fwwl Feel like a complete failure

Look, the app is only as good as the user.

Set a limit each day, weigh and measure ANYTHING not prepackaged that is obvious in calories per serving. If you eat a piece of fruit, weigh it. If you eat a vegetable, just weight it (despite them being quite light in cals they can add up). If you drink milk, measure it. I cannot stress enough how easy it is to miscalculate your own calories.

If you're making your own recipes at home, save and add every single component to a recipe, divide it up by the servings you eat it over, and go that route.

MyFitnessPal is not a diet supplement or weight loss pill, it is an analytical tool to help show you what you're consuming as it is easy to not know when mindlessly shoving foods in your mouth. Even if you are eating a lot, still log it ALL so then you can see "Oh wow, I gain weight as I eat this much."

I have used it religiously for almost an entire year now and I learned that at a certain amount of calories per day or week I stay the same, when I cut down to a certain amount I lose, and how much I need to eat to gain.

Working out isn't for everyone and it is NOT necessary to lose weight but it is a huge advantage. If you aren't working out, your diet is even more important now. I recommend using a TDEE calculator (Google) and help yourself become more familiar with how the estimate works. Use it as a baseline.

One re-assuring thing is this for those who do not work out: Weight loss is made in the kitchen not in the gym. You can ran 20 miles a week (yes I have and do do this) and eat enough calories to completely circumvent that weight loss. If you're someone who is not interested in the gym or outdoor cardio as winter arrives for those in such cold regions, your kitchen control can get you great weight loss results but it will just be slightly harder. Who knows, maybe as you get control of that, you'll gain an interest in the gym as your self-image confidence goes up.

It is a long process for some and a short one for others. Back in 2007 I was in high school and I found an old blog (by mistake) post from a blog I started when searching my own name to see how I came up in Google. It had this great feeling of "Here is what I am going to do, here is how I am going to do it, I am going to lose weight! Gym this many days a week, cut out there foods, etc. etc. etc." I didn't lose that weight until 2013. I just couldn't get into the rhythm I lacked the discipline. Then I graduated college, got into a mental focus/schedule with work and just eating better foods (without counting) and I lost a ton of weight and got into the gym and got more fit as time went on. It took me WAY longer than it should have or could have.

The thing about losing weight is this: You have to have convictions. If you're around food that does not fit your calories for the day, you need to be ready to tell yourself no and others who are pushing you or eating it themselves. At first, they might give a bit of back talk. But eventually, they will respect you and the fact you're not doing it. Everyone at first thinks they look silly when they try to lose weight because they're so used to not being as committed to NOT eating something deliciously rich in calories. People will say "Oh, whatever, they'll give up in weeks." That is the fuel you should be using.

Don't let MyFitnessPal be the only thing that is starting or stopping you. It's a very helpful tool. I hit a weight loss plateau and up until that point I was losing but never counted a single calorie. As I got lighter, my body wasn't easily burning as much so I need to restrict more and more intake. MFP gave me the tools, but it didn't hand feed me my food.

There are still days I go calorie wild and I go "Ah, why did I do that," but we're human and we're going to give into a natural instinct to feed. Especially if we're working out or maybe it's a time of year when memories are better created by indulging and enjoying rather than being a calorie counter.

Truth is this: If you are HONEST with yourself about counting your calories you will lose weight. Don't worry about the carbs vs proteins at first. Get used to the calories only. Then as you get good at this, you can start worrying about the nutrients. Calories are calories for those who did not know. If you aren't consistently training, working out, or do not have some sort of health need, calories are energy and equal. Carbs might make you appear thicker due to water retention, but you won't notice that if you aren't focused on weighing yourself every day and focus on weighing your foods.

Don't drive yourself into the ground eating fruits, vegetables, and chicken all the time. As long as something fits your count each day, you can lose weight. It's about being honest with what you eat, picking foods that can get you to "I feel full and content" and making it through those hard hours in the mid morning and late at night. Coffee or tea helps.

Sorry for the long post, I just thought it might be helpful.