Not registering all foods, how to best setup goals

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henriklynggaard
henriklynggaard Posts: 27 Member
in Getting Started
Hi

I am getting started tracking my food. Breakfast and dinner are usually easy since I make them myself but for lunch we have a canteen at work. In the canteen I try to pick healthy options, but I don't track the food since I don't want to be guessing e.g. how much salad did I pick or how much fat was in that sauce.

The days I don't register lunch myfitnesspal sees a large calorie deficit and will give completely wrong predictions.

What is the best workaround ? I can so far only think of two solutions
1. Add a "Quick calories" to the daily register of what a lunch should be
2. Reduce the goal by 25% - 33% percent on the days I am at work

Personally I am leaning toward option 2

Replies

  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    I would make an attempt at logging your best guess for lunch. Another option would be to just not hit the "complete diary" button on days when you don't log everything so you don't get the inaccurate predictions. MFP will store your data with or without hitting that button.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    3. Estimate as best you can (ask the workers what food service provides the meals and you may be able to log it)
    4. Bring your own lunch if that's an option
  • henriklynggaard
    henriklynggaard Posts: 27 Member
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    diannethegeek wrote: »
    I would make an attempt at logging your best guess for lunch. Another option would be to just not hit the "complete diary" button on days when you don't log everything so you don't get the inaccurate predictions. MFP will store your data with or without hitting that button.

    My concern is that my best guesses will be inaccurate and I therefore will make the wrong choices on the meal i do register e.g. it suggest I have a carb deficit one day so I will up on that at dinner.

    As for not pressing complete, that is an option, but if I review the day in on the website or app it still shows the deficit and I need to perform the calculation in my head

  • henriklynggaard
    henriklynggaard Posts: 27 Member
    Options
    malibu927 wrote: »
    3. Estimate as best you can (ask the workers what food service provides the meals and you may be able to log it)
    4. Bring your own lunch if that's an option

    The canteen I have doesn't serve meals they get from the outside, they have cooks making the food and while they post allergens they don't post calories.

    I got quite the selection with 3 hot dishes (meat/fish, veg, soup), a salad table with premixed and ingredients, a cold cuts table. I honestly think I would be eating worse if I was to bring in my own food.

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