is there a trick to using the calorie counter?

Brandie43

Hi everyone, I've tried a couple of times to use calorie counter on here but have been so frutstrated to just putting in one food that i've gone back to paper tracking with ww. But so many of you have such good success here i thought i would like to try it but i'm frustrated and thought perhaps i'm doing somthing the hard way arround? Thanks for any info you can share

SmartAlec03211988

What part is difficult?

alpine1994

The app for your phone is a little more user friendly with putting foods in. Plus you can use the barcode scanner if your food has a UPC code on it. It takes me maybe 5 minutes to put in all my food and exercise for the day, maybe a little longer if I'm putting a recipe in, but I find it to be a VERY worthy 5 minutes!

(edited for spelling)

jenniferrusso7393

I use a desktop, and the only problem I have is there a multiple entries for the same food, and it is difficult to find the one that has the same amount of calories as what the label says per serving... I sometimes just give up and quick add the calories.

badtastebetty

Use the barcode scanner on the mobile app.
Save recipes, meals, and favorite foods.

It might take a few weeks to figure it out.

aszwarc

I use a desktop, and the only problem I have is there a multiple entries for the same food, and it is difficult to find the one that has the same amount of calories as what the label says per serving... I sometimes just give up and quick add the calories.

Yeah, the app is a little easier because you can see the calorie count before you select it.

It will get easier, though. As you use foods in your diary, your Favorites and Recently Used tabs will populate with the things you use often, making it quick to add those.

TeaBea

The system will keep a list of your favorites ....... so getting started maybe a little cumbersome, but after awhile, many items are already in "your list."

mmoonstars

I will say it depends how much your diet varies.

If you are eating different things every day at every meal it can be a bit difficult to search for each and add them. The beauty is you only have to put in serving size and it calculates all the numbers for you.

If you have the same 3-4 rotating breakfast or lunch and snack options you can create quick/customized meals and then add a whole meal with one click. It also takes a few weeks but, after that you can choose things from your frequently used food tab and just check off the things you previously have eaten and just adjust the servings.

It becomes much faster over time, so I'd say give it 3 weeks of solid logging with MFP before you give it up.

Hope that info helps

jen10st

I'm not sure about on the actual website but if you have the phone app your foods you use are stored in lists; frequent, recent, recipes etc and there's a "multi add" button where you select several of your foods at once. It will take a week or 2 to build your own database up but once its there the app is incredibly convenient. Oh there's also a barcode scanner option when you select add food which I find excellent. Hope that helped x

Mommy2Muffins

Hi! It's easy. Give it another try. I've only been doing it 11 days. I think the key, initially, is not to worry if the food you ate is exactly what you enter. For exmple, I don't have the nutritional information on a favorite pizza place...so I just enter the closest thing to it.

Try entering something generic like a red apple. A list of apple types will pop up & you chose the closest type and size to what you ate & click "add food." If you have nutrition facts you can enter the specifics of the food you ate.

Hope this helps.

Brandie43

Thank you everyone, i don't have the phone app,only my computer.

willnevergiveup

Pay attention to the number of confirmations too, if you don't know the actual calorie count. I get wary when I see "0" confirmations.