If You Are New to MFP

I used MFP last year to lose 25 lbs. In a nutshell, you log calories in/calories out by using the app or website to record your food and drink consumption and exercise. Some stuff I found out through trial and error that my be helpful to newbies:

-It turns out I eat the same stuff all the time! At first I thought it was soooo tedious logging meals and wanted to quit, but when I realized I eat a variation on the same thing most days for breakfast or lunch, I figured out logging them quickly by using historical data. Cheerios, milk, coffee, cream and sugar, boom!

-Now the main time suck on MFP is whenever I use a new recipe. I find it easier to log a recipe using my computer than my phone but you can do both. If you use a website recipe, you can copy and paste the URL into MFP and it will try to match ingredients/calorie counts for you. Just finesse that and then you can log it as a meal and save the recipe in your account so that you can easily log it again when you eat leftovers or make it again.

-I also use Map My Fitness, a companion app with GPS, to record my walks and exercise. It will auto-import it into MFP to add to your available calories for the day.

-I have a Jawbone and I have it linked to MFP and Map My Fitness too. Don't forget you can link to Walgreens app to get points for just living!