MFP Alumni - just wondering...
Options
Replies
-
I'm a long time logger - don't remember when I started but it's more than 10 years. I like having the control for times like this "stay at home". I had to adjust my calories because of less activity. Easily done. I also like watching that I am getting the veggies and fruit in and not too much sugar. Obviously it is a habit now and takes less than five minutes. Much less time than on Facebook and much better for me!1
-
I've been maintaining 30+ years (not counting pregnancy) and tracking calories 7 or 8 years. Honestly, if I ever found an easier way for me to maintain than logging, I would do that instead. Logging with online tools is --by far-- the easiest least time consuming most effective way to maintain I've tried yet. A couple minutes a day. Clear feedback.
Sure I slack from time to time. Vacations, life disruptions, depressed spells, whatever. But when my weight creeps up, I go back to it. And it works.6 -
I’ve just started logging again after trying to go solo for 6 months. I only put back 5-8lbs, but this whole lockdown and working from home has made it so hard I decided I needed to see what was going on. It is so much easier. I use a lot of estimating, but it has highlighted that my portion control had crept out of whack.3
-
I got serious in 2009 and lost ~80 pounds by 2014. I still track food and activity....I love the freedom of CICO and if I can eat what I love and still stay in Zone, I'm doing it. Tracking is less of a pain than "guesstimating" and gaining weight. Worth it and part of my lifestyle...it's never a diet!3
-
I have logged every day since May 2018. This saw me through a 100 lb loss, and since October 2019, pretty steady maintenance of that loss. I can't see myself stopping the logging habit either. For like 10 min a day, I am armed with all the knowledge and mindfulness I need to stick to an average calorie target with really good consistency, and make sure I give myself room for fun foods.5
-
For me, logging is a pretty easy habit. It's entirely possible that it's already served its purpose and that I am familiar enough with the foods I usually eat to stay within bounds, and that the scale would reveal any deviations. However, I feel like it's also an accountability tool - knowing I have to look at cold, hard numbers is sometimes enough to dissuade eating something that I ought not.2
-
In maintenance for 10 years. I had been inconsistently weighing and logging for a couple years skipping logging all together on vacation or when eating out. Logging was never something that I enjoyed doing or a habit that I embraced.
On 2/11, and before the sheltering and pandemic took hold of our lives, I fell down and broke my wrist. I was on a cast for 9 weeks and I am still doing occupational therapy, my hand is not "working" normally yet. I stopped weighing my food and logging (with the exception of breakfast) because it was hard to do with one hand, and I was not in the mood to add additional stress. Stress curbs my appetite and I ended losing 5 unwanted lbs.
Bottom line is that I am not longer logging lunch, dinner or snacks, my wt has been steady after I recuperated almost 3 lbs for the 5 lbs that I had lost, and I am planning NOT to log for as long as I am able to keep my weight under control.
If I see an upward trend, then I will probably go back to the kitchen scale and the food diary. But it has been very liberating for me to realize that I can manage food and portions on my own.
4 -
I've been tracking since early 2012. Everyday. Lost over 80 pounds and I've kept it off and maintained for over 7 years. I keep a 10 pound range that I maintain year round.
Over the years things have changed and I've made adjustments, but the one constant thing that has remained is that I plan and track my meals. Tracking also help me to fit in things I enjoy.
For me it's an easy thing to do, it doesn't take long at all and it helps me to stay in control and keeps the weight off.8 -
I run hot & cold with logging. Sometimes I just can't bear to do it anymore, so I quit, and eat intuitively. That generally works well for awhile, and then I find some bad habit and it stops working, so I'm back to logging. These are long stretches of time, months to a year. And that's okay. I guess since 2014 I've used MFP, but my logging goes back over most my long lifetime. I don't log when traveling (camping), and I lose weight anyway on the road, as food is less accessible. I don't fluctuate more than about 5 pounds, but it's a very noticeable 5 pounds! Also, it's handy because I have some incipient health issues that can be handled by diet, so it helps me track that. Let's call it a bank statement--deposits & withdrawals! Hahahaha! I find if I concentrate on studiously logging high-calorie or problem foods, I don't have to be precise at all with my fruits & veggies. I still measure all high-calorie or problem foods even when not logging to stay cognizant of my portion sizes, which are internalized now. And DH & I do not eat out much, even when when we could. (I crash-dieted off 20 lbs when I was about 22, swearing I would NEVER weigh that much again--except pregnancy--and after that have see-sawed a bit within a 10 lb range, except when I lost too much weight for about a year--oh, that's not good either! And have narrowed that down to a good spot now. And then there's wanting to be trim for sports to keep pressure off joints . . .)1
-
Been using MFP for a total of 7 yrs over 8 yrs -- 3+4 yrs combined w/a 1 yr hiatus when I fell off the wagon and gained wt again because I renewed bad eating habits stopped using MFP for the year.
This taught me that I can only maintain my wt by BOTH weighing myself and counting cals daily, which I do not consider a burden but a necessity for my health and well-being.4 -
I would consider myself reactive. I stay below 170 lbs, and as long as I'm there, I don't log. But I do eat mindfully and have a pretty good eye for it now. If I ever creep above 170, I focus more and use MFP tracking, until I'm back below 170. This way I'm not ALWAYS tracking, but I will if I need to.1
-
Started in 2014. Come / go based on life circumstances.
Logging is an enormously helpful tool, however, I log on rare occasions but mostly do not. No right or wrong answer. Whatever works best for you is the only right answer for you.1 -
About one year on and then I took three months off and now I'm back on. It helps me make the right choice such as getting a 400 calorie sandwich rather than 700 calorie sandwich. I also weigh myself everyday so I can see my weekly weight cycle which increases from Sunday to Wednesday and then decreases down to Saturday. This way I don't pschye myself out over my normal fluxauations.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.3K Introduce Yourself
- 43.4K Getting Started
- 259.6K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 387 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.2K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.2K MyFitnessPal Information
- 22 News and Announcements
- 913 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions