What Nutrients do you Track?

Spokez70
Spokez70 Posts: 548 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I assume most people track the usual Carbs, Fat and Protein. MFP gives you the option to track a couple others- including Fat, Saturated Fat, Polyunsaturated Fat, Monounsaturated Fat, Trans Fat, Cholesterol, Sodium, Potassium, Fiber, Sugar, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium and Iron. What else are you tracking and why? Is there anything you want to track that's not an option?

Right now I'm listing Sodium and Fiber

Replies

  • ClareW23
    ClareW23 Posts: 2
    Fibre and sugar.
  • sarahcuddle
    sarahcuddle Posts: 349 Member
    Recently started to track sodium but having problems as many foods that i know must contain quite a lot of sodium do not list it. My main issue is bread. If it says it on the packet there is no problem I can check but the deli counter items like bread rolls that i get from my local supermarket don't have any info. Is this more of a problem because I am in the uk? I don't know. Thinking of not bothering to try to count sodium cause its not accurate anyway
  • stephyy4632
    stephyy4632 Posts: 947 Member
    Protein and sodium are the only two I really watch I like to be over what mfp suggests for Protein and as for sodium I prefer to keep it under the suggested mfp amounts (more or less just watch my sodium intake and if I get to much I up my water).
  • cmc6921
    cmc6921 Posts: 10 Member
    Is there any way to tailor MFP to low carb specifically? I find low carb works best for me, and I almost don't have to track, but since I've been having trouble for the past year losing any weight at all, I'm being very diligent about tracking just to see if I can pinpoint where I might be going wrong, and in the past week and a half I have lost 3.2, so something is starting to happen.....
  • JenAiMarres
    JenAiMarres Posts: 743 Member
    Fibre and sugar.

    Yup... Gotta make sure the plumbing is working... And sugar.... Well obvious reasons, it's addicting and hard habit to break.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    only the big 3 macros. IMO, unless you've got some extenuating health concern, tracking anything beyond that is a waste of energy.
  • MrsORourke
    MrsORourke Posts: 315 Member
    Potassium and Cholesterol
  • pullipgirl
    pullipgirl Posts: 767 Member
    saturated fat and sugar
  • LinsenNRoses
    LinsenNRoses Posts: 284 Member
    Fiber & Sodium! :)
  • LeenaRuns
    LeenaRuns Posts: 1,309 Member
    Is there any way to tailor MFP to low carb specifically? I find low carb works best for me, and I almost don't have to track, but since I've been having trouble for the past year losing any weight at all, I'm being very diligent about tracking just to see if I can pinpoint where I might be going wrong, and in the past week and a half I have lost 3.2, so something is starting to happen.....

    Go to the home tab, goal, and change your goals--do the custom set up and you can change your %. I have mine set to 40/30/30.
  • Dovekat
    Dovekat Posts: 263 Member
    I normally track fibre and saturated fats, I know my sugar will go over as I eat quite a lot of fruit and home made fruit smoothies. I don't add salt to anything unless I am cooking pasta, rice or boiling potatoes, also having low blood pressure I can afford to only give sodium a casual glance every now and then often it's under by half or more. Once a week or so I will pan through various choices and back track my diary just to have an idea of how things are going and check if there's anything I need to adjust badly. :)
  • Laner07
    Laner07 Posts: 100 Member
    I'm tracking protein because I have a metabolic disorder where I can't digest protein. I track it to make sure I don't get too much, besides the supplements that I'm perscribed. I also track calcium and iron to make sure I'm getting enough due to my limited diet.
  • montana_girl
    montana_girl Posts: 1,403 Member
    Fat, carbs, fiber, protein, and sodium
  • cmc6921
    cmc6921 Posts: 10 Member
    Thanks for the tips on how to change goals. I didn't even know that was there!
  • wahmx3
    wahmx3 Posts: 633 Member
    I track fiber and sodium, I think having enough fiber is important for long term health. I track sodium because if I eat too much, I gain weight but can help counteract that with more water. I was tracking sugar but quickly realized MFP tracks ALL sugar and can't show the difference between natural sugar in fruit and added sugar to food, so I think it is pointless to track unless you look specifically at the fruit and subtract that yourself.
  • Chadwick891
    Chadwick891 Posts: 72 Member
    Carb, protein and fats are the baseline of the majority of calories(Alcohol is another category, but not on this website, I think). That's why it's the most recognised form of nutrient measures. Sugars, polysaturated fats are just sub-categories of these 3 and are an option to show the variations of fats you're taking in.

    Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying there's no point to tracking them, there certainly is! It gives a clear indication of what kinds of nutrients you're getting in.

    I just track the Protein, Carbohydrates and Fats - However, I also keep an eye on my fibre intake, too. I try to keep my fibre pretty medium to high, as I have trouble with proper bowel functions on a daily basis.
  • Chadwick891
    Chadwick891 Posts: 72 Member
    I track fiber and sodium, I think having enough fiber is important for long term health. I track sodium because if I eat too much, I gain weight but can help counteract that with more water. I was tracking sugar but quickly realized MFP tracks ALL sugar and can't show the difference between natural sugar in fruit and added sugar to food, so I think it is pointless to track unless you look specifically at the fruit and subtract that yourself.

    I agree, that they don't track the different sugars and that's partially due to the various ways sugar is processed.

    What I can say is that Sugar is a form of carbohydrate, so they contain the same calories per gram. (which is 4:1). You can get artificial sweetners that contain zero calories that act like 'sugar' as well.
  • stylistchik
    stylistchik Posts: 1,436 Member
    Potassium and Calcium since I'm usually on the low end for both.
  • mariobadr
    mariobadr Posts: 58 Member
    Saturated Fat and Sodium
  • pyororon
    pyororon Posts: 22
    I have a pretty high protein goal, and I like to keep my fats high too, but as long as I get my protein and stay under my calories I don't worry too much about my other macros.

    What is super important to me:

    Fibre for obvious reasons
    Potassium because I'm at ballet school and my poor muscles need it
    Calcium because I'm amenorrheic and therefore have a higher chance of osteoporosis (we have a family history of it too)
    Iron because I have a history of severe anaemia, and I adjust my iron supplements based on how much I ingest through food

    Even when I'm finished losing weight I'll keep using MFP just because it's absolutely invaluable for making sure I get all the minerals I need.
  • futuremalestripper
    futuremalestripper Posts: 467 Member
    Calcium and Vit A. Seems silly, but for some reason my diet is always extremely low in these and I tryyyy to boost them, however, I hate eating a whole grapefruit every day. I think I'm just giving up and getting some flinstone vitamins.
  • Chadwick891
    Chadwick891 Posts: 72 Member
    Even when I'm finished losing weight I'll keep using MFP just because it's absolutely invaluable for making sure I get all the minerals I need.

    That's good. :) I still use MFP and so does my friend Shane on this site, who has lost quite a fair amount of weight :)

    It's just really convenient to use such a remarkable website. I really think they've outdone themselves with having a free website, benefit people so much!
  • MissNations
    MissNations Posts: 513 Member
    I'm trying to track iron, but a lot of items don't have the iron content listed, so it's hard to get an accurate picture of my iron intake.
  • LuckBeWithU
    LuckBeWithU Posts: 173 Member
    Carbs, Fat, Protein, Sodium, Fiber.....

    I wish it had room to track everything...
  • OccupyFitness
    OccupyFitness Posts: 145 Member
    I am currently tracking my sugar and trying to keep to about 30g a day.

    I struggle to get my amounts properly managed each day (carb/fat/pro). Does anyone get all their amounts properly allocated? I need to find better solutions.

    I plan on tracking more as time goes on. I'd like to learn more about my nutritional balance.
  • frootcat
    frootcat Posts: 194 Member
    Sugar, saturated fat, protein, sodium, potassium.
  • Alicia_Monique
    Alicia_Monique Posts: 338 Member
    I watch also watch fiber, and calcium. :) Very important!
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
    Companies are not required to list potassium on the labels -- I see a lot of people say they track that and they are always low --- but you're probably not as low as you think. You can't really go by most labels or database entries since they may not be accurate as far as potassium.

    I track protein, carb, fat, sugar, sodium.

    I think default MFP settings are way off so I changed mine to 40% protein, 30% carb, 30% fat and lowered sodium to 2000 -- working to get it under 1500 eventually.

    I dont worry about calcium/iron/d/a etc since I take all of those in supplements and know I get more than enough.
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
    Companies are not required to list potassium on the labels -- I see a lot of people say they track that and they are always low --- but you're probably not as low as you think. You can't really go by most labels or database entries since they may not be accurate as far as potassium.

    I actually was quite low, because I wasn't eating enough veggies/fruits.

    Tracking potassium and fiber has actually significantly improved my consumption of veggies :D

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