My Fitness Pal App

As I said in a recent post, I did set a new year's resolution of eat less, move more.  With focusing on getting to the gym three times per week I had the move more plan in place.  But I felt like I needed something to help with the eat less. 

So, looking at the health related free apps I found the My Fitness Pal app

 This app asks you for information on height, weight, any weight loss goals and how quickly you want to lose it and then calculates a net amount of calories for intake every day.  You can then record what you eat and your exercise to track your intake and burn every day.

This summary screen gives you a snapshot of where you are for the day

The greatest part is that the diary is so easy to use and find what you are eating, even at restaurants.  Many chains are even specifically in here, so you can find exactly what you're eating.  Plus you can create recipes for things you are cooking to see just how many calories it is.  The exercise database is just as extensive and allows you to adjust calories burned if you use a heart monitor or something else to track that when working out.

One of the other features I really liked is the nutrient info.  It's really made me aware of when I'm eating things high in sodium or sugar, or if I'm not getting enough iron or dietary fiber.

I've been doing this pretty religiously for two weeks now and it takes no time, and has really kept me focused and aware of what I've been eating so I can tackle the eat less part of my resolution.  It has made me very aware and helped me make better food choices.  I have been checking the calorie content before I pick what I'm planning to eat, so I am able to better allocate calories throughout the day.  I haven't been hungry once.  And it is working.  Week one I lost 5.5 lbs!