As of yesterday, I have been tracking my eating, using MyFitness Pal now for 75 straight days. I have also been wearing my Fitbit daily for the same amount of time. Since I’m talking about consistency here, I should also mention that I’ve been blogging daily since December 1st, which means this is my 45th straight day of posting. Yay me! Because consistency is a challenge for me, this is a major accomplishment.
My focus this year is really to hone in on changing my habits and so I use these devises to help keep me focused and on track. They also serve to keep me motivated, that is until they don’t work or I forget to wear it or submit my numbers.
Earlier this week I went into convulsions when I forgot to submit my totals on MyFitness Pal. I had done my logging for the day, but the night was still young and I knew I would be drinking more water. I wanted to make sure I got the “credit” for all I had done so I didn’t do the end of the day tally. I had intended to do it before bed, but forgot to do so. The next morning I woke up in a panic thinking that my “straight day of logging” numbers would now start over again from day one. I was not a happy camper and had to seriously talk myself down off the ledge. Fortunately, that was not the case. Apparently, as long as you track the app counts the day without you having to hit the submit button.
I had a similar issue with my Fitbit. For some reason it doesn’t sync daily like it’s supposed to. I have it set to do so, but it is on some crazy delay. So when I went to review my weekly numbers all I saw were zero’s and I hit the roof. And let me not forget to mention the other day when it needed to be charged and the cord was at home. In both cases, my immediate thought was…”do you mean to tell me all that work and effort I put in and it won’t count?”
That’s when it hit me. Regardless of whether MyFitness Pal shows a consistent record or my Fitbit picks up all my steps….I STILL DID THE WORK and YES it does count!!!! I mean really, what did we do before technology? We did the work! So while I’ll continue to use my trackers on a consistent basis, I am deciding now not to rely on them so heavily that when they no longer work, I WILL still continue to do the work!
Your Turn To Share
What device or method do you use to track your progress? Have you ever panicked when it stopped working? If yes, share your story.