Once food, calorie, or macro tracking starts to become a PART of your life or you obsess over it & NEED to track in order to feel okay about yourself & your food choices… you’ve gone too far. That’s a red flag that you must scale back from logging to improve your mental & physical health (click to read more). Here are some tips on how to stop tracking your food.
Become Aware of Your History with Tracking
How long have you been consistently logging your food? A month, a year, 5 years, 10+ years?… the longer you’ve been tracking the harder it’ll be to break the habit because it is LITERALLY a part of you. So instead of going cold turkey, you’ll want to gradually scale back. Instead of 7 days a week, maybe track 5… make that a habit & then track 3… etc. until you reach your goal. Change takes time, so you must give yourself time & grace to scale back from tracking your food since it was a big part of your life.
Identify the Wins Tracking has Helped You Achieve
Have you consistently been eating more veggies at dinner? Find yourself always prioritizing protein at breakfast? Conscious of your sodium intake? If you’ve spent years tracking, odds are there are lots of things you’ve learned along the way. Yes, tracking became an obsession, but you were able to develop skills that now “just stick” … they are “no brainers” when it comes to choosing foods. So, with that being said, trust the skills & habits you’ve developed. Odds are these things will 100% continue with or without tracking. So, lean into yourself & know you have the tools internally to keep you moving forward – no tracker needed.
Notice the Other Health Behaviors that are Benefitting You Too
Food is more than just calories in versus out… how does your stress impact food choices? Sleep? Water intake? Your career? It doesn’t matter how well you can count calories if at the end of the day you’re going to over-indulge anyway due to stress & then “start over” tracking in the morning. Take time to appreciate the other health behaviors in your life that make you FEEL GOOD. These are behaviors you never track but they’ve become a part of you & your day as well.
So, if you feel anxious about food when tracking or feel super guilty when you don’t track your food, it’s time to move on. Don’t let MyFitnessPal or another tracker dictate how you feel about yourself, your mood, & your day. Trust the process & know SO MUCH MORE matters on your health journey, so don’t let tracking take over your mind & body.
Let me know, do you struggle with obsessive tracking? Which tip above will you give a try? Are you motivated to stop tracking your food? Hit reply – I’d love to hear from you!
And, if you’re not already a part of Nicole’s Nutrition Community on Facebook, get there! Lots of additional trainings, education, tips, & support just for you!
