one serving and "one fistful" of candy is two and a half servings, and you can keep more accurate track of the calories you're actually consuming.
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