I have been using My Fitness Pal to count calories consumed and calories burned. What apps do y'all like to keep tract of calories?

I've used the Lose It app for 2 years

ABATTBQ87 said:

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I've used the Lose It app for 2 years

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Same, moved to Lose It when MFP started charging to use the barcode scanner. Cost for an annual sub is much less than MFP.

If you change your iTunes location to UK, the barcode scanner works for MFP. I think after switching back to US it still stayed as an option.

Cronometer app

Cronometer

I just started RP Diet and I really like it so far.

It's $20/month, but there's much more to it than just counting calories

wessimo said:

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ABATTBQ87 said:

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I've used the Lose It app for 2 years

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Same, moved to Lose It when MFP started charging to use the barcode scanner. Cost for an annual sub is much less than MFP.

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I did the same, but not because of the bar code scanner. I just started having a lot of wonky glitches about a year ago or so. Got way too frustrating, and I had used MFP daily for probably close to 15 years.

I do the paid version of Lose It to track macros. It it was not expensive.

Do any of you using Lose It or Chronometer have an android phone? If so, are there any glitches with the apps?

Thanks

I have an Android. No issues with Cronometer.

TAM85 said:

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I have been using My Fitness Pal to count calories consumed and calories burned. What apps do y'all like to keep tract of calories?

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Same scenario as you. I used MFP for probably 10 years but that app actually kind of sucked. When they went to $20 a month for barcode scanning, I was out.

Tried the cronometer one, but ultimately landed on MacroFactor and love it. The MacroFactor user interface is much better than MFP or cronometer. It's about $5/ a month and worth it.

I use it to track macros/caloric intake and weight. MacroFactor also will has a lot of back end programming to help with TDEE and target calories for weight loss or gain.

Switched to loseit once MFP started charging for core features. I like it overall.

Honest question. Where I always fail with these apps is when it comes to dealing with homemade food.

So I have two sandwiches that are homemade for lunch. How are y'all calculating the calories for things like that? Weighing everything before hand, guessing, or other?

Yes get a scale and use it. Check labels on packaged food.

After a while you get pretty good about estimating without weighing or measuring. I can guess a large chicken breast weight to within a half ounce easily.

Yeah homemade recipes take more work to track, which often leads to repetitive meals. Though I'm convinced older people in great shape don't have much variety in their diet anyways.

In MacroFactor, I use the recipe function for homemade meals with lots of ingredients. I use a scale and a notebook. Using a scale really helps with portion control, especially with calorie dense food like peanut butter or oils. A tad bit more can be another 150 calories.

For something like a sandwich, you can log each ingredient separately.

Here's how I'd log something like a sandwich in MacroFactor.

This OXO Good Grips scale is what I use. Great for baking and weighing out burger patties, etc. Once you learn how to tare the scale to add/subtract weight for different ingredients, using the scale will go just as fast as not using it.

https://www.amazon.com/OXO-Grips-Stainless-Pull-Out-Display/dp/B079D9B82W

I've been (mostly) happily using MFP for about 4 years but damn if it's not buggy. Not a huge deal but it can be annoying at times. Based on this thread I am giving the MacroFactor week trial a go. So far I like the interface but it's going to take some getting used to. It's $20 more per year than MFP but there may be a great deal of value in their algos once I ditch my nutrition coach.

This is the way

AgLiving06 said:

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Honest question. Where I always fail with these apps is when it comes to dealing with homemade food.

So I have two sandwiches that are homemade for lunch. How are y'all calculating the calories for things like that? Weighing everything before hand, guessing, or other?

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Cronometer also has a recipe section that works well. You just add the ingredients and set how many servings it is and then you can log it in your daily thing. It has a notes section for each recipe too which I usually use to add in a link to wherever I found it online so I can go back and look later if needed

So if you eat the same sandwich for lunch 3x a week just make a recipe once and then you can add it any time after

I will say the macros dashboard thing is a little wonky. I only track calories and protein so I just have it set to show those two and ignore the rest. MFP was better in that regard but this works fine

That's the challenge I have. We do a lot of homemade meals and my wife does a lot of the cooking. So trying to guess everything inevitably leads to me stopping due to the time involved

I absolutely hear that. My wife gets very annoyed when I bust out the scale while we're trying to cook or serve dinner. She understands though. It definitely takes team work and a partner that is supportive and shares your health goals.

Ask her to keep track of what she adds or keep the nutrition labels before throwing them in the garbage.