Having trouble figuring site out

SavvyRN

Hi, I'm new, just signed on today. To date I have gone from 280 lbs. down to 166.9 and am reaching for a goal of 125. Problem is I can't figure out how to use this site when I'm listing my foods to keep track of my calories and protein. OK, so I'm a little computer deficit.....but could really use some help. I have kept records on paper everyday for 2 years and want to be able to do this, but I'm just use to listing my food, looking the cal./prot. up in a food counts book and listing items myself. Can't figure out how to list items here, but know if I could figure it out it would be a lot easier. Plus I could really use some people to talk to, life is not the greatest right now and it's tough working on yourself and working toward goals when your discouraged, not just weight, but with life. And hopefully I have things to share that might help someone else, or at least give us a good laugh. Thanks for any help you can offer.

ittybittybadonkadonk

just list the food and how much and everything else is done for ya .... good luck and congrats on losing some of the weight that you wanted to .... you may add me if ya want to talk

SHBoss1673

if you could give us a little more info on where you are stuck, maybe we can help. It's hard to explain you don't show us where you are hung up.

drvvork

It sounds to me that you are having issues with using the search for foods portion.

It is something you will have to play around with - I did. I found foods and then deleted them from my food lists until I understood just what I needed to put in to find if my foods were listed. Keep going with your hard copies but keep playing also and then you'll be able to work it out.

Betty

BrenNew

I'm sure if you went to the help section, it MUST have SOME directions for questions you might have. (It's been almost 2 years since I came to MFP, so I don't remember for sure!)
I just know that when you're new, it takes time to add in all the foods you eat. Most foods ARE in the system already, but, some you might have to add yourself. You should just have to go to foods, then type in, say, Quaker Oats in the search box, and then search, and you should get a whole list to choose from. Click on the one you want, and then add it to the meal you want to have it in. You can also click on the arrows and change the amounts too. Or click on say, one portion, erase that, and put .5 or 2 or whatever.
Hope that helps!
Now, here's my welcoming speech that I give to as many newbies as I can! Hopefully it'll give you even more help.

Hi, and welcome to THE best site on the web! :flowerforyou:
Between the easy to use food counter (which by the way is SUCH an eye opener!) and all the wonderfully supportive members, you WILL be able to lose the weight that you want to, AND, it'll "almost" be easy doing it!
I recommend logging ALL your foods BEFORE you have them, rather than later, as it tends to lead to better food choices. (not to mention you'll know if you've got enough numbers left to have a night time snack, like I ALWAYS try to do!) Some people also like to weigh and measure some things, such as meats, rather than just estimating and possibly being WAY off! :noway:
Don't go making the mistake that if you have LOTS of numbers left at the end of the day that you'll lose even faster, because that DOESN'T happen. Feel free to read any info about the site in the "help" section at the top of the home page. And also under "Community", then "Weight Loss and Healthy Living", then "general diet and weight loss help", and then check out the first few threads. They'll REALLY help you understand how MFP works.
Before coming here, I had tried just about EVERYTHING out there, including hypnosis, TWICE, and nothing really worked until MFP!
Just the word "diet" would make me cringe and set me up for failure. :grumble: It meant depriving myself of all the "good stuff" out there, and as a result, I'd only last just so long, (maybe a few weeks if I was lucky!) and then I'd "cave" and go right back to eating all those "goodies" again! :embarassed: But, MFP ISN'T a "diet". :noway: It's a "lifestyle change". (When I first read that, I said "Ya, SURE it is!", thinking that it WAS just another diet. :grumble: But, it wasn't! :noway:)
The main reason that I've managed to lose the weight that I wanted to is because I HAVE been able to eat "real/good" foods. :bigsmile: (Not Slim Fast or any other easy, quick, fad "wacko" diets!:noway: ) Through MFP I learned that I just needed to "work for it", through exercise, and watching my numbers (MOST of the time! ) As long as I do that, I CAN occasionally have stuff like Chinese food, a double cheeseburger, pizza, and even homemade icecream!
As far as exercise goes, it doesn't always have to be awful. :noway: For my exercise, I walk almost every day, (weather permitting! ) I also dance to a fast oldies CD that my husband made up of all my favorite old songs. (Like "Love Shack", Wild, Wild West", "Mony, Mony", "Footloose", and "Gloria") :happy:
It's free, (unlike a gym!:grumble: ) fun, and I can even watch tv at the same time, so I never get bored! :happy:
I also have Wii Fit, and jog to that, which is a lot of fun, and easy too!
So, to make a LONG story short, make good food choices, eat in moderation, get some exercise, and you WILL lose the weight that you want to!
MFP REALLY, REALLY, DOES work! :happy: Give it a chance, and it WILL work for you too!

DEBDOUGLAS

Hi, And welcome!!!!!:flowerforyou: You will love this site because you get all the support you will need. On the food tracking, you go to track food and say you had a potato, type potato and it will come up all kinds and try to find the one that is like you had and click on it. Then if it is what you need click on add . I'm not real sure where you are hung up either but will be glad to help. You can add me as your friend. My sister is an RN also and yes life can get you down sometimes and you need people to talk to. Good Luck and looking forward to helping if I can.