How long to keep loging food.

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  • Old_Cat_Lady
    Old_Cat_Lady Posts: 1,193 Member
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    seska422 wrote: »
    I've had weight regain, plus some, every other time I've lost weight because I didn't stay vigilant. My consumption slowly drifts upward over time. If I want to keep the weight off, I'll need to keep logging. I don't expect MFP to be around forever but I've logged with pen and paper before and I can go back to that if needed.

    Gosh,,,, so true.
  • Mezzie1024
    Mezzie1024 Posts: 380 Member
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    I take logging breaks, slowly gain, then log again when my jeans get tight. It would probably be best to log continuously (and that's my plan for now), but I get sick of logging sometimes.
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,984 Member
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    I stopped logging soon after reaching my goal weight. It took me almost 2 years of logging to get there, so by the time I hit maintenance, I had a pretty good idea of portion sizes and calorie counts of certain foods. I now log roughly in my head to make sure I'm not going off track.

    I do monitor my weight pretty closely, and if I start going above what I consider to be my normal weight range, I sometimes go back to logging for a few weeks, just to re-calibrate myself.
  • Wysewoman53
    Wysewoman53 Posts: 582 Member
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    I see no reason to stop logging my food intake. It keeps me honest. It isn't that hard since weighing and measuring my food has become second nature now. I reached my goal weight last week and from past experience, I know how all the weight I have lost can come back. This isn't my first rodeo, after all. So, lifetime logging for me, whether I am under or over my goal for the day. Also, daily weigh-ins are also second nature now so I don't see that stopping either when before, I would hide my scale after I hit any goals set for myself. THIS time, it isn't just about a 'diet'. THIS time is about a lifestyle change and the only way to keep it in place, for me, is to keep doing what I have done for the last 583 or so days...weigh, measure, log my food and step on that scale every morning. It is not that hard and worth every second of time, altho' very little, that it takes.
  • STEVE142142
    STEVE142142 Posts: 867 Member
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    For me I've been maintaining for approximately 10 + months. I realize it's a lifetime commitment and I'm going to be doing it till I die. I'm not perfect and there are days I go over my limit but I realize the consequences but for this to be a lifetime commitment it has to be sustainable.

    Small price to pay for what I've become. I never want to go back and it's my reality check to keep on track.
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,484 Member
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    I stopped logging a few months after I had established my maintenance.

    Food had never been my problem, and I think that is why I could step away from the counting and the scale so soon.

    My weight had been stable for decades. A 30lbs gain over 5 years was due much more to a slow decline in daily activity (without adjusting cals), than it was in an increase in food. So, once the pounds were off, it was much more about keeping a higher level of daily activity, I had become the queen of sloths, augmented with an hour of purposeful exercise.

    I think maybe because I had maintained a normal BMI for so long before my gain, I find it relatively easy to adjust my intake to suit my activity level now.
    Kind of like the gain was a little blip in the normal, and I am now back to normal- if that makes sense.

    Oh, I've been maintaining 7 years. With a 5lbs range.

    Cheers, h.
  • kgirlhart
    kgirlhart Posts: 4,995 Member
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    I do think that it is personal preference. For some logging won't be necessary and for others it will. At this point for me I don't think that I will ever stop logging. It is a pretty easy thing for me to do and I eat a lot of the same foods. I have relaxed my food weighing some, but I still weigh a lot since the scale is right there anyway. One of the reasons I continue to log is that I hit my goal about a year ago and I am now down 15 pounds from there. I have had a hard time finding my maintenance calories. MFP says it is about 1620, but my own data says it is about 2300. I log to make sure that I am getting enough. I know I could decrease my activity, but I don't want to. At 49, I want to stay active as long as possible. And I don't exercise to lose weight or even to eat more. I exercise because I love it and it makes me feel good. I just need to eat more because I exercise and I want to keep logging to make sure I am not too far under. I also used to have some issues with "secret eating". Now I log everything I eat and I'm afraid if I didn't I might fall back to hiding things that I am eating and I don't want to do that. But again, that is just a personal thing. I think a lot of people can maintain without logging. You just have to figure out which way works best for you.
  • ekim2016
    ekim2016 Posts: 1,199 Member
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    I just plan on logging daily forever to keep me on the straight and narrow. I know it is to EZ to fall back into damaging patterns... I treat this like a game..Pounds With Friends... haha
  • JeanCricket
    JeanCricket Posts: 156 Member
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    Never stop logging is my strategy. Maintenance for 3 years. Keeps me aware and honest
  • rimir74
    rimir74 Posts: 29 Member
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    gothchiq wrote: »
    Forever and ever, amen.

    Agreed. I guesstimate but logging keeps me on the straight and narrow. Am at about 530 days of logging now and keep a tab on the weekly (averaged for the day) average calorie data here:

    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1x-U5_S1FOLICblo3jzexdgYx7f34SiKsqk1Tg0kTTHo/edit?usp=drivesdk
  • DeniseWilson43
    DeniseWilson43 Posts: 87 Member
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    I keep doing as too easy to gain a pd here a pd there. Iam suprised about what I think is healthy and log it in Iam like crap just put that much calories in to me. I find it very helpful Denise
  • seska422
    seska422 Posts: 3,217 Member
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    DeniseWilson43 wrote: »
    I keep doing as too easy to gain a pd here a pd there. Iam suprised about what I think is healthy and log it in Iam like crap just put that much calories in to me. I find it very helpful Denise
    Have you tried pre-logging? I log items right before I plan to consume them so that I can see the calories and change my mind about the amount I want (or whether I really want it at all) before it's too late.
  • goldthistime
    goldthistime Posts: 3,214 Member
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    I don't log very often anymore, but as long as I'm eating a healthy diet (which I define as lots of veggies/fruits and adequate protein, with few if any especially decadent treats), my appetite matches my calorie output naturally. I agree with others above that the scale is all you really need, although logging gives you feedback sooner. I mostly use the site to help me keep health and fitness first and foremost in my mind. Doesn't hurt that I'm still learning things from the forums even after having been here most of three years.
  • Gisel2015
    Gisel2015 Posts: 4,144 Member
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    I have been maintaining my weight for 7 years now (I only had 12 lbs to lose), so I am pretty good at estimating my portions and keeping my weight within 2 or 3 lbs. I don't log on vacation because I need a break from this OCD madness (yes, it is for me). I mostly gain water weight while on vacation/travel, but I am back at my normal numbers within a week. I do try to keep active on vacation to compensate for any indulgence.

    I weigh and log my food when I am home (not when eating out), but I am not very precise anymore. I am not a volume eater, I don't drink or care much for sweets and deserts, and I always pick up healthy choices and try to find calories information in the restaurants menus.

    Like others already said, it depends on the person, their relationship with food and their commitment and discipline. I am old so I don't give up to temptations or peer pressure and I don't have a very busy social life. It may sound boring to some people but it's darn healthy for me.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
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    I'm a petite female, so there is VERY little wiggle room (low BMR combined with lower calorie burns from cardio), - so unless I were to eat completely "clean" with very rare exception (and screw that!), logging is pretty much going to be a forever thing.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
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    mrsnattybulking wrote: »
    I stopped logging from October to February. I had to lose 15lbs come spring. my "you're full" sensor is broken.

    care to guess when I took a break from logging:
    kdp9s3yvhtkp.png
  • sllm1
    sllm1 Posts: 2,114 Member
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    Forever for me. I agree that it's like balancing the checkbook. It's just a task that has to be done to ensure I'm not overeating.
  • Kimblesnbits13
    Kimblesnbits13 Posts: 369 Member
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    I'll probably log forever because if i didnt, I wouldnt know how much room I have for dessert lol. I think I'd be too restricted and scared to eat fun foods if I didnt log. I'm probably the minority here though.

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