Taking a week break from logging food - What results have YOU had from a logging break?

Nothing different. Sometimes significant weight loss in the beginning of I wasn't careful

i maintained for a year without logging anything. want to lose the rest of the weight, so stated back up recently.

Always weight gain

It depends. I've stopped logging because I was out of internet range but still being careful of my intake and lost weight and I've had bad periods where I've stopped logging and gained weight. I've also stopped logging and just maintained my weight for a while. In general it depends on the person, what their goals are and how accountable they're able to be to themselves whilst not logging. One size doesn't fit all (not even within one person!)

Lesscookies wrote: »

I've managed to lose almost 33 pounds now without logging or using a food scale different things work for different people.

It's because you have a good eye for it. You are still honest with yourself. More so than I am when I don't log.. I wish I didn't need to log my food.

I still logged but when I went on vacation for two weeks last month, I upped my calorie intake--I set MFP to 1 lb. per week instead of 2 lbs. to lose. Actually I changed it the week before--so I ate 500 calories more (at least) for three weeks. I changed it because I was stressed out the week before my vacation and found that I was not eating well--I was undereating because I was so stressed that I could not get my food organized. It was worth it. It took the pressure off for that week, and while on vacation I did not feel deprived or worried if I had some drinks or food that I couldn't log. I basically maintained for that time. I did lose .5 lbs. for the two weeks I was on vacation, but I had a few days of wine tasting, parties, etc. I did log but I don't think I was very accurate for those days. I've been back on the 2 lbs. per week and lost over 3 lbs. in the last two weeks, so I'm pretty happy to be back on track.

I would recommend that you decrease your weight loss goals for a week or two, or eat at maintenance but keep logging, if you feel you need a break.

I rarely log food intake anymore. As long as I eat my protein and fruits and veggies, and get my exercise, I stay on track. Occasionally I let other things take priority and I gain a little weight, but with a bit of focus (but still no logging), it comes right back off again. A few times I have really struggled and started logging again in hopes of getting back to my good habits, and so far, it has always worked.

I lost 125 lbs then been maintaining 1 year after I stopped logging. I logged only for my first 3 months, 25 lbs. I eat consistently (same things) and learned to manage eating out. So the things I learned while logging stayed with me.

In July I went to Europe for 2 weeks and took a break. Mentally it was great for me! I didn’t log, didn’t wear my Fitbit, and swapped my regular intense 2hr weights/boxing workouts for 15 min morning yoga.

I did come back a few lbs heavier but it was water weight and within a little over a week I was back to normal. I was plateaued for a few months before the trip and am now down 5lb from pre-vacation weight with 5lb more to go to goal.

I just had a week off due to going overseas for a holiday. I set my goal to loose .25 kilos and I was able to eat an extra 1800kj per day. It made a difference eating more. I also walked alot and ate some of those kj's back. I ended up loosing 700 grams and came back slightly lighter.

skymningen wrote: »

I would like to throw something in here... A lot of people say they instantly gained weight when not logging a week. But this observation might be biased. Many of us take a break from logging because other things take over. Vacation, depression, stress at work, having a baby, you name it. That already sets you up to be thrown out of your rhythm and is connected to having fewer choices of food/ choice to prepare it yourself / choice of portions served to you. That does not mean that the break from logging alone made you gain weight, it was the break from your structure in total. That can be different if you just take a random break but keep everything else on track.

That would be correct, and for one week it's likely not going to make that much of a difference if you're careful with your choices. "IDGAF" kind of logging break is potentially more likely to lead to weight gain. My experience, however, with longer periods of not logging is that it's harder for me to diet because I tend to want to undereat "just in case" and it's more stressful because I'm not sure if I can "afford" that piece of high calorie something I want, which leads to food blowouts that make it harder for me to lose weight. For maintenance, I find not logging much easier. I notice a calorie creep the longer I'm not logging and I find myself needing to take corrective "fast days" more often (when weight goes above my set maximum allowed). I also personally feel logging puts me in a better mental state for calorie control and I'm happier on it.