Living The Lifestyle ~ Wednesday, January 10, 2018
beachwoman2006
Posts: 1,214 Member
We meet here to explore, share, celebrate, and (sometimes) agonize over how we do (or don't) incorporate weight loss guidelines into our daily lives. "It's a lifestyle, not a diet" is easily and often said, but sometimes not so simply put into practice.
This is a thread for everyone. If you're new to GoaD, or to weight loss, your questions and comments are always welcome. If you're maintaining, or a long-term loser, your thoughts on the topic may be just what someone else needs to hear. If you're reading this, join in the discussion!
Each weekday, a new topic is offered up for discussion. Thread starters for January are:
Monday - GadgetGirlIL (Regina)
Tuesday - 88olds (George)
Wednesday - Beachwoman2006 (Cindy)
Thursday - Imastar2 (Derrick)
Friday - Jimb376mfp (Jim)
Today's Topic: Tips for making this easier. Whether you're counting points (WW) or calories (MFP) or carbs (if you're so inclined), I'm sure you've found some ways to make tracking those things a little easier. Share some tips that you have found make this a little easier for you.
This is a thread for everyone. If you're new to GoaD, or to weight loss, your questions and comments are always welcome. If you're maintaining, or a long-term loser, your thoughts on the topic may be just what someone else needs to hear. If you're reading this, join in the discussion!
Each weekday, a new topic is offered up for discussion. Thread starters for January are:
Monday - GadgetGirlIL (Regina)
Tuesday - 88olds (George)
Wednesday - Beachwoman2006 (Cindy)
Thursday - Imastar2 (Derrick)
Friday - Jimb376mfp (Jim)
Today's Topic: Tips for making this easier. Whether you're counting points (WW) or calories (MFP) or carbs (if you're so inclined), I'm sure you've found some ways to make tracking those things a little easier. Share some tips that you have found make this a little easier for you.
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Sweets are not a problem for me. But put a bag of chips or crackers in front of me and all bets are off. A box of Cheez-Its doesn't stand a chance if the box is in my hands.
I absolutely REFUSE to give these things up, but when I bring them (or potato chips or nacho cheese Doritos) into the house, I immediately bring out the food scale and some ziplock bags. I pre-measure/weigh a SINGLE serving size and put that into a ziplock bag. When I decide that I want a snack of one of those things, I grab ONE ziplock bag and that's it. I'm still able to enjoy my favorite things but in moderation!0 -
I also need to pre-portion out crunchy treats otherwise it turns into 1 big bag = 1 giant serving. My food scale and ziplock bags are my friend.
I'm a creature of habit in terms of what I eat especially on workdays. Thus I can often just copy over the prior days meals to make tracking super fast.0 -
"..ways to make tracking those things a little easier."
Nothing new to add here, but I usually track first thing in the morning,
even pretracking lunch, dinner and snacks.
I can correct it later in the day if I think of it.
But I'm a creature of habit as well so that helps a lot.
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I don't have a lot to add to tips for making it easier but I do like @beachwoman2006 Cindy's approach to placing a serving of the snacks in baggies. I'll have to remember this and do my best to do that. I do try to track ahead of time as @jasper60103 does then correct it later if it changes. I also take advantage of saving a meal then take away or add to that meal kinda works for me as well although I'm not sure you can add to the meal but I know you can take away.
SW 400.8
CW 325.8
Next GW 300.0
Final GW 185.0
75.0 lbs Total lost0 -
I save all of my recipes in the recipe builder so they're ready to be tracked the next time I make them. I also save meals. I like to track first thing in the morning so that I know what to expect food-wise for the day
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I found pen and paper much easier than computer tracking. My little blue book stayed right next to my food scale in the kitchen. All I had to do was remember what I had for lunch. Breakfast, dinner and snacks went right in the book. If we went out, came home, straight to the book.
But I used everything available to crunch numbers. In my last experiment with tracking (successful btw) I sometimes took pictures of what I was eating when away from the kitchen.
After a couple of months, I just knew most of the numbers. I eat the same stuff a lot and it’s pretty basic. Helped.1 -
My hat's off to anyone who can pre-track their meals. I usually have no idea what I'm going to eat from one day to the next. Sometimes I *do* have an idea on a particular day; but not very often. For instance, I've had my breakfast today. But I have no clue what I'll be having for lunch and/or dinner.0
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I do similar thing Cindy does with Cheez-Its, only with meat. I like best to use pre-cooked meat; but, I'll do it with raw meat, also. I usually portion it in 4oz portions. This gives me the flexibility to add an extra portion should I choose to do so. So, I know my portion size, my calories, and my points.0
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"..ways to make tracking those things a little easier."
I like to make a recipe, ie. soup, and divide it into bowls. Then I know how many points are in it and can just heat, eat and track with little effort.
With the new program, I've found it really helpful to always have a 0 or low point dish in the frig. Last week it was chicken chili that was 0 and an egg casserole that I cut into 6 pieces for 1 point each (making it again tomorrow, it's so good!). Having easy to track foods has made the process a lot easier for me.
I also won't track 0 point foods if I'm feeling overwhelmed or just busy. It cuts down on the data I can go back to, but saves effort in the moment, and sometimes that's a good trade off for me.0 -
One other thought, if I buy a new to me snack food, I often write the points on it so I only have to figure it out once.1
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Sometimes when we go out to lunch, I take a picture of my food with my hand in the picture. That way I can log it at home. My hand helps me remember portion size.0
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Tracking is made easier for me if I do it as I go rather than trying to recall it later or do it all at the end of the day. Sure--it's still tracking but I find it easier (and probably more complete) doing it this way. When our internet goes out or I'm at a site that doesn't have a connection (there are a few around here), I use paper and pencil, then transfer it later.
I'm also a 'close enough' tracker. I make a good-faith effort without going overboard. I know myself well enough to know if I get too Type A personality about it, it'll drive me nuts and I'll stop doing it.
Now, with WW's new Freestyle plan, I'm enjoying not tracking the 0-point foods. I eat reasonable servings but enjoy just the little bit more 'normalcy' that I find with not tracking. It's a small but significant change for me.0 -
When I do track, the 'my foods' part of MFP is extremely helpful.
On the 'other' tips for managing the tracking, while I don't re-package any snack foods, I do look for snacky foods (Cheez-Its come to mind) that come in single-serve in their regular version. Many of the 100 cal packs contain a variant of the original that isn't as good. The slightly larger size gives me the food I want in a very manageable quantity. It also helps me more objectively evaluate whether a food is 'worth it.' Case in point: those Brookside chocolate covered berries- after seeing what 100 calories looks like, I no longer buy these. They're tasty, but not that tasty.0 -
those Brookside chocolate covered berries- after seeing what 100 calories looks like, I no longer buy these. They're tasty, but not that tasty.
OMG...tell me about it! I got a package of the dark-chocolate covered pomegrante in my Christmas stocking from my son's girlfriend (probably future daughter-in-law). I couldn't believe how FEW were in a serving size. I *did* eat them spaced out over separate days, but I will NOT be buying them for myself.
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When tracking on WW I found it easier to just have my meals set up as meals and just drag them over for points. Wow Cindy chocolate covered pomegranate sounds wonderful.0
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@podkey You should try them. Brookside has MANY chocolate-covered fruits. They're available at a lot of places -- Walgreen's, Target, Wal-Mart, Trader Joe's and a lot of grocery stores.
They also now have chocolate-covered Chardonnay and Merlot grapes 0
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