5 Tips to Track Correctly in My Fitness Pal
Have you ever tried to track your food using a tracking app like My Fitness Pal? A lot of people try it but the majority never use it to its full benefit so either give up and/or never see results and swear they ‘never want to track again’.
Don’t get me wrong, tracking your food takes a required skill that needs to be learnt - but like anything if you put the effort and time in at the start you will reap the rewards later down the line.
See here’s the thing with tracking, just because you use it for a period of time it doesn’t mean you have to use it forever. If you use it correctly and consistently when required, it simply becomes a handy tool to help you get your goals which you can pick up and place down when needed.
That doesn’t mean you track when you feel like it..far from it. Instead you track for certain period of time (say 12 weeks, 1 year etc), and once your goals change you can leave it be. I have tracked on and off for many years depending on my goal. If I’m looking to maintain my body comp I don’t track and just eat in an informed way. If I am looking to gain muscle or loose fat then I will track to get me there is efficiently as possible.
So that said, if you want to track but not sure where to start here are my top 5 tips to help you make the most out of tracking in My Fitness Pal:
Track your MACROS, not your calories
Using calories on labels as your target is not as accurate as tracking your macros. Instead aim to hit your Protein, Carbs & Fat goals and the calories will look after themselves
2. MANUALLY ENTER All Your Foods
Being a user database there is A LOT of incorrect nutritional information on the database. To avoid errors manually enter all food using the 'My Foods' tab
3. PLAN your day out in advance
One of the most common errors is trying to track as you go or after the fact, making it near on impossible to hit your targets accurately. Plan your day out in advance using the 80/20 approach ensuring to include meals and foods you enjoy (see previous blog)
4. For foods with no nutritional information use NUTTAB
Foods like certain meats, vegetables and fruits rarely have nutritional information at the go. You still want to manually enter these with correct information. Use the Australian Food Standards Database 'NUTTAB' to do so.
5. DON'T TRACK Meals Out
If you are going out for a meal trying to guess the amount of food and macros is quite frankly redundant and not worth your time. Instead track around the meal to ensure you don't over or under eat and enjoy the meal for what it is!
So in conclusion, use tracking as a tool to help you get the most out of your food, both for your goals and enjoyment. Allow time for meals untracked each week to give you some headspace while also ensuring you don't adopt an all or nothing mindset.
Happy tracking!