How do you stay on track w/o counting calories and excessive

eliotta
eliotta Posts: 15
edited October 4 in Health and Weight Loss
I don't want to count calories my whole life, or even more than a month, truth to be told. I usually get too absorbed and obsess over each morsel of food that I ate. But I want a sustainable lifestyle change, I want to be "intuitively" able to watch what and how much I eat, not spend half my life logging in my intake.
Does any of you have experience with just eating healthy without counting and thinking too much about it? How do you make yourself stay on track?

Replies

  • mrsfoose
    mrsfoose Posts: 59
    As Jillian would say, "if it didn't have roots or a mother don't eat it."
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
    After you do it for awhile --- you learn A LOT. I probably don't need to track anymore since I tend to be a creature of habit most of the time, but I actually enjoy doing it.

    Eventually you just learn which type of thing to order in a restaurant, how to make better choices, good things to substitute for bad things etc....
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    As Jillian would say, "if it didn't have roots or a mother don't eat it."

    So you cut things out, tasty things. This may lead to cravings, and make the whole process a lot more unpleasant. Eventually you may cave in, and binge, and be back to square one.

    As a great person once said "Everything in moderation, including moderation".

    I would never say cut anything out.
  • ksukowat
    ksukowat Posts: 2
    I think the idea is that after a month or six weeks or however long of doing this religiously - you gain the intuition you're talking about. At least, that's been my experience. If I do this for six weeks and REALLY DO IT - putting in even the pounds of Halloween candy that I feel guilty about - I know what my body needs and I know when I've gone too far. Dedicate yourself to a certain amount of time and be religious about it. The rest will come, I promise.
  • Shawn_Marie
    Shawn_Marie Posts: 307 Member
    After you do it for awhile --- you learn A LOT. I probably don't need to track anymore since I tend to be a creature of habit most of the time, but I actually enjoy doing it.

    Eventually you just learn which type of thing to order in a restaurant, how to make better choices, good things to substitute for bad things etc....


    I agree - I now know what I should and should not be eating but I also look forward to logging food and exercise.
  • Shawn_Marie
    Shawn_Marie Posts: 307 Member
    After you do it for awhile --- you learn A LOT. I probably don't need to track anymore since I tend to be a creature of habit most of the time, but I actually enjoy doing it.

    Eventually you just learn which type of thing to order in a restaurant, how to make better choices, good things to substitute for bad things etc....


    I agree - I now know what I should and should not be eating but I also look forward to logging food and exercise.
  • sc1572
    sc1572 Posts: 2,309 Member
    I could try not logging and just doing it mentally...but honestly, I HAVE to log...it forces me to take responsibility and helps so much!
  • ashnm88
    ashnm88 Posts: 748
    Moderation, exercise and weekly weigh in.
  • midwifekelley2350
    midwifekelley2350 Posts: 337 Member
    i think you will have to count periodically...when i journal, i measure things, etc and when i don't journal i tend to not. i have noticed serving sizes getting a litle bigger, maybe eating a baby reese cup here and there since i don't have to write it down. overall, i don't go crazy when i don't journal but i do find that 5 lbs creeps on when i don't.
  • estepteau
    estepteau Posts: 146
    I think you should track for a couple of months. We are creatures of habit and you will eventually just pick the right foods and portion sizes without tracking. Thats how it is for me now. For my last 15lbs I didnt track I just made wise choices and splurged once a week. It really can be done. Good Luck!
  • tasnim81
    tasnim81 Posts: 91 Member
    I think counting calories and logging teaches you to eat healthy. Maybe after some time you'll make those healthy choices automatically, because you learned what you can eat and what you shouldn't.

    As for me, I'll continue logging even after reaching my goal.. I think I need that to keep myself on track.
  • bluegem87
    bluegem87 Posts: 15 Member
    i have no urge to "diet" i pretty much am chosing to eat whatever i feel the need to, however i have started excersizing up to 4x a week for atleast an hour with strenght & cardio.

    cant say how well it will work, but i can say i feel alot less guilty eating my mom's cooking :)
  • H_Factor
    H_Factor Posts: 1,722 Member
    Once you log for a while and understand what foods and which calories, you don't necessarily need to log anymore. I did WW the first quarter of the year and I stopped logging after 10 days....but that was because I wasn't coming close to my max points and figured out what to eat. However, I don't mind logging on MFP. I have found that logging foods makes me more accountable to myself. Staying accountable to myself helps me overcome stumbling blocks and avoid complacency. I had hit a lull before joining MFP and joining MFP (and logging my foods) has helped me stay focused most days.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I'm 50 yo and have been at a healthy weight most of my life. I never counted calories until joining this site, but once I started I didn't make any changes to my diet.

    For me, jjust thinking about whether a food is good for me or not works. Eating healthy foods keeps my body fueled and full. I don't follow any strict diet and do have the occasional splurge (family gatherings, parties, etc.) but on a day to day basis I just eat healthy and exercise regularly. Exercise is very important for health and for "earning" enough calories to feel satisfied.
  • aliciamille
    aliciamille Posts: 43
    I gave up logging calories for Lent last year because I felt like it was taking over my life. I reached my goal weight and I became obsessed with staying there so every time I felt I ate too much, I felt like a failure. Staying off MFP for a bit taught me to listen to my body instead of staring at that number all day and watching the number go down with everything I ate.

    I didn't gain any weight at the end of Lent, and one thing that never changed the whole time was my love of eating (lol). What I do to ensure I stay on track without having to count obsessively is find foods and forms of exercise that MY body responds to.

    I strength train 2 days a week and do cardio 5 days a week minimum (sometimes its 6). I have understood that cardio alone or strength alone won't work for me if I want to enjoy the foods I like and be thin at the same time. That's how I was able to figure it out.

    Once you find that balance for YOU, you wont have to be on MFP all the time.
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
    I don't want to count calories my whole life, or even more than a month, truth to be told. I usually get too absorbed and obsess over each morsel of food that I ate. But I want a sustainable lifestyle change, I want to be "intuitively" able to watch what and how much I eat, not spend half my life logging in my intake.
    Does any of you have experience with just eating healthy without counting and thinking too much about it? How do you make yourself stay on track?

    I think this is a strange question on a site that is designed as a calorie and exercise diary. For most people, if they could do it "intuitively" they wouldn't have ended up here in the first place.
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    Once you stop counting, I would still come back periodically - have a set time like once a month or whatever works - and log what you're eating. That will give you an idea of whether you've been eating the right amount, or whether old habits have crept back in.
  • eliotta
    eliotta Posts: 15
    Thank you all so much! I decided to log for a bit, maybe a week or two more, and then try and just plan out my meals the night before on paper, so I'd know when to soak beans or things like that. I pretty much have the idea what contains what nutrients (though I still have trouble with calcium and iron, and we don't have fortified anything here...sigh) and how much do I need in a day of what.

    Btw, the reason why I don't want to log my food for too long is because I've suffered from eating disorder once and I'd rather be fat than go through that hell again. Because I've gained weight bingeing when recovering, I've hoped I could maybe return and learn to eat right and achieve my dream body without obsessing.
  • 0PhAtDaDdY
    0PhAtDaDdY Posts: 569 Member
    I don't want to count calories my whole life, or even more than a month, truth to be told. I usually get too absorbed and obsess over each morsel of food that I ate. But I want a sustainable lifestyle change, I want to be "intuitively" able to watch what and how much I eat, not spend half my life logging in my intake.
    Does any of you have experience with just eating healthy without counting and thinking too much about it? How do you make yourself stay on track?

    Not wanting to count the calories now and log everything says to me you are lazy..If you have no Accountability you are doomed and will fail...You seem to be looking for others to say it's ok do da best you can..... Not happing from me...I need accountability for a year then re ask the question... Good Luck
  • shakybabe
    shakybabe Posts: 1,578 Member
    When I first started 'dieting' I was amazed at the calories in stuff and it took me ages to lose a small amount.

    I decided to cut out gluten and go low carb.. I didn't want to cut bread all together so switched to gluten free and allow it a couple of times a week. I still allow chips or jacket potato but not both and not more than once a week.

    I found the diet has greatly helped my water retention I only put on 1 lb through day in water whereas previously it was 3-6lbs a day. If I allow bread one day I don't also have carbs with dinner on same day and don't have any day after.. I found if I do this my weight doesn't go back to fluctuating so wildly. Just to experiment I went back to eating carbs several days in a row for some comparison and by the third day my weight had gone up by 5lb at end of day again... a few days of really low carb brought it back down again so was changing by 1lb a day.

    I find on low carb day I struggle to get to 1200 cals and have an idea of how many cals it is on days I allow a bacon sandwich for lunch or allow a few roasties and a yorkshire pud with sunday dinner without counting every single calorie... even when I just got to have chocolate from monthly cravings.

    If you having a big meal one day,, stick with fruit and veg and low cal things rest of day. most calories come from deep fried food and sauces that have loads of cream and stuff in them. White meat and fish will be less calories than red meat. etc.. so should give you an idea for working out lower calorie items on a menu. I think if you do a little exercise everyday you won't put loads of weight on form the occasional big meal. .. and well done for getting over an Eating Disorder once!
  • kmbrooks15
    kmbrooks15 Posts: 941 Member
    I will continue to log at least until I reach my goal weight. Then, I'm going to have to figure out maintenance, so I'll probably log for at least 3 months of maintenance. Then I may just every couple months log for a week just to see how I'm doing. The accountability never hurts, and it's not like I have to pay for MFP. When I have a free tool at my disposal, I will take advantage of it!
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Not wanting to count the calories now and log everything says to me you are lazy..If you have no Accountability you are doomed and will fail...You seem to be looking for others to say it's ok do da best you can..... Not happing from me...I need accountability for a year then re ask the question... Good Luck

    So, because you can't do it without logging that makes everyone who doesn't log lazy and doomed?? Yeah, right.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    I think you just need to be open to learning as you go and be conscious of nutrition labels (if available where you are). After about two years, I've been able to handle my weekends very well by having a general idea of how many calories are in the things I eat on a regular basis. I try to just go by how I feel - eat when I'm hungry, keep myself busy and away from the kitchen when I just want to nibble. I do write everything down but don't log my foods here until Monday morning. Some weekends are worse than others as social events and such come up but for the most part, I'm able to stay pretty close to my goals. To me, that means I'm getting a hold on making betting eating habits which for me, is huge!

    It's a learning process. If you're worried about obsessing, maybe just log for a week or two, try it out on your own and if you think you need to get a handle on things again, come back and log for another week or two. Hopefully I'm not over simplifying...no real experience with eating disorders (or not that end of the spectrum anyway, more like binging and overeating).
  • 0PhAtDaDdY
    0PhAtDaDdY Posts: 569 Member
    Not wanting to count the calories now and log everything says to me you are lazy..If you have no Accountability you are doomed and will fail...You seem to be looking for others to say it's ok do da best you can..... Not happing from me...I need accountability for a year then re ask the question... Good Luck

    So, because you can't do it without logging that makes everyone who doesn't log lazy and doomed?? Yeah, right.

    Exactly
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
    I have to be obsessive about it. Otherwise my brain tells me I am hungry all the time. If I know how many calories I have it copes better.
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
    I'm not at my goal weight yet, but I'm close, and I've realized that I need to allow myself to relax a little on the weekends and it may actually help my weight loss goals. I've tried counting on my "cheat days" but I think my attitude about it is a little unhealthy (eating disorderish). Counting calories on cheat days takes the joy out of it for me, and I even cheat on my long run days (10+ miles) so I have plenty of room. I think it would be healthier for me to log and be good during the week, let myself do whatever the heck I want on saturdays when I do my long run, and then eat healthy but just listen to my body on sundays. So starting this week, I'm going to try not to log calories on the weekends and practice listening to my body more. If it doesn't work, I'll go back to logging, but I don't like when I get too anal about it. I also figure this is something I can commit to sticking with after I reach my goal weight (logging during the week, and not on the weekends).
  • eliotta
    eliotta Posts: 15
    Not wanting to count the calories now and log everything says to me you are lazy..If you have no Accountability you are doomed and will fail...You seem to be looking for others to say it's ok do da best you can..... Not happing from me...I need accountability for a year then re ask the question... Good Luck

    So, because you can't do it without logging that makes everyone who doesn't log lazy and doomed?? Yeah, right.

    Exactly
    Please don't call me lazy and doomed because I don't want to count calories. I don't want to get my eating disorder back and instead, I would like to live a happy, fulfilled life. If you think people have to obsess about every damn calorie in order to be happy with themselves, then I disagree with you. I value my mental health more than a size smaller jeans, and also I believe that I can achieve both by just keeping things in moderation.
    Please think before you write something, because your worlds are hurtful, even though you might not realize it.
  • ktsdad
    ktsdad Posts: 15 Member
    If I could eat healthy and exercise without logging, I wouldn't have gotten fat in the first place. Maybe once I do it long enough, it will be such a habit, I won't need to log, but for the foreseable future, I need MFP. If you don't need to log, great, but like others said, "why are you on a site based on food and fitness logs?"
  • 0PhAtDaDdY
    0PhAtDaDdY Posts: 569 Member
    Not wanting to count the calories now and log everything says to me you are lazy..If you have no Accountability you are doomed and will fail...You seem to be looking for others to say it's ok do da best you can..... Not happing from me...I need accountability for a year then re ask the question... Good Luck

    So, because you can't do it without logging that makes everyone who doesn't log lazy and doomed?? Yeah, right.

    Exactly
    Please don't call me lazy and doomed because I don't want to count calories. I don't want to get my eating disorder back and instead, I would like to live a happy, fulfilled life. If you think people have to obsess about every damn calorie in order to be happy with themselves, then I disagree with you. I value my mental health more than a size smaller jeans, and also I believe that I can achieve both by just keeping things in moderation.
    Please think before you write something, because your worlds are hurtful, even though you might not realize it.

    Forums are asking for opinions I just try to give the best opinion that I have about the subject. The person asking for the opinion has to review all the answers r opinions and move foward in the direction they choose. It's surely ok to have different opinions than others. I don't mind anyone having a different opinion than mind it makes life Healthy..I never type anything that would be hateful, but direct opinion I will share if anyone asks....You think one way I think another that's GREAT! I'm ok with it...Now hopefully they can report back in 6 months they did not list calories and lost decent weight I'll be more than happy to be wrong...If they lost weight and I was wrong I'll be very proud for them...Take care...
  • eliotta
    eliotta Posts: 15
    I'm sorry I was so rude, I re-read this and I'm ashamed of myself. I had a bad mood yesterday, and I always get way too touchy-feely when it comes to EDs.
    I definitely do need MFP now, I just don't want to need it forever.
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