Obsessed with Counting Calories

neiltillbrook wrote: »

@janejellyroll: I don't think I'm obsessed, and I'll occasionally estimate the calories of something, but it tends to play in the back of my mind how close I was to the right value. I know a value isn't right all of the time, and even the values on packets average out over time, but I feel as though I have a figure to stick to and I should stick to it as close as possible.

I won't be counting for the rest of my life either, so I should be more lenient; I guess allowing myself to have a couple of weeks off of tracking over Christmas has made me think sternly about counting again.

@cmriverside: I know what you mean when it comes to discussing it, haha. I don't tend to say much to other people, but when someone mentions to topic of calorie counting and how they've done it before it's hard to get me to shut up.

As much as you can tell about a stranger on the internet from a couple of posts, it doesn't sound like you have a problem. It sounds like you have a method that works for you. If you feel like you'd be happier letting go a bit more, practice it. Otherwise, why change what is working?

If I can weigh it and guess at the percentage of carb, protein, and fat in it, I can calculate a good guess at a calorie value for it. 80% carb and protein * 4 oz is 112 * 4 * .8 which is 320 * 32 + 6, so the carb content of it is 326 calories, and if the other 20% is fat so another 112 * 9 * .2 which is 180 + 18 + 2, so another 200 calories and a total of 526 calories. That's in 4 ounces of a pastry. So, I'll have half that much.

Gisel2015 wrote: »

neiltillbrook wrote: »

I've used MyFitnessPal.com for a while, on and off, with my most recent stint seeing me drop 3.5 stone over the last six months. However, family and friends are starting to imply I've become obsessed with counting calories.

Obviously, I need to count them in order to make sure I'm staying on track, but I also don't want to let calorie counting consume me. For example: If I can't find the nutritional information for something, a majority of the time I won't eat it.

What do people do when you can't find the information on something, do you put it down and walk away, or do you just accept it's not going to be 100% right all the time and just enjoy it - even though the difference could be 10-100 calories difference in some cases.

In my book, that (bolded) is being obsessive, so you may need to really work on that before it consumes your eating habits.

As far as your question of what to do when I can't find the information on line or in the MFP database. I just eat less. I don't log or estimate the calories because know that it would not be accurate. Just increase exercise, don't eat all the exercise calories and/or carry a bigger deficit during the week to compensate for more caloric intake during the weekend.

Question: wouldn't you want to log *something* even as a placeholder value so it doesn't look like you're way under for the day in question? Your log is your log, obviously, but I like having something there at least. My estimate is still going to be more accurate than "0."

For me the logging helps me to be more conscious of what I am consuming. Sometimes I tend to think that oh its just a sandwich.. until I log it and say whoa wait.. this is a meal! It helps me to be alert and make wiser decisions. Not saying all the choices are healthy.. but being aware lets me know how to meal prep and also try new ideas of healthier eating choices.

neiltillbrook wrote: »

@Gisel2015: I will occasionally have a meal that I haven't been able to calculate for definite, but I'll have that nagging doubt in the back of my mind as to whether or not I've been able to guestimate properly. You're right, though, I think it's something that I need to come to terms with.

This is a lifestyle change, after all, and I haven't got a specific date that I need to have lost weight by. Having the odd item or meal where I haven't been able to be strict isn't the be all and end all. It's just something I'll need to work on.

The thing is, no matter how accurate you think you're being, there are all kinds of inaccuracies built into the process of getting that nutritional info on the package. Calorie counting doesn't have to be 100%, or even 80%, accurate. You judge your accuracy by what you see when you weigh yourself over several weeks and adjust accordingly.

While I think logging/counting can be a not-obsessive lifetime habit, I would say that the nagging doubt and the not ever eating foods you can't be accurate with could become problems over time.

1. The doubt is unnecessary - judge how you're doing by your weight, and adjust if necessary, no biggie.
2. Making smart choices to facilitate logging and reaching your goal is good. Depriving yourself of pleasurable or social experiences to ensure "accuracy" is not, at least in my opinion. Sometimes figuring out where that line is can be a challenge.
3. The good news is that as you get more experience logging, it actually will make you better at estimating portion sizes and ingredients, so you can venture out more often with less risk.

I've been logging for @ 3 years. I eat dinner at my parents twice a week and estimate what I log. I eat fast food once or twice a week and don't weigh it, just use the posted info. I use the food scale most of the time at home. I lost weight as expected.

I normally agree with the fact that calorie counting is not a widely accepted or understood practice, so do what you need to do. But if a lot of people who know you well are concerned, I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand either. Are you seeing family and friends less often in an effort to avoid "guessing"? Do you talk about calories a lot? These are things you can work around while still logging well and maintaining a healthy weight :drinker:

Gisel2015 wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

Gisel2015 wrote: »

neiltillbrook wrote: »

I've used MyFitnessPal.com for a while, on and off, with my most recent stint seeing me drop 3.5 stone over the last six months. However, family and friends are starting to imply I've become obsessed with counting calories.

Obviously, I need to count them in order to make sure I'm staying on track, but I also don't want to let calorie counting consume me. For example: If I can't find the nutritional information for something, a majority of the time I won't eat it.

What do people do when you can't find the information on something, do you put it down and walk away, or do you just accept it's not going to be 100% right all the time and just enjoy it - even though the difference could be 10-100 calories difference in some cases.

In my book, that (bolded) is being obsessive, so you may need to really work on that before it consumes your eating habits.

As far as your question of what to do when I can't find the information on line or in the MFP database. I just eat less. I don't log or estimate the calories because know that it would not be accurate. Just increase exercise, don't eat all the exercise calories and/or carry a bigger deficit during the week to compensate for more caloric intake during the weekend.

Question: wouldn't you want to log *something* even as a placeholder value so it doesn't look like you're way under for the day in question? Your log is your log, obviously, but I like having something there at least. My estimate is still going to be more accurate than "0."

Nope! Since I am in maintenance estimates don't mean much to me. And honestly, I had the same approach before maintenance. I do write in the comment section of my food diary what I had and where I ate, but that is all. For the most part, I do know if I am under or over and as long as the scale and my clothes are good to me, I am fine with this approach.

Thanks for sharing your approach. I like to hear about all the different ways that people make logging work for them.

cmriverside wrote: »

I can throw a huge wrench in all this, I think

Those packages? Yeah - the exact calorie count can be off by as much as 20%, by law. Are you weighing everything? Even those prepared meals? Breads? Cereals? Everything? Doubtful.

I don't buy a lot of pre-prepared foods other than yogurt, bread, and some dressings. I weigh out all my home-prepared recipes and meals on a food scale, etc. I think it's a good thing to learn to do so that you can gauge a serving of any type meal.

It isn't an exact science. When you accept that - errors and all - you'll be better able to look at the Big Picture. I accept that I am making a couple hundred calories worth of errors on any given day, and that is how it is. Even using a food scale. I forget a bite here and there, add too much or too little to the food diary. Whatever. I'm still the same weight.

I do remember in the beginning of this I wanted so badly to get everything exactly right. It just isn't that way, doesn't need to be, and isn't possible.

Relax. Jump on the body-weight scale, do the best you can.

Not to mention that your "calorie out" estimate is even more of a crap shoot, especially if you're trying to factor in cardio burns. The only way to really get a good handle on things is to find out what works. If you're losing weight at a steady pace, keep it up. If not, make some adjustments until you are.

I think having a new year's resolution to work on accepting some uncertainty in your logging could be a wonderful idea. As people have mentioned above, both calories in and calories out are always estimates; there's no way to be 100% accurate in measuring either of those variables. That means you're already living with inaccuracy and uncertainty, but you're sort of artificially convincing yourself that it doesn't exist.

Could you start by doing something like taking one day per week where you don't measure your food so exactly, or eating one meal per week where you can't log it accurately? Keep watching your overall weight trend and adjust if necessary, but purposefully introduce something that can't be logged to the degree of accuracy that you're using now. One meal isn't enough to derail your weight loss (assuming that you make intelligent choices and don't use it as an excuse to overindulge).

Some techniques you could use include:

*Eyeballing or using measuring cups/spoons (still tracking, but more loosely than you are now)
*Choosing an entry that basically matches what you ate (I do this when I eat at independent restaurants that don't post nutritional information -- I just choose basically the same thing but from a chain restaurant and figure that it's more or less accurate)
*Just plain guesstimating and using a Quick Add

I have an interesting observation to add to this post. For my first 6 months on MFP, I didn't own a food scale. I simply logged my best "guestimates" of food portions. Nonetheless, I managed to lose 12 lbs over 3 months using this method, while also going to the gym regularly. I've been on maintenance since September.
For Christmas, I finally received a digital food scale. For curiosity's sake, I spent the last two days checking the weight of ingredients in some of my routine meals (shredded wheat at breakfast and spinach and avocado salad at lunch, for example).
I was surprised by how far off my "guestimates" were. 1 cup of shredded wheat wasn't 47 grams, it was 70! That banana that I thought was 6-6.5 inches long was much smaller once the peel was removed. My 75 gram avocado was actually 100 grams.
In my case, I assume that these mistakes must have evened themselves out over the course of 6 months. I lost the 12 lbs and managed to maintain my weight between 132 and 134 these past few months, although I have to admit that I didn't eat back any of my exercise calories most of the time.
Even so, there's a lesson to be learned here: buy a food scale if you're serious about losing weight. No one can accuse you of being obsessive if you've been trying to cut back on your portions, but just can't seem to make any headway simply by eyeballing it.

I think I am somewhere in between. I am in my maintenance. I also enjoy eating out a few times per month and I know that I cannot know the exact calories in something unless I prepare it myself. I try not not to eat on a whim. If I am going to eat out I like to know what I am going to eat and therefore have some idea of the calories. Sometimes I do feel like I cannot enjoy food because I am thinking of the amount of calories. I do not offer calorie amounts to others, but everyone that knows me knows that I am conscious of calories. It does not bother them though. I do not know why, but the hardest thing for me to enjoy is a big burger and fries. Even if if fits in my calories for the day. I may have one every couple of months if I really want it. For me it also makes it more pleasurable if I do not make decadent food items part of my regular menu. I enjoy them more when I do not have them all the time, but I must have some type of chocolate every day.