Does anyone not track their calories? I'm an on and off again tracker. What I've noticed is when I track my calories throughout the day, I obsess a d eat my max calorie allowance. If I don't track throughout the day, I'll do it before bed because I'm curious. But I notice I only eat like 600-700 calories. My mind likes to play evil tricks on me! Thoughts?

I think the key is that we find a way to keep ourselves accountable - be it the scale or MFP or whatever. Unfortunately, I know that for me, even WITH the surgery, I will never be one of those people who can just eat "whatever" and not worry about it and maintain a weight loss. Period. I am still a ways from goal, but I use MFP faithfully, and I know that I will need to do this (or something similar) for the rest of my life to keep things on track. The surgery was IMMENSELY helpful, but as we have all discovered, it is NOT a magic pill that takes away obesity forever no matter what. We will have to be vigilant about our weight for the rest of our lives. Obesity is a disease that way - and it is always lurking around the corner, ready to pounce. I hate the fact that I need to be obsessive about it, but it's a choice - be obsessive about some accountability, or accept that the weight will come back.

Ok, I'm back on MFP! Add me Nicolanz27!

I track on MFP too. I do it right after I eat or drink something. In fact, the first time I went to lunch with my daughter I pulled out my phone and tracked after I ate even before the bill came to the table. She was curious and she now uses MFP and so do her friends at the salon she works at. She hasn't had WLS, but wants to eat healthier and drop a few lbs. She's even walking with me.

I haven't gone over my daily calories, or carbs since the surgery. It's helpful to me because if I'm low on calories after my dinner meal, I know to have a healthy snack to get me closer to my daily allowance.

It's also helpful for when I meet with my NUT every 8 weeks so she can gauge how I'm doing with my food choices, etc.

I really am amazed that people get to have REGULAR consultations with a nutritionist. I had ONE before surgery and then surgery and then, boom! VST, here I come! LOL Luckily, I'm a quick learner.

I track, but I track a lot of things in my work so to me it isn't a big deal. It keeps me accountable and I am really interested in the nutritional value of different foods, so it helps with that. Also, my nutritionist has access to my MFP account is always leaving me notes there anyway and I get texts from her if I am not tracking things. I think she's starting to stalk, but that's a whole different movie of the week.

That "stalking" thing would kinda irritate me! Lol

I have LEARNED to be a tracker. The hard way! No tracking, no real commitment for several months of grazing and yep, regained 20+ lbs. NOW, I'm a fanatic for MFP and accountability for me. Have lost 18 pounds, just a few more to get back to original goal at 3years out. I found out for me, I'm going to have to. Saying that, I hope I don't fall back into bad habits once I'm "there!" I tend to relax after I've reach a goal so, hmm, I'll have to think up something else to keep me - like losing BEFORE I go on my November cruise so I won't be a blimp when I get back!!!! Ha!

I used to track sort of sporadically in maintenance. Just a few days in a random week (and no adjusting my diet to make it look good!) to make sure I was still doing alright and not eating far more than my estimate.

The scale is my real indicator of what's up when I'm in maintenance.

But in loss? I'm another "pre-logger" and I start my day by logging my planned meals on MFP, adjusting as needed. It does two things. One, it keeps me accountable and lets me know up front if I have the flex for a splurge or if I need an extra snack. Two, it takes away the food stress and lets me focus on other things.

If I don't log my food, I think about it all day. I find myself in the kitchen between meals or Snacks peeking in the fridge just because I'm bored and I know there's food in there. When I log first thing I don't have to think about it or wing it and risk poor choices. I just grab what I planned on eating when it's time and move along. It's much easier. I should definitely do it each month during my cycle, because that's when I'm most prone to grazing all day long (on junk, naturally!) and "forgetting" to log my food.

I couldn't do this (loss thing) without logging. For maintenance I think it's a great tool, too, though I rely more on the scale and my clothes. The easiest way to regain is to slip into denial about what/how much you're eating and to avoid the scale at the same time.

~Cheri

I realize how important it is now during weight loss. Especially after 6 months when you can eat a lot more! Planning is a good idea, I'll try to do that too. I was watching a Chris Powell video online and he suggests eating every 3 hours. I'm going to start packing almonds, grapes, cheese, etc in Ziploc bags. He also suggested a "fun day" each week where you don't worry about calories to boost the metabolism. I'm going to do this starting tomorrow! Good luck everyone and congratulations on all of your success!

I have found eating every 2 hours works really well and keeps a good stable level of energy all day long. Hunger is an artifact of the past.

Do not really understand the tracking movement, but everyone seems to be doing it. I understand it keeps people accountable who need it, but doesn't it get tiring to track the numbers every day? I have never really tracked and just stick to some general guidelines: eat as much Protein as possible and balance protein with some good carbs and fats during each meal. Eat every 2 hours about 30-40 G protein. Drink as much as possible without eating and drinking at the same time. Easier? I think so, but feel like such an outsider with everyone using MFP every day.

I have found eating every 2 hours works really well and keeps a good stable level of energy all day long. Hunger is an artifact of the past.

Do not really understand the tracking movement' date=' but everyone seems to be doing it. I understand it keeps people accountable who need it, but doesn't it get tiring to track the numbers every day? I have never really tracked and just stick to some general guidelines: eat as much Protein as possible and balance protein with some good carbs and fats during each meal. Eat every 2 hours about 30-40 G protein. Drink as much as possible without eating and drinking at the same time. Easier? I think so, but feel like such an outsider with everyone using MFP every day. [/quote']

Well your not because I'm not a tracker I do like you far as what I eat never been a person who care for sweet I'm a meat eater so my plan every day is plain and simple how every I love my scale

I have found eating every 2 hours works really well and keeps a good stable level of energy all day long. Hunger is an artifact of the past.

Do not really understand the tracking movement, but everyone seems to be doing it. I understand it keeps people accountable who need it, but doesn't it get tiring to track the numbers every day? I have never really tracked and just stick to some general guidelines: eat as much Protein as possible and balance protein with some good carbs and fats during each meal. Eat every 2 hours about 30-40 G protein. Drink as much as possible without eating and drinking at the same time. Easier? I think so, but feel like such an outsider with everyone using MFP every day.

I hate tracking, I won't lie. It's a pain in the rear. I've been doing it off and on for three stupid years now. Having real phones and being in America makes it easier because the app is very convenient.

But I can't deny that for me, it's that extra measure of accountability. More than one year out it is SO easy to just grab a handful of something here and a taste of something there or to finish my kids' plates and before I know it there's an extra 500+ calories that I haven't accounted for in my mind. I'm a SAHM and I'm a baker and I cater events, too. There's ALWAYS something "not good" hanging around my house and while it's easy for me to avoid sitting down and eating three Cookies, it's undeniable that I do sample almost everything I make. That adds up, much faster than I'd like in most cases!

So in maintenance? No, that 500 calories really isn't a big deal unless I make it an every day thing. And the scale is enough to keep me from doing that so tracking is just a way to double-check myself once in a while. I usually use it more to be sure of my calorie window and my protein intake.

But in loss it makes a huge difference to me. I have three little kids and a to-do list that takes up the entire fridge. I have to stay pretty strictly scheduled to remain on top of everything I have to do each day, and mentally remembering a calorie count, let alone remembering to eat my meals for the day can be a challenge. In the beginning I didn't really need to track because every meal was protein focused and I was eating every few hours all day long. Now that I'm farther out and my surgery isn't the main focus of my day real life has intruded. I can easily go until two pm without eating and eat far too little, just as I can easily go over my limits with a fast lunch out. And on those days when I'm not busy boredom is also an issue because if I get bored I tend to mindlessly eat whatever is closest. I can eat without even really registering how much I'm eating and that can add up, too.

Ideally, you find a method that works for you and you stick with it. I tend to forget those little things - "Oh yeah, I sampled a croissant as soon as they came out of the oven" or "I made ten different hor d'oeuvres today...and tried one of each" - that aren't really so little when it comes to calories at the end of the day.

So for me, tracking is absolutely vital in loss. But in all honesty, I can't wait until I'm in maintenance again so I can quit doing it every day!

~Cheri

I have found eating every 2 hours works really well and keeps a good stable level of energy all day long. Hunger is an artifact of the past.

Do not really understand the tracking movement' date=' but everyone seems to be doing it. I understand it keeps people accountable who need it, but doesn't it get tiring to track the numbers every day? I have never really tracked and just stick to some general guidelines: eat as much Protein as possible and balance protein with some good carbs and fats during each meal. Eat every 2 hours about 30-40 G protein. Drink as much as possible without eating and drinking at the same time. Easier? I think so, but feel like such an outsider with everyone using MFP every day. [/quote']

I guess it's sorta like WW points. A guideline and structure. Some of us need structure. Yours is 7 meals a day, how much and when and why. Mine is 5:2 500/1200. Limits.

I have found eating every 2 hours works really well and keeps a good stable level of energy all day long. Hunger is an artifact of the past.

Do not really understand the tracking movement' date=' but everyone seems to be doing it. I understand it keeps people accountable who need it, but doesn't it get tiring to track the numbers every day? I have never really tracked and just stick to some general guidelines: eat as much Protein as possible and balance protein with some good carbs and fats during each meal. Eat every 2 hours about 30-40 G protein. Drink as much as possible without eating and drinking at the same time. Easier? I think so, but feel like such an outsider with everyone using MFP every day. [/quote']

I guess it's sorta like WW points. A guideline and structure. Some of us need structure. Yours is 7 meals a day, how much and when and why. Mine is 5:2 500/1200. Limits.

I guess it's sorta like WW points. A guideline and structure. Some of us need structure. Yours is 7 meals a day' date=' how much and when and why. Mine is 5:2 500/1200. Limits. [/quote']

I can relate to that as having done WW a few times. However, even at WW I was a rebel and never counted anything. I just picked a meal plan I could stick with and ate that over and over again. For example,

Breakfast- Fiber one Cereal, apple

Lunch- 6 inch subway sandwich, apple

Dinner- ww Thai chicken noodle, green peas

Desert- cookie dough sundae

Boy did I love eating the cookie dough sundae every single night and still see a consistent 5 lb loss at the weekly weigh ins. I suppose most people would look at this eating plan and say it is not realistic to eat every day. Well, it worked for me.

I also exercised like a fiend on my elliptical and jogged, like 2-3 hours a day.

I had this meal plan consistently for 7 months and lost about 95 lb. it was awesome because it was so easy. Ate the same thing every single day. Unfortunately, I got lazy at the end and started to snack on bad food, drop the exercise (burned out) and slowly gained back all the weight over the course of 2 years. I tried other things after that like hypnosis, but nothing really worked until going with sleeve.

The sleeve life has been really good for me, but again, I do not track anything. I just make sensible choices that are compatible with my set of plans and goals.

On 5:2 I definitely track on the fasting days or I'd be over 500 in no time LOL. But I am not tracking on the normal eating days, and anyhow there's no way I could live on 1200-1300 cals per day, that is way too few for me! How do you super-low-cal eaters do it??

On 5:2 I definitely track on the fasting days or I'd be over 500 in no time LOL. But I am not tracking on the normal eating days, and anyhow there's no way I could live on 1200-1300 cals per day, that is way too few for me! How do you super-low-cal eaters do it??

I just have followed MFP suggested cal range to lose 1 1/2 pounds a week, and of course I didn't lose anywhere near that much... maybe a couple in months, but adding the two fast days to that has done the trick. I also eat most of my exercise cals back which takes my intake from 1200 a day up to 1300 or even more some days (1550) which is enough to not be hungry. I followed the TDEE plan for a while, gained 5 pounds and chickened out... I know that is normal for that plan, but I just didn't have the guts to go there. I did however LOVE eating more! I was never hungry on that plan.

I think super low calorie (e.g. 600-900) works well for first 6 months. The stomach is still healing. If you start out eating low cal at month 1 then eating low cal just becomes something your body gets used to. However, your BMR goes underwater, so to speak, with too few calories and you do want to work on a plan to increase calories gradually when the stomach is done healing (eg 6 months).

I can see how 5:2 would be harder to eat low calorie without being very hungry because the body does not know if to be used to a normal day ( for discussion, let us just say it is 1200-2000 calories depending on person) and fast day (under 500 calories). This fast oscillation between calorie days is going to force the body to rev up metabolism (yay!) because it never gets used to one way of eating. However, it leaves you seriously hungry on fasting days (darn it all!) The same principle sort of applies to carb loading on a low carb diet where you could eat whatever you want 1 day a week. It will essentially reset what your body is used to, but you have to be disciplined to only do it for 1 day or the extra calories will get you in the end.

I think BTB said it quite nicely a while back in that both type of calorie oscillations (5:2 and low carb, low calorie) are still just keeping the total calories down over the long run. It might also explain why an individual would need to look at long term trends while following 5:2 instead of analyzing results daily.

As for me, I got quite used to eating low carb, low calorie until month 6 ( no planned cheat days during this time). After month 6, I gradually increased my daily calories until around TDEE - 300 after reading the success of Susan ( our moderator). Her post on eating TDEE and the increased state of well being (mood, hunger, etc) inspired me way back when. From then on, I spent a few months ramping up the calories until where I am at today, post op 1 year. It is very very very important that you graduate your calorie increase over a relative long time period up towards TDEE. If you do it too fast, your low BMR will store the extra calories and you will gain. This clearly is not desirable.

My calorie trends look a little like this:

Month 1-3: 300-600 calories

Month 4-6: 600-900 calories

Month 7: 1100-1200 calories

Month 8-10: 1400-1600 calories

Month 11-12: 1600-1900 calories.

My body is perfectly happy eating in the last bracket and rewards me with a high metabolism and leaning out process. I need this amount of calories to fuel my fitness plan day after day, week after week. In reality, I should be eating about 1000 more calories a day, but the sleeve can only handle so much eating on my high Protein, low carb, Paleo variation diet. I eat every 2 hours or so a mix of healthy Paleo meals and shakes. It may seem like a lot of work, but it really isn't after you get used to the natural flow of it.