MyFitnessPal is a great free app which can really help you understand what you’re consuming.
But all too often people think doing everything right but are still gaining weight or can’t lose fat, and can’t understand what’s going on.
Here’s some common errors I see in those whose MFP says they’re in a deficit when really they’re not…
1. Only tracking ‘good’ days. So you’re not tracking the days which are f*cking everything up! Every day you track you hit your diet target, but all the days you DON’T track you’re so far above your target that it cancels out the tracked days!
2. Guessing rather than weighing. So you’re massively underestimating your intake! On paper you’re hitting the right target, in reality you’re way over!
3. Not checking the serving size of the item that comes up. EG you scan the barcode & press save, but the serving that came up was 50g & you ate 100g.
4. Not checking the accuracy of the item that comes up. Anyone can enter info on MFP, which means some entries are inaccurate or just list calories without any macros entered. So check & if necessary make your own entry.
5. Not entering your extras eg drinks, condiments, oils, milk, sugar. This can be several hundred cals a day.
6. Not recording licks, bites, tastes & sneaky snacks, which can really add up & can mean you’re not in a deficit after all!
7. Eating back your calories allegedly burned through exercise…. this cancels out your deficit! Plus most trackers vasty overestimate calorie burn so you’re likely overshooting even more! My advice: disconnect your tracker from your MFP & stick to your target. Your target should already take your activity levels into account.
8. Going with MFP standard suggested calories & macros. Firstly, you’re an individual so a generic target may not work for you. Secondly, IMO the macro split given by MFP is far too carb-heavy for most.
9. Not starting each day with a plan, so by evening you’re all over the place, with no calories left for dinner, or playing ‘macro tetris’ trying to hit your target.
Which of these mistakes apply to you? Do an audit & let me know if it helps!
Want my free MyFitnessPal user guide? No problem, just click here to request a copy 🙂