To Track or Not to Track

Many people ask me about what I eat and how I track it. Simply...I don't track it.  When I first started this journey almost 5 years ago, I put every bite I ate into My Fitness Pal (MFP). I had the app on my phone and I could access it the computer. Using my phone I could scan any barcode and instantly know the nutritional breakdown of each item.

I was obsessed with food. I was constantly thinking about food: what I had just ate; what I was about to eat; and what I couldn't eat. MFP kept track of how many days in a row you logged in.  One day I was not able to log in, and my streak reset to zero. (I think I had been tracking for over 300 days at the time). I was devastated.  Nothing had changed in my eating, but I suddenly felt like a failure.  After wallowing in my pity party for a while, I decided I would not let my food log have that power over me again.

When I first started eating keto, I used some apps and websites to learn the amount of carbohydrates in certain foods.  And I still do that when I am looking at new foods. But I do not weigh or measure my food. I don't count how many carbs I'm eating. I just know what kinds of food are safe to eat.  Sometimes I will have a keto-friendly snack, but I might end up eating more servings than I should. But for the most part, I believe my carbs are under 20 net per day.

I encourage someone who is just starting out to use apps or websites to help you get a handle on what carbs/calories/fat/etc. look like for foods you are eating. I know that keto is not for everyone, so if you are counting calories, make sure you stop and measure a portion every now and then just to make sure you are still on track.

Do you track? If so, how do you track? Notebook, computer, app? What works for you?



I just realized I haven't posted pictures in a while. Stay tuned for an update post!