My Fitness Pal 101 | Calorie Tracking Made Simple

STANDARD GUIDELINES

• Calories, protein and fiber are the three most important targets to hit each day. Carbohydrates and fat don't need to be exact, but do your best to accurately reach those targets as well.

• It's okay if you go above your fiber target - anything upwards of 30-40g daily is okay. Try not to exceed 50g daily.

• Ensure each meal contains a minimum of 20g of protein.

• Drink a minimum of 3L of water each day.

• Always weigh your food in grams using a digital food scale and avoid weighing using volume (measuring cups, measuring spoons etc).

• Double check that the numbers in the app match the label on the food item.

• Don't stress about eating the foods you love! You can still enjoy your favorite treats as long as you reach your targets for the day (general rule of thumb is to spend 80% of your calories on nutrient dense foods and allow the remaining 20% of your calories to be spent on treats if you wish).

• Absolutely everything gets tracked - cooking oils, condiments, coffee, alcohol etc.

• If you'll be going more than 4 hours between meals, insert a snack.

SOURCES OF FIBER

• Fiber bread by Country Harvest

• Oatmeal

• Kellogg's All-Bran Buds

• KASHI Go Lean cereal

• Fruit with skin on (blueberries, apples, pears, peaches, cherries, kiwi etc)

• Vegetables (spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts, asparagus etc)

SOURCES OF PROTEIN

• Lean red meat

• Poultry

• Fish (also great fat source)

• Eggs (also great fat source)

• Dairy - greek yogurt, milk

• Protein powder

SOURCES OF CARBOHYDRATES

• Pasta

• Potatoes (all types)

• Rice (all types)

• Fruit

SOURCES OF FAT

• Fatty fish and other marine sources

• Eggs

• Avocado

• Nuts & seeds

• Olive oil

• Avocado oil

EASY TO TRACK SAMPLE MEALS

• 150g basmati rice | 120g x-lean ground beef | 120g steamed broccoli

• 150g sweet potato | 120g chicken breast | 120g asparagus

• Quaker instant oatmeal packet (flavor of choice) | 20g chopped walnuts | protein shake

• Turkey sandwich: 2 slices fiber bread | 120g sliced turkey breast | 15ml light olive oil mayo | mustard and greens to taste

• 175g greek yogurt | 60g fresh strawberries | 26g Kellogg's all-bran buds

EASY TO TRACK SAMPLE SNACKS

• 4 natural lean turkey pepperoni sticks

• 3 hard boiled eggs

• 20g nuts - almonds, cashews, walnuts etc

Have fun with your meals and be creative! There are absolutely no limitations as long as you reach your targets for the day. If you're eating out, many items at franchised restaurants are in the app's database. If they're not, choose a meal that can easily be plugged into the app - example, 7oz New York steak, 100g of rice, 120g of steamed veggies.

If you found value in this post, please share it with someone you care about!