In Maintenance, coming off logging calories?

stuffinmuffin · April 2012

Has anyone stepped away from logging calories after following the MFP programme to their goal?

I've been in maintenance since around October last year and have been on MFP for nearly, exactly a year. It's been fantastic, I am thinner and healthier than I have probably ever been before. I also have up smoking in January 2011 so a huge turnaround of my health in general.

However when I signed up to do this I knew that would not want to be 'logging for life'. I wanted to use this to gain the tools to have a healthy and knowledgable approach to food. Considering the things I have learned over the past year:
Calorie counts off the top of my head for an abundance of meals and foods.
Portion control.
Value of regular exercise.
A catalogue of healthier food options when picking off menus or in the supermarket.

I found that logging in maintenance was becoming a bit disheartening, very restrictive and has me obsessing over food when I no longer wanted to be paying too much attention to it. I was also often eating for the sake of it and eating rubbish to hit my calorie targets. I had also forgotten the last time I ever actually felt hungry.

So not quite a week ago I have stopped logging what I eat on here. I am however determined not to gain weight and I realise this is the start of another learning process! I am writing down what I eat on a notepad, without the calorie amounts also noting if I was hungry, whether I ate it all/enjoyed it etc. Keeping a log is keeping me accountable but I feel more like I'm listening to my body more than 'playing a numbers game'. I have also so far made good, possibly better decisions, going for the healthy option every time.
I also found in maintenance (and quite a lot through weight loss) that I don't live to a pattern on eating a set amount of calories every day and would often zig-zag but then end up berating myself for going over my allotted calories. I was also eating more on days that I simply wasn't hungry just because I had spare calories available and making rubbish food choices to fill them.

So, baby steps but I'm finding it interesting again and aiming for a lifelong healthy and educated relationship with food. I also bought a couple of pairs of size 6 jeans at the weekend so if nothing else is going to keep me on the straight and narrow then those will! ; )

Has anyone else come off logging the calories? If so any thoughts/advice? Did it not work for some of you?

I was concerned that without working towards calorie burns - exercise would lose it's appeal, but thankfully a knee injury seems to have healed and I can again run, working to distance rather than 'food I can eat'.

dls06 · April 2012

I have been maintaining for about a year and a half but still log everyday. It keeps me from getting too comfortable. I'll keep logging as long as it here.

chachadiva150 · April 2012

Obsessing about anything isn't good. In maintenance, I think the key is to avoid mindless eating and inactivity. You still need to be aware of what you're putting in your body and if you are staying active. If you can do that without logging, fine.

A BIG thing you will need to do is to keep weighing yourself on a regular basis and determine a "whoa" amount of weight gain. If your "whoa" level is 10 pounds and you gain that back, you say "whoa, I'm going back to logging and keeping my diary again until I lose the 10 pounds."

People regain weight because they don't choose to stop the weight gain when it's only 5-10 pounds. Gaining some weight back is inevitable because the body natural fluctuates. Just stop it before it gets over 10 pounds.

FITnFIRM4LIFE · April 2012

I have been maintaining for 10 months and log daily except Sunday. I know I have it down to size and portion etc. Logging just works for me, keeps me focused.I am also a creature of habit;-)

Fay84Vegan · April 2012

I think everything you have said makes sense!

You're keeping track of your eating daily and you've learnt portion control and healthy eating whilst you've been using MFP.

If loggin everyday is working against you now, then it's best to do what works best for you.

Logging everyday for the rest of my life sounds a bit intense for me... but it might work for some people.

Once i ger to my goal weight / size i'm probably not going to log everyday because by then i would have hopefully learnt what you have. Portion control, healthy meal options and just to keep a day to day eye on what i'm eating and how much.

Good job on keeping up with the exercise too.. For me exercise is a part of my life.

:flowerforyou:

Robin1117 · April 2012

Hi! I have been maintaining for awhile but still log regularly. I have some maintaining friends who have been trying to wean themselves off of logging and then afterwards tend to always come back to it, so I have yet to take the plunge (although it's tempting).

To get rid of the obsessing in maintenance, I average my calories for the week to reach a certain goal. The ability to zig-zag, like you said you have been doing is such a relief. This makes it so that I don't have to obsess day to day about being over or under a few days/week....my days are really all over the place but I generally end up on plan. And if I don't, sometimes this gives me good information as to whether you can increase your maintenance calories or not. Also, I like tracking my macros, like protein, carbs, etc.....

I also have stopped weighing myself, because I find this makes me obsess more than I like on a daily basis. The key to staying the same weight for me is always having some tough exercise goals to focus on. And also, give away any bigger clothing so that I only fit into my maintenance size, fitted clothes--if those get tight, it's a problem. I have to reel it in. If they fit, I'm on target.

I so wish I wasn't dependent on logging and the prospect of doing this forever is a little grim, but mfp is such a great tool, I can use is as strictly or loosely as I want depending on my goals so have been continuing to work with it.

I would also love to hear about some others who do not log and are finding success.....

cardbucfan · April 2012

I've been maintaining for the past year and stayed within 3 lbs. of my goal weight but I do still log pretty religiously. I have lost weight before but I always put it back on and I really, really like to eat! Doing this forever seems daunting when you put it like that but it's a habit for me and it's no big deal to log stuff. I still weigh myself and actually have decided I'd like to lose a few more then start heavy lifting. I know you're not supposed to care about the number on the scale but I do and I know heavy lifting will cause that number to increase. I'm not ready for that psychologically so if I lose a few more, then it goes back up to where it is now, I'll be O.K. with that. I'm pyscho I know! You've got to do what works for you though and everybody is different.

stuffinmuffin · April 2012

Thanks for all the comments. It's interesting to see how many people remain logging. x

robinogue · April 2012

I was scared to move myself into maintenance but I knew it was time. Finally did and then I started obsession with what I was eating, this has to many calories, that had too many calories. At the end of the day I was barely eating anything so I went fully into maintenance and stopped logging my calories. I'm on week 3 or not logging and finally stepped on the scale. Things are working out great, I have maintained my current weight and will continue to not log.

kdiamond · April 2012

I've been maintaining for years, but I still log. It keeps me accountable. While I can pretty much rattle off the calories in any given food by memory since I've been doing it so long, sometimes I need to make sure I'm eating ENOUGH.

I don't log every day though. 5 times a week usually.

halexgsd · April 2012

My Plan is to log calories until I'm a month or two into maintenance, then I'll continue to log my weight. I figure it's the best way to keep it honest. If the weight goes up I'll get back to logging calories until it's back until control

Butterfly3730 · April 2012

Good for you for finding what works best for YOU! Congrats! :drinker:

iqnas · April 2012

If not on MFP, then I'll always subliminally be logging in my head..

montana_girl · April 2012

I am writing down what I eat on a notepad, without the calorie amounts also noting if I was hungry, whether I ate it all/enjoyed it etc. Keeping a log is keeping me accountable but I feel more like I'm listening to my body more than 'playing a numbers game'. I have also so far made good, possibly better decisions, going for the healthy option every time.

^^ I hope to get to the point where I can do this and not worry about the numbers. This is an awesome way to stay on track without playing the numbers game!

I'm in maintenance now and I continue to log everyday, though I don't beat myself up if I'm over or under my calories as long as I come close to "breaking even" at the end of the week.

mes1119 · April 2012

I switched to maintenance. I would LIKE to lose 10-15 more pounds but I am happy with where I am now. I'm still working out and making good decisions, I just have a lot of stress from my life from school and work and I need to focus on that and not obsessing over what I eat.

I've still been losing weight even though I log maybe 3 times a week. I'm trying to get back into it though.

Onesnap · April 2012

Ok. So I lost 20 pounds in 2011 and reached my goal in September 2011. I did it nice and slow.

I switched over to maintenance. Added some pounds on. Had my annual physical in December and I was up 10 lbs.

At the start of 2012 I'm back to my settings I was at and climbing back to my goal that I reached last fall. I don't want to do this every single year, but it was a lesson learned.

Maintenance cals are too high for me because I gain at that number. I'm 1660 to maintain. 1460 to lose .5/week. 1260 to lose 1lb/week.

SPNLuver83 · April 2012

I don't think you are gonna get any real responses from people who don't log... They would have to log in to see this post, and if they log in they are still logging in... lol

Onesnap · April 2012

I don't think you are gonna get any real responses from people who don't log... They would have to log in to see this post, and if they log in they are still logging in... lol

Not true. Some folks still use the program without logging food or they go through phases where they log food and don't. I learned the hard way that I need to log even after reaching my goals.

Laura80111 · April 2012

So glad to see so many on Maintenance and succeeding. Me I FAILED at maintenance:sad: I did great for about 6 months and then a little at a time it came back over a 9mo period...now I'm back here at MFP and much wiser...

When I once again reach my goal I WILL:

Log my food
Log my exercise
Log my water
Weigh myself

Because once I stopped doing those things is when I forgot to do what I knew to keep it off and I guess you could say I "believed what people said"....that it didn't look like I had gained any weight...but you know my clothes knew better:noway: and now I know what is right all the time....log food, exercise and drink plenty of water:drinker:

I'll see you all in maintenance in a few months

redbekah · April 2012

Saving for later.

In Maintenance, coming off logging calories?

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