Do you have a logging routine?

contingencyplan
contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Sorry if this is the wrong forum but this is the one where it seemed like it would most fit.

I have a rather odd way I log that some of my friends have commented as being unusual.

At the beginning of the day after eating breakfast I log everything I am going to eat throughout the day (lunch, AM snack, PM snack) except for dinner. I try to get as close to my pre-exercise-calorie daily allowance BEFORE dinner which forces me to "earn" dinner by going through my workout routine and earning back calories for dinner as soon as I get home from work for the day.

For example lets say you have a calorie goal of 2k calories. Prepare all your meals in the morning (or the night before) except for dinner. Budget your calories so that you hit your daily total with your mid-afternoon snack, 2k calories. You then have a choice:

1. Eat dinner and do not exercise, which will put you at maintenance

2. Go through a high intensity workout when you get home to earn back the calories to have a really really nice dinner.

3. Go through a moderate workout to earn back just enough calories to eat a 200-300 calorie dinner.

It's odd but it works for me. Anyone else have any similar logging "rituals"?

Replies

  • zombiefarmboy
    zombiefarmboy Posts: 221 Member
    I do wish they had separate snacks. Like Snack 1, Snack 2, Snack 3. I guess you could add that info and times a such to the notes, but it would make it easier to have that in the food section for each meal itself.
  • speakingtall
    speakingtall Posts: 5
    If it works for you, it works!!

    You did get me thinking though about planning out my calories for the day. I've never even thought about that before! I do plan out my meals, but I don't really log the calories or think about how many calories are in the meal until I log them.

    I may try to pre-plan my calories one day next week to see how that works for me! Thanks for the idea!
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
    I do wish they had separate snacks. Like Snack 1, Snack 2, Snack 3. I guess you could add that info and times a such to the notes, but it would make it easier to have that in the food section for each meal itself.

    You can have up to 6 food section names. Go to your Food, then Settings and you can add a snack 2 and snack 3 section for your food diary.
  • sjschewlakow
    sjschewlakow Posts: 120 Member
    I have been starting here and there after breakfast, logging my lunch and dinner. Then I can figure out my snacks for the day. If I exercise then I just have bigger meals or more snacks.
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
    I do wish they had separate snacks. Like Snack 1, Snack 2, Snack 3. I guess you could add that info and times a such to the notes, but it would make it easier to have that in the food section for each meal itself.

    You can have up to 6 food section names. Go to your Food, then Settings and you can add a snack 2 and snack 3 section for your food diary.

    I just redid mine so that it looks like this:

    Breakfast

    Mid-Morning

    Lunch

    Mid-Afternoon

    Dinner (Post-Workout)

    (If Applicable) Evening snack
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
    I just redid mine so that it looks like this:
    I probably should. I've know about that for several months but I just throw everything that's not a meal into the snack bucket. Even post-workout shakes. It's good to know that though if it helps you track food.
  • jutymo
    jutymo Posts: 162 Member
    I do wish they had separate snacks. Like Snack 1, Snack 2, Snack 3. I guess you could add that info and times a such to the notes, but it would make it easier to have that in the food section for each meal itself.
    Mine is set up as BREAKFAST, SNACK (AM), LUNCH, SNACK (PM), DINNER, VITAMINS

    You can change the headings so it says whatever you want it to show.
  • Feed_the_Bears
    Feed_the_Bears Posts: 275 Member
    That sounds like a great plan.

    Most mornings I plan out my day ahead of time, so I don't have to worry about making the wrong decisions not really knowing where I'm at. Even if I don't know what I'm going to eat, I'll often fill the dayparts in with quick calories and get the details later. I'd hate to wind up suprised and have nothing left early in the day. Plus, you have the best intentions in the morning and really considering and planning your day is a good way to stick to them.

    A good sized post work out meal will help you grow muscle and recover from your workout :)
  • jutymo
    jutymo Posts: 162 Member
    I preplan all my meals, usually a week in advance in MFP. I search recipes and find ones I want to try, put them in the food log for a day in the future, fill in with veggies or sides, check frozen foods and leftovers that I have and plug those in. I do this for all meals and snacks. I try to shop on Saturdays after I get my food co-op produce basket each week. It helps me tremendously because I can just open MFP and see what I need to pack for lunch the next day. If I need to cook or prepare for lunch, I do it the night before and pack it the next morning (i.e. tuna salad or boca burger sandwich). I get the stuff I need for dinner out of the freezer if appropriate and then it's thawed by the time I'm ready to cook after work.

    I really think this pre-planning has been a major reason I've been able to stay on track as long as I have and it's allowed me to try new stuff, new recipes, and keep it interesting and fresh vs. a frozen Lean Cuisine every day for lunch and 15-30 minutes of WHAT SHOULD I MAKE FOR DINNER every night as soon as I get home from work.
  • zombiefarmboy
    zombiefarmboy Posts: 221 Member
    I do wish they had separate snacks. Like Snack 1, Snack 2, Snack 3. I guess you could add that info and times a such to the notes, but it would make it easier to have that in the food section for each meal itself.

    You can have up to 6 food section names. Go to your Food, then Settings and you can add a snack 2 and snack 3 section for your food diary.

    D'oh! Awesome! I didn't realize that was even an option.
  • montana_girl
    montana_girl Posts: 1,403 Member
    During the work week, I generally eat the same things for breakfast and snacks, and bring the leftovers from the previous night's dinner for lunch. Because of this I'm able to log my food for the day first thing in the morning. And since hubby makes dinner (healthy dinners since he's on MFP as well), I just put a "quick calorie add" of 350 for dinner until he has it in his food diary and I copy it over.

    This works well for me. I have plan for my day and exercise calories allow me to have a bit more for dinner or a couple of treats during the day. And if my eating plan changes, it's just a quick change in the food diary.

    I have doing this for 5 or 6 months now so it's as routine to me as brushing my teeth. :happy:
  • macnotes
    macnotes Posts: 210 Member
    I've just started pre-planning as well, because I'm measuring things more accurately now so I know I'm eating 1 cup of this or 3 oz of that. So far it's working well, and it's good to not have that totally ravaging look through the fridge for what I want to eat. Because more often than not, it would be a slice of bread with butter and sugar on it.
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
    I' it would be a slice of bread with butter and sugar on it.

    ... and cinnamon. And then you bake it on broil for 5 min.

    Good thing I brought a protein bar for a snack today. Cinnamon toast is a weakness of mine. Well, anything with bread.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
    I'm so OCD, which really helps me with weight loss except when I get perfectionist about it. I log as soon as I eat, or sometimes as soon as I finish cooking. If I forget something, even if it's the next day, I might go back and add it just because it nags at me until I do. But my favorite time to log is when I just sat down at my computer with my plate.

    Edit- Exceptions. I log my all day coffee consumption at the beginning of the day. I also log my trail mix at the beginning even though I'll be eating it all day.
  • cannonsky
    cannonsky Posts: 850 Member
    I plan my food a week at a time.. It's really been working out for me... but then again.. I have a lot of time on my hands

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