Logging meals/calories

[Takeem406]

Anyone do this? How important is it to you?

Back in college I would do this. But it was a huge hassle and felt it was over kill. But at the time I had a nutritionist line out a detailed meal plan. That was about 1800 calories with dozens of options. So as long as I stuck with the plan I was doing good.

But now I got this Garmin vivosmart that guesses my calories burned and then the Under Armour app has the option to log calories consumed. So no more paper journal like I had a few years ago.

Anyone use these apps?

I'm still loosing 2-3 pounds a week and eating along to the old plan my nutritionist made for me back in the day.

 

[Becca]

I used the myfitnesspal app to calorie count for a number of years, and still do on occasion. The interface is easy to use, database had most foods available and I could even input my own recipes to determine how many calories they contained. I also like that it interfaces with my Fitbit to calculate my calories burned through activity.

I stopped logging foods mostly because after long term use I have a pretty good idea of how many calories the foods I consume contain. I have maintained my body weight +/- 4 lbs for the last several years, so now I usually only log when I am actively trying to lose a few pounds I have gained (say after the holidays or a vacation) or when I am curious about the calories something contains. A great tool, it's just that calorie counting gets tedious when you are just maintaining your weight. I have a pretty good routine at this time, and the knowledge I gained from calorie counting helps me stay on track most of the time without having to log it all. Whenever I find myself in a position where I feel I am gaining weight, the first thing I do is start calorie counting for a bit and I usually get right back on track.

 

[BruinPoint]

I use My Plate on Livestrong for a couple weeks every few months to keep myself calibrated. Between doing that and watching the scale it's gotten easy to maintain my weight. When I first started it helped me drop about 40 pounds that I had gained after messing up my back. I find it really useful for losing weight, and also when trying to put on muscle. The Android app sucks, but the mobile site works pretty well and the website works great.

 

[Cant hit em]

I use used myfitnesspal for a year. After a while you will know what a portion looks like . I only do it know on occasion if i want to do a period of low or high carb and to see how much protein im getting

 

[robby denning]

I used the myfitnesspal app to calorie count for a number of years, and still do on occasion. The interface is easy to use, database had most foods available and I could even input my own recipes to determine how many calories they contained. I also like that it interfaces with my Fitbit to calculate my calories burned through activity.

I stopped logging foods mostly because after long term use I have a pretty good idea of how many calories the foods I consume contain. I have maintained my body weight +/- 4 lbs for the last several years, so now I usually only log when I am actively trying to lose a few pounds I have gained (say after the holidays or a vacation) or when I am curious about the calories something contains. A great tool, it's just that calorie counting gets tedious when you are just maintaining your weight. I have a pretty good routine at this time, and the knowledge I gained from calorie counting helps me stay on track most of the time without having to log it all. Whenever I find myself in a position where I feel I am gaining weight, the first thing I do is start calorie counting for a bit and I usually get right back on track.

Agreed.
Any myfitnesspal will track macronutrients and nutrients (vitamins, minerals, fiber,) so you can see if you're eating crap calories or actual healthy food.

 

[Takeem406]

I started using the Fitness Pal in Saturday. Kinda cool really. I weighed in on Saturday and was only down a maybe a half pound from the week before. So I figured it might be better to track my intake vs my output.