How many calories are in this?
How many calories did I just burn?
How many calories did I consume today?
How many grams of fat/carbs/sugars did I consume today!?
These are all VERY good questions. All of which can be VERY hard to track when embarking on your own health and fitness journey. When I speak with clients, I suggest that they get a fitness/food journal so they can keep track of their workouts and what they have been eating. And if you’re sitting there thinking you’ve already tried this and failed because you were always leaving the journal at home….or even worse – you lost it!?!? Well today I have great news for you!
Today I would like to introduce to you myfitnesspal.com.
This website can be logged on to from any internet ready computer AND they also have easy-to-use apps for your iPhone, iPad, and other cell phone/tablet devices! So no matter where you go you will almost always have access to this website.
Myfitnesspal.com is a virtual fitness journal. It allows you to plug in all the food you’ve eaten during the day – and I mean any food you’ve had! They have an ENORMOUS database with practically every food item you can find in the grocery store. And if you cannot find an item, you can create your own meal and add it to the database so you can have access to it whenever you need to add it to your daily meal log. As you enter each food item, you will be able to keep track of how many calories, grams of fat and carbs, etc that you consume during the day. It also has an area for notes so you leave quick blurbs about the food/meal or include recipes. When you’re done eating at the end of each day, all you have to do is click the “complete this log entry” button and it will log it on your “newsfeed.”
In addition to tracking your food and caloric intake, the site helps you to lose weight! You can put in your ‘goal weight’ and the site will suggest how many calories you should eat each day. As time goes on (assuming you’re being faithful to your virtual fitness journal), it will track how many pounds you lose and will eventually lose. Of course, it keeps in mind how many calories you’re burning at the gym… assuming you’re working out ;). On the site/app, you can enter what you did for your workout that day and it will tell you how many calories you burned. Oh and the best part – when you workout, calories will be added to your daily caloric intake… so if you want to grab some fro-yo that night, here’s your chance!
Now, we all have days where we go overboard and eat a little too much. When this happens, myfitnesspal will tell you you’re over your daily intake… But no worries – Just eat better tomorrow! A twentysomething has gotta indulge sometimes! My goal is to try to stay UNDER my calorie intake each day so that I know that I am getting the best out of my meals and my workouts.
This app/website also allows you to add friends so you can track their progress and you can have your own online support system! You can send each other messages or simple words of encouragement. You can choose to have people see what you are eating each day or just have them see that you worked out or lost 2 pounds that week! The settings can be changed so you can share what you want with your friends! And if you do not want to add any friends on myfitnesspal, you don’t have to. It’s totally up to you! You have the freedom to put what you want in your logs and share it with whoever you want.
They also have a blog section where you can write a journal about your health and fitness journey. You can keep this ‘blog’ secret or share it with the world. They have badges and tickers you can add to your blog, website, or any other social media pages that you have.
This site is an all-around AMAZING guide for you to use in your health and fitness journey. It’s a fantastic tool for both beginners and advanced fitness gurus. I personally use myfitnesspal every day and would be so lost without it. And don’t worry – THIS IS NOT A PAID POST THAT IS SPONSORED BY THIS WEBSITE! I just know that this website has been so useful for my clients and me – and I’m hoping it will lead to you to health and fitness goals too! I really hope that you all try this site/app out. Signing up is quick and easy and getting started is too. The program is very user friendly and easy to navigate.
Now you have NO EXCUSE not to start keeping track of your exercise and healthy eating. Start today so you can start to reach your health and fitness goals!
My name is Stephanie from Infinite Life Fitness. Please feel free to stop by my website for more health and fitness related tips!
