Logging Food

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TiffaniBarrett
TiffaniBarrett Posts: 369 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am SO rubbish at logging the foods that I eat!!

As its Monday, I have started logging again, but sometimes I just give up and don't log! It's not that I've failed and started eating 3 full English breakfasts a day and don't want to admit to it, but I just don't log!

Any ideas that will keep me going? xx

Replies

  • Nicolette_Karls
    Nicolette_Karls Posts: 88
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    If you cook you own food, as I sometimes do, I log while it is on the stove or in the oven/microwave. That way the logging is out of the way long before I have a chance to forget. The other thing I do is force myself to log BEFORE I eat, even if I'm out elsewhere. That way, there is no "I can do it later" and then me forgetting. If all else fails, then put a big sticky note by your bed to remind you to log everything before you fall asleep.

    I have problems logging things too, but these little things have really helped me stay on task. Good luck!
  • TiffaniBarrett
    TiffaniBarrett Posts: 369 Member
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    Thanks! I'll try and keep it up for more than a week! :D
  • kendrafallon
    kendrafallon Posts: 1,030 Member
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    Answer this, why do you log food?

    I'm asking, because for me, it's a means of keep track of exactly what I'm eating and to see where I can try and correct bad eating behavious while trying to eat healthly and lose weight while I'm doing so. Also I use it a way of planning ahead.

    Logging food and exercise, does take effort, but it does pay off. :bigsmile:
  • TiffaniBarrett
    TiffaniBarrett Posts: 369 Member
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    I log food for a couple of reasons I think!

    I log it to see what I'm eating, and it will make me feel bad if I put something in there which I should have eaten (like some chocolate or crisps or something)

    Also, I can then see it alongside my exercise - and it shows a better picture of where I am at each day.

    I want to do it, I just don't (which is a lame excuse!!)
  • kendrafallon
    kendrafallon Posts: 1,030 Member
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    In which case, keep persevering. It takes time for something, like food logging, to become habit.
  • Jamiebaby05
    Jamiebaby05 Posts: 47 Member
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    Do you have a phone that allows you to download MFP app? I just got it and now i can log anytime and anywhere so that i don't have to try and remember everything i ate when i get home from work. Its a great tool and makes logging so much easier.
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
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    I find if I stop logging I start eating more and gain. Even if I'm eating bad I still log. I went over yesterday by almost 500 cal.
    ( Birthday Cake) and it was good to see it in black and white. I will do it as long as it's here.
  • jamers615
    jamers615 Posts: 3
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    I log before I eat, too. I find that if I do that, not only do I have my record, but in the case of going out to eat, it forces me to make a better choice BEFORE I get to the restaurant, and I tend to stick to that better choice when I get there, instead of trying to decide while there, and settling on that greasy burger and fries. :p
  • TiffaniBarrett
    TiffaniBarrett Posts: 369 Member
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    I log before I eat, too. I find that if I do that, not only do I have my record, but in the case of going out to eat, it forces me to make a better choice BEFORE I get to the restaurant, and I tend to stick to that better choice when I get there, instead of trying to decide while there, and settling on that greasy burger and fries. :p


    That is so true. Even when I wasn't logging - I kind of already know what the calorific content of a load of foods are so I naturally now make a better choice! Logging before really does help make better choices!

    Just a bit annoying at restaurants, because you can't always get the calorie content of the food to log, and yes you can always try and do it yourself, but you know its never completely right and then I start to worry about it!

    x
  • dargytaylor
    dargytaylor Posts: 840 Member
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    I log first thing in the morning for the whole day.

    Right now it is only 9:54 am on the east coast of the US, and my food journal is basically filled in for the day. Helps me to see where I am at food wise!!
  • TiffaniBarrett
    TiffaniBarrett Posts: 369 Member
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    I log first thing in the morning for the whole day.

    Right now it is only 9:54 am on the east coast of the US, and my food journal is basically filled in for the day. Helps me to see where I am at food wise!!

    That does make sense....but I dont always plan my meals for the entire day :-(
  • opajee
    opajee Posts: 69
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    I just started on MFP but what keeps me logging is keeping a browser with the website up.

    And like dargytaylor I log in the morning for the day. I'm not planning every meal, but putting in the ones I know I'll eat and coming back before the end of the day to complete the rest.
  • trudemeanor
    trudemeanor Posts: 60 Member
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    What makes it easy for me to log my food and exercise is that I have the MFP app on my phone. That way if I'm away from the computer I can quickly put in what I ate or what exercise ive completed. I admit that sometimes i just plan to forget to log my food. I'm trying to do better at it hence the MFP app on my phone.
  • jbootman
    jbootman Posts: 145 Member
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    Dr Oz and drs that take weight loss seriously strongly recommend that track be kept for a variety of reasons,

    it is very helpful to see where you tend to have problems, early in the day, late night, snacking, weekends,

    then there is the composition of your cravings, salty, sweet, fatty, all three,

    how much fiber, how many veg etc,

    after a few days of just keeping my computer up and a window for entries up I realized another thing,

    that I was malnourished, yes hundreds of pounds of starvation !!!!!

    so I did a google on low calorie foods, not my favorite of course, I did a google on high fiber foods, a google on low fat foods,

    and because I just really love to eat I made a list of foods I really would eat that were high fiber, low calorie, low fat, and low in sodium,

    then made an ideal day, this I did by going out a few months in my food diary and tweeking, half a cup here, half a cup there,

    I also composed my regular breakfast and regular lunch, yes boring, but a way to handle my day,

    I am practically draconian in my breakfasts and lunches, THE SAME EVERY DAY, I found the lowest calorie highest fiber breakfast cereal: FIBER ONE, and lowest milk:ALMOND MILK, these are my choices, maybe hard boiled egg whites,

    my recent love, tomatoes,

    if you plan your breakfasts and lunches then dinner is easier to budget for,

    this is a lifetime diet, not just one to lose 10 pounds,

    I did not get this size eating correctly, I have to relearn how to eat
  • maru84
    maru84 Posts: 128
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    Log in the evening for the next day- plan out what you're going to eat and don't be afraid of repetition. You'll more than likely follow what you planned!!
  • wftiger
    wftiger Posts: 1,283 Member
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    I log mine either the day before or plan the entire day first thing in the morning. That way no guessing what to have for lunch and no yucky supper because I ate too much for lunch.
  • rockann16
    rockann16 Posts: 885 Member
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    I log about 3 times a day. If I don't I forget where I'm at for the day with calories and end up overeating. Plus I'm a visual person and like seeing the calories burned and the calories eaten in black and white. It keeps me much more motivated to make good choices. When I first started I would be hesitant to log the "bad" stuff...but I quickly realized that just because I didn't log it didn't mean I didn't eat it. :smile: Plus seeing how many calories I have left at a certain point of the day makes me reconsider some of those not so good choices. Hope you are able to find your groove with the logging. :happy:
  • TiffaniBarrett
    TiffaniBarrett Posts: 369 Member
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    Log in the evening for the next day- plan out what you're going to eat and don't be afraid of repetition. You'll more than likely follow what you planned!!

    See, that's what is different to me!
    I HATE repetition, and that is the thing that will send me off track! If i'm doing the same thing every day!

    I do, however, have to eat at the same times every day - so I do stick to a routine!

    I logged everything yesterday - so go me!! :-)
  • AndrewTub
    AndrewTub Posts: 86 Member
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    I log on my fitness pal iphone app it's so handy !

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