Tracking is a Pain in the @$$
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I am curious why it is so hard in MFP to find raw, whole food. Like potato, put that in and you have to search for potato. Same with pineapple of other fruits, etc. The whole, raw version of the food should be the first thing that comes up, not a bunch of other crap that might have a potato in it. /rant
Agree! And why are there 50 different entries for a potato? 1 for 50g, one for 75g, one for a cup, another for half a cup, yet another for a slice, etc etc etc. I'd love them all to be in one place called raw potato.
joining in the rant! this is my 1st one yall. lol.
I agree w/ this ranting here - which goes with kinda the op rant.
that's the one off-putting thing of the website - is that there are 50 different versions of the ONE thing i need to register. pineapple, potatoes, etc.
or even for the fast food listings - there are at least 7 different zaxby's fries on the list...different grams...different oz...etc. how does this data base get 'made' anyways?
arrrrg!
okay rant over
lol 0 -
Think of using the recipe builder as an investment. You invest a lot of time in it in the beginning, but once you've got all your recipes in there it's really quick and easy to log. The only thing I need to change are the exact grams of the veggies. Other things (like how to search for potato to get the right one to come up) just come with practice. Usually adding "raw" narrows it down a lot and then for most whole foods you just choose the one with no asterisk.0
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:laugh:
Yeah, I make simple dinners with a half dozen or so ingredients (I don't count spices) so it's not a big deal for me. A lot of the stuff is already in my "Most Used" section. Plus, I've already entered most of the regular meals that I cook in the recipe section. Super easy after you do it the first time...0 -
The recipe section is my favorite part - takes the guesswork out of it! Yeah, it's tedious to enter recipes at first, but I do it all the time, and with 650 straight days logged at MFP, I can say I don't have to do it as often now - most of what I make on a regular basis is already in my recipe section, so it's easy peasy to log it. And if I change an ingredient, I just edit the recipe to delete or add whatever I've changed.
It takes a little effort, but then, so does weight loss. And it's worth it. :bigsmile:0 -
I am curious why it is so hard in MFP to find raw, whole food. Like potato, put that in and you have to search for potato. Same with pineapple of other fruits, etc. The whole, raw version of the food should be the first thing that comes up, not a bunch of other crap that might have a potato in it. /rant
Agree! And why are there 50 different entries for a potato? 1 for 50g, one for 75g, one for a cup, another for half a cup, yet another for a slice, etc etc etc. I'd love them all to be in one place called raw potato.
joining in the rant! this is my 1st one yall. lol.
I agree w/ this ranting here - which goes with kinda the op rant.
that's the one off-putting thing of the website - is that there are 50 different versions of the ONE thing i need to register. pineapple, potatoes, etc.
or even for the fast food listings - there are at least 7 different zaxby's fries on the list...different grams...different oz...etc. how does this data base get 'made' anyways?
arrrrg!
okay rant over lol
Adding raw helps. Like if I was going to put in an egg, I'd search for "whole egg, raw." Choose the one with no asterisk that has options for cups and grams. That's the one that is not user entered and has been checked against the USDA database.0 -
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regarding your rant over different ingredient options, consider how many people struggled to find the correct portion and nutritional info. i have seen multiple database entries that are flat out wrong or appear to be fudging the facts to justify a splurge. entering your own info is sometimes easier that searching, so the database grows.
as for the recipe bit, idk how inventive you are with your cooking, but if you like something, you will make it again, right? having it stored in the recipe list is great for remembering how you made it. i make fritattas in muffin pans. your head would spin from all the varieties i make from eggs, proteins, veggies, and whatever additional leftovers i happen to have on hand. having a base recipe on file makes it easier to calculate instead of tagging a new recipe every single time i make it. there IS an edit option, and you can always rename the recipe as well as add or remove an ingredient as needed.
in summary, i think the recipe tool (and the database, when used with patience) is a total life saver!0 -
I am curious why it is so hard in MFP to find raw, whole food. Like potato, put that in and you have to search for potato. Same with pineapple of other fruits, etc. The whole, raw version of the food should be the first thing that comes up, not a bunch of other crap that might have a potato in it. /rant
Agree! And why are there 50 different entries for a potato? 1 for 50g, one for 75g, one for a cup, another for half a cup, yet another for a slice, etc etc etc. I'd love them all to be in one place called raw potato.
joining in the rant! this is my 1st one yall. lol.
I agree w/ this ranting here - which goes with kinda the op rant.
that's the one off-putting thing of the website - is that there are 50 different versions of the ONE thing i need to register. pineapple, potatoes, etc.
or even for the fast food listings - there are at least 7 different zaxby's fries on the list...different grams...different oz...etc. how does this data base get 'made' anyways?
arrrrg!
okay rant over lol
Look for the entries with out asterisks. These are USDA values I believe. Problem solved.0 -
After you create your meal here in MyFitnessPal, you can save it, and then if you eat it again, you can pull it up, place a check mark by it to enter in easier.
I do find if the ingredients change just slightly, I will just use the closest recipe that I have saved. It might not be 100% correct but enough where I can figure out what I am high or low on for the day in the categories.0 -
I am curious why it is so hard in MFP to find raw, whole food. Like potato, put that in and you have to search for potato. Same with pineapple of other fruits, etc. The whole, raw version of the food should be the first thing that comes up, not a bunch of other crap that might have a potato in it. /rant
This is something I'd like to see. Maybe just a little check box that only shows the original entries and can weed out all the * items. Other than that, I love this FREE website and if I weren't logging it here, I'd be doing the same thing with a nutrition book and a notebook. I find this method FAR EASIER than that (what I was doing before I knew this place existed).0 -
I actually kind of enjoy logging. I like breaking things down and trying to figure out how many calories things have. I totally wing it a lot of the time, though, and just pick something that's similar in the system, and it's worked for me. I often just guesstimate about how big something is and pick an entry based on how filling and calorie-filled it seems to be, and I've managed to lose 20 pounds still. There's really no need to stress yourself out over it.0
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This is just one of the reasons that I am now focusing more on intuitive eating than counting calories. Eating whole foods shouldn't be stressful! (Plus, this better addresses the reason I overeat in the first place.)
I have a LOT to say about this, but will reserve my comments to the following. If you are doing "intuitive eating" what need would you then have for being on a calorie counting website? I have always wondered this about people who do paleo, now this new thing you mention, as well as a number of other "all you can eat " type plans. I'm not saying they work, or dont' work. I did one in the past that worked well. However I did not count cals on it and thus had no need for using this tool. So my question remains why use this tool if you have no need for it? I'm confused?0 -
Now as to the answer for OP.
If you make certain foods repeatedly you can save the meal or the recipe both are options in the food diary. Try them both find which one works for you.
If you make certain dishes that mimic a popular dish you know MUST be in MFP's database start with that and then add or subtract whatever ingredients you added or subtracted to your dish.
For instance if I made a zuchinni lasagna I might find meat lasagna and add a piece of that to my daily log. Then I can subtract whatever amount of meat I thought was missing maybe an ounce or two. Then add in my zuchinni by logging them like this
ground beef 2 oz -130 cals (or whatever it says) (yes you can log negative calories in the food log)
zucchini +40 cals (or whatever the right amount is)
This saves the time of logging every single lasagna recipe ingredient and still is a nice estimate which won't kill your cal goals if this is not something you eat everyday but an estimate is good enough.
If it's something you are gonna have everyday, take the time to log it once as a "recipe" or "meal" and then use that one repeatedly in the future for fast logging.0 -
You can also click on the recipe, delete the item that has changed and add the item that has changed/been added/whatever. I do this when I cook sillet meals and the amount of meat used varies because my husband doesn't strive for accuracy when packaging the meat we buy in bulk :laugh:After you create your meal here in MyFitnessPal, you can save it, and then if you eat it again, you can pull it up, place a check mark by it to enter in easier.
I do find if the ingredients change just slightly, I will just use the closest recipe that I have saved. It might not be 100% correct but enough where I can figure out what I am high or low on for the day in the categories.0 -
You are right, to get around it, I started adding word raw or fresh in search, and that makes it easy instead of scrolling crazy0
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I hear you! I am taking a weight management class and this part stinks! I tend to eat the same thing and then get bored. I do my best to estimate. I did have a food scale and it broke so I now find it harder to track everything. We can do this! I know we can!. :bigsmile:0
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I just add up the calories for each component in my head, and then quick add.
Sure, I'm not seeing all the nutrient information, but in reality, as long as your diet is balanced, there's not much to worry about there.0 -
Yup it sure is a pain. Just do your best estimation.
I find entering recipes too time consuming because I've never made the same thing twice. I'll either enter wholes like I did today for my yogurt waffles or just go with something closest.0 -
Know what's an even worse pain in the @ss? Being too lazy to log what's in your meals, getting fat, and having to lose it all over again.
I'll stick to my logging, thanks.0 -
I don't mind putting a recipe in using the recipe tab but I do wish we could access each others recipes.0
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