Back in March, Greg Scott wrote about the risk of some people not eating enough with Paleo, while doing CrossFit. Check it out: Paleo: Check the Math and Stop Undereating. In that article he stressed that it was important to ensure that you were consuming sufficient calories to sustain your body and all your daily activities. To short change your nutrition is a recipe for problems.
Since that time I have tried to pay attention to the volume of food I consume, but not very scientifically. Per Dr. Garcia’s instructions, I have begun a food diary to capture the trends of what I eat, how much I eat and the macronutrient ratios associated with that food.
I looked for an iPhone App that would simplify this task for me and I came upon MyFitnessPal. It is an iPhone App and membership website that allows you to capture your food consumption and serving size while the app calculates calories, fat, protein, carbs, sodium, sugar, and a host of other things.
The app is targeted towards weight loss, so it also has an exercise tracking component. I ignore all that stuff, since weight isn’t my issue. I am simply trying to track my food consumption so I can detect trends in my behavior and make modifications where warranted.
I’ve posted a few sample screenshots from my iPhone and the website. I will admit that my menu is screwed up since I am still wrestling with recent short term changes to an anti-inflammatory diet. However, you will get a sense of how the app can work for you.
I typically do not get this geeky about tracking everything I consume. But I believe a tool like this is an excellent resource to break out for a week or two several times a year, to ensure that you aren’t slipping back to old habits.
If you’re using some apps to track your foods or wellness, let us know what you’re using and how it’s working for you.
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