Oh, MyFitnessPal... how I love thee.
I started using this site back in November when I set a weight-loss goal. I can't remember if I started an account on this FREE site before this point, but this was my first real go at it.
I lasted a week. In fact, I might have lasted until Friday afternoon.
Things got tricky when I went home, as I didn't always have (or want) access to a computer to keep logging everything in there. Then, months and some goal regression later, I finally got a connected mobile device. While this is probably exaggerating, I was probably the last person in my generation to get a cell phone... and almost the same thing has happened for web-enabled phones.
Anyway, I started tracking regularly, and then it became second nature.
Nowadays, I think my body just doesn't want to lose weight, yet I've still been tracking because I do want to make sure I don't undereat and screw up my metabolism forever or really blow it and wonder if I got enough protein for the day.
As you can see from the screenshots above, this app sets a daily calorie goal based on factors of current weight, age, activity level, and goals (different levels of loss, maintenance, or gain). Then, you can search for foods you eat and categorize them into the appropriate meal bucket, and it keeps track of everything for you -- not just calories but nutrients, as well. You can even scan the labels of food packages to make tracking easier (not on Blackberry, I believe)... though perhaps you don't want to be eating out of packages all the time!
While I find that some stuff just isn't in there (although a lot of ethnic food has been added to the database!) or varies in accuracy, it's often better than nothing. Plus, you can enter your own recipes and get a count by serving.
Most of all, I've grown to like the sense of community on there, even though I only check the Insanity boards for some motivation. (If you use this and want to add me, my username is nobel4lit.) Each time you log exercise, it creates a status update on which people can comment. Getting that extra motivation from comments is helpful, and since everyone is doing the same thing, there's no need to worry about being weird like you would posting that stuff on other social media sites.
I'm sure there are a lot of similar tools, but this is the one is my favorite due to its clean and simple format. I finally feel like I'm part of the 21st century now for sure!
I started using this site back in November when I set a weight-loss goal. I can't remember if I started an account on this FREE site before this point, but this was my first real go at it.
I lasted a week. In fact, I might have lasted until Friday afternoon.
Things got tricky when I went home, as I didn't always have (or want) access to a computer to keep logging everything in there. Then, months and some goal regression later, I finally got a connected mobile device. While this is probably exaggerating, I was probably the last person in my generation to get a cell phone... and almost the same thing has happened for web-enabled phones.
Anyway, I started tracking regularly, and then it became second nature.
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| from myfitnesspal.com (works on Android, Blackerry, iPhone/iPad) |
Nowadays, I think my body just doesn't want to lose weight, yet I've still been tracking because I do want to make sure I don't undereat and screw up my metabolism forever or really blow it and wonder if I got enough protein for the day.
As you can see from the screenshots above, this app sets a daily calorie goal based on factors of current weight, age, activity level, and goals (different levels of loss, maintenance, or gain). Then, you can search for foods you eat and categorize them into the appropriate meal bucket, and it keeps track of everything for you -- not just calories but nutrients, as well. You can even scan the labels of food packages to make tracking easier (not on Blackberry, I believe)... though perhaps you don't want to be eating out of packages all the time!
While I find that some stuff just isn't in there (although a lot of ethnic food has been added to the database!) or varies in accuracy, it's often better than nothing. Plus, you can enter your own recipes and get a count by serving.
Most of all, I've grown to like the sense of community on there, even though I only check the Insanity boards for some motivation. (If you use this and want to add me, my username is nobel4lit.) Each time you log exercise, it creates a status update on which people can comment. Getting that extra motivation from comments is helpful, and since everyone is doing the same thing, there's no need to worry about being weird like you would posting that stuff on other social media sites.
I'm sure there are a lot of similar tools, but this is the one is my favorite due to its clean and simple format. I finally feel like I'm part of the 21st century now for sure!
I LOVE MFP. I can't overstate how much I love MFP.
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