Food Tracking Pointers

[Komick]

Just wondering what people do for those who track calories using their fitbit app.  

I have stopped using the app because it's a bit tedious, but when I did it, I found some time in the morning to put in all the food I planned on eating that day.  

What works for you?

[Mermaid3011]

I use the tool every day. WIthout it I would overeat every single day. 

I usually plan a little in the morning while having my coffee and type in all the food I am planning to eat until the afternoon. (Packing my lunch and snacks at the same time). This way I know how many calories I have left for dinner and if I might have to pack another snack for the day.

Then during the day, since I work in an office, I can update my fitbit steps on my work laptop (i bought a second usb thingy) and adjust for things I am not eating or moving around, extra coffees etc. 

Without the food tracking I would be lost. Honest. I think it makes all the difference if you want to lose weight in a healthy way. Write it down, dont feel guilty for going over, make yourself aware, move on.

[Komick]

Good to know!  I think I'm going to give it another go.  

[ruthielil]

The fastest and best online tracker that I've experienced (and fitbit is compatible with it) is www.cronometer.com.  

[Trooper]

I do the same thing but now I am also pre plannng the next days meals. It helps when you gotta get out the door and you don't have time to log your calories in or as I call it, "My numbers!"Just a few minuets ago  my breakfast consisted of something I made last night and stored for today. I counted both the breakfast and my lunch. I'm gettng tired of getting remarks about my tardiness when I arrive at work. So doing this helps save time. 

[DominicJ]

I use My Fitness Pal

It keeps a quick search of everything you've logged, so for breakfast I have 300g of milk, 100g of porridge and 20g of honey right at the top.

[Cindy6766]

Ruthielil, what do you mean "fitbit is compatible" with this app?  I looked at it and it looks like just another calorie counting app.  Not that it isn't great!  🙂  That's not my point.  What I'm wondering is why one would use this app over the Fitbit app and log and how the two work together to give all the information in one place.  I like how colorful the app is.  Thanks!  

[HelenaFitbit]

I am also a MFP user and I use a Food Scale. I "draft" my food intake for the week, mainly breakfasts and lunches. 

[ruthielil]

Cindy ....I don't use the App -- I use cronometer.com on my PC -- no data plan with my smart phone.  I have synced my Fitbit Zip to cronometer.com, and cronometer does all my energy expended calories for me -- that's what I meant by "compatible."  I'm sorry to have bewildered you.  I've also tried food journaling with MFP and www.supertracker.usda.gov (which has excellent graphics, by the way, and super nutritional evaluation charts -- my favourite of them all), and Canada's dieticians'  www.eatracker.ca, but cronometer is the fastest for me, and that's what I like.  Cronometer also has a comprehensive, intuitive food database. My preference for conometer might have something to do with my internet service provider (I live in the country and have to go with one that is in my area as opposed to some of the more common providers like Shaw etc).  To sum up then, for me, it's about internet speed and user friendliness.  Cronometer has all the others beat, in my experience.  The bottom line likely is though, that one has to use what works best for one!  They're likely really all excellent in their own ways.  

[jaime30024]

I am already established in Fat Secret logging my foods so I use the quick entry and just enter my total calories for each meal into FitBit - it is very fast and easy.

[wcrisler]

  Thanks for the tip about Cronometer.  It's really easy to input data, especially the "Recipe" function, which allows you to input recipes.  It then calculates the nutritive and caloric data for the individual ingredients for you.  What a time-saver!

[johnr]

I use My Fitness Pal since it got most Norwegian food already in it, and it sync automaticly with Fitbit.

I log either before I eat the snack/meal or at night,but easy to forget a thing or two.

[SunsetRunner]

What has worked best for me is to plan my meals the day before. Then when the next day comes I can make adjustments if I want as long as it fits my goals. Myfitnesspal is way better at finding foods so I use that to track my meals.

[Bobbinyc]

I've never logged food before and think i need to. I tried fitbit today and didnt get passed breakfast! I entered banana and up came so many different kinds with different calorie counts. Then i entered my yogurt by brand and the count was different than the pkg. my biggest question is what do you do when you either eat in a restaurant, or make a multi ingredient dish? It seemed tedious to me. Of course, not losing weight is tedious too!

[Runner021]

I use both fitbit and far secret to monitor my calories intake. I use the far secret app for monitoring my carbs intake.

[LadySummerset]

I agree with you.  Without logging in calories, DAILY, I would eventually fall off the wagon.  For me, logging calories is more than counting calories BUT making me accountable for what foods have passed my lips.  I've come to realize on this 9-day journey so far, that this will be a "life-time" venture.  I usually eat the foods that I'm comfortable with and don't need to do my log right away, so I do it at my leisure but I do it!  It's amazing how quickly calories can add up.  160 calories in a Hawaiian Roll, one of my favorites, a Bubba Burger is 400.  The logging helps me plan my excursions, by balancing my intake of calories.  Best Wishes to everyone on this journey.

[SunsetRunner]

From reading all of the responses on here, I feel like I'm the only one who logs my food as I eat.  Every time I eat I just log it in the app, that way I know what I can and cannot eat right then and there.  For instance, there is a huge candy dish sitting 5 feet from my desk.  I know that at lunch I only had x amount of calories left for the day and therefore I can't even look at that bowl of chocolate much less eat one.  Seeing my calorie allowance fluctuate throughout the day also helps me see how much I'm moving.  I'm not sure if this is a better way or not because it's the only way I've thought to log my food

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[Raviv]

I go back and forth between tracking as I eat or tracking in advance, like when I pack a lunch for the day.

I do spread the calories out better when I pack my food, mostly because I add stuff in to the app and then see I only have 150 calories left for dinner - and I see it BEFORE I eat it, so I can just toss it back in the fridge or make a better choice.

[LadySummerset]

That's a very smart approach!