Obsessed with fatsecret

I have a problem...whenever I start dieting..I obsess about it..it consumes me all day..how my weight is, what Iam going to eat, new recipes..etc. It's on my mind all day long. Anyone else have this problem? I'm not getting much done around the house!!!

I get the same way and then the more I think about food the more I end up snacking and munching. My first week on fatsecret I journaled everyday, browsed recipes, posted on threads etc. and have steadily backed off to get back to real life. For me its just like my eating issues...finding that balance.

Like less_of_me said, it's all about finding a balance. I have an obsessive personality in some arenas, too, and I really like learning about nutrition so it's easy to become consumed with the process.

I'd recommend doing your best to banish your "diet" mentality. Stop thinking of this as a "diet" and start thinking about it as a healthy change you are making, an improvement to your overall lifestyle. Allow yourself a certain amount of time to plan meals, read articles, mess around on FS or other health and fitness websites, and call it a day. Force yourself to do something else. You might still obsess, to a certain degree, but you're less likely to get burned out.

I got obsessed too when I joined FS. I think it's normal, because it's a real commitment. I had never counted my calories before that, and the database on here is amazing. I made an habit to start my day recording the food i would eat and make sure it would be OK. I did that the first 2 months. Now, I feel more confortable and I know how many calories I have with my usual foods. I can "let go"!! of course it doesn't mean I give up my healthy eating.
I think it's a normal process to focus on something because it's new. when you get used to it, you can take some distance (with the tool, not with the new life )but like Katana said, you have to force yourlsef to do something else!!! I plan my meals once a week, make my grocery list, and that's it until the next week. I still record my food when I add new items, just in case...

Same with me! Ever since I started dieting it's become a part of my life. I don't think I'll ever be able to stop counting calories again. But then again, that's how it should be right?

that is how I started - overcomplicating the process. I just started a new thing today, not worrying about planning too much - I also have a good idea about the calories now. I also decided that I am not going to make complicated recipes, because if I am a little bit hungry, then everything tastes good, even like sauteed plain chicken with a little salt and pepper.

Over thinking has been my downfall many a time. One, I love fatsecret (etc), and I can sit on my bum typing for hours if I don't control myself. Two, something about planning out all my meals and obsessing over the foods I'm going to choose makes me eat more. I actually eat less when I record but don't plan. It's crazy weird.

i feel ya on that one i get obsessed with my weight sometimes. then i try and find out what and how i can change the way that i think about my weigh,t that sort of motivates me to work hard and think more positive. so i set short term goals for myself during the week. and when i achieve a goal i feel a whole lot closer to the finish line. don't feel bad we all have setbacks at times. just get back in there and try it again the next day. we can achieve this goal together. GOD BLESS,

I have loved the support I get from the site its a lovely community. I like to see how everyone is progressing xxx

Yeah this site can be addicting, I also am hooked but not as much as before. When I 1st discovered this site I sat in front of my labtop from when I woke til I was forced to go to sleep which was after midnight. So I was in this site literitlly over 10 hrs. but now I just try to make sure I log in just to input my food intake or answer any messages from my buddies & even than I don't even do that, so I have to do double work when I do login. You will spend alot of time on this site at first cause its new & much to see, but you'll get over it soon enough & find that you forgot or didn't have to to logon. Even the threads from other members can be addicting. So much info to learn not enough time in the day. But have fun while the addiction last. Until next time. CHOW

I decided to simplify. I am doing Weigh Watchers, so I have 19 points per day. I put 19 pennies in my pocket, and as I eat whatever I am going to eat, I move the points from one pocket to another. I try to keep 5 cents for dinner points! Also, I carry the WW booklet to check the points so I count as I eat and I don't do too much planning ahead. Even McDonald's will tell you how many calories are in their food. So I have tried to reduce how much I think about food.

I love this site too. At first I kept forgetting to log my foods, weight etc., but now I see that it is the most helpful tool to my success.

I love your penny idea for tracking your points.

I get obsessed with these things too, but I am slowly learning (with the help of other people, I suppose...) to be not so obsessed. I have an obsessive personality...

Pale

I feel your pain, the minute my mind knows I am on diet I start thinking of food non stop, whats for supper, whats in the fridge, what am I going to buy, its like mind control. When we go out I think of what food shops are on the way, what fast food outlets we can stop at, etc etc. Today I was in a really bad mood, woke up to late and felt mislik (SA word for miserable), I decided I was going to have something 'bad' to eat, just to make myself feel better, thankfully I did'nt go through with it, I thought of everything bad and could'nt think of anything I wanted, wierd.

I think many of us have the exact same problem. Losing weight and keeping it off requires enormous concentration and time. Hopefully, as someone mentioned above, we will eventually be able reset our systems and be able to wean ourselves off of the addiction. It's not at all a quick thing though.

Everything everyone said is so true, we have to remember our true success with anything were doing is the ability to take what we've learned and pass it on to someone else, then everything you did has purpose and meaning...so don't stress or even think of it as obsess, give it to someone else and truly you will be blessed.. You never know when what YOU have learned may have to be passed on to someone else and save their LIFE....