MyFitnessPal is the app most commonly used for tracking food choices and tallying daily macronutrient and calorie totals. The app is free to download and is available on both an iPhone and an Android device.

The free version is more than adequate for what we use it for. There is some value behind the paywall (i.e. the barcode scanner), but it is not necessary to pay in order to use the Food Diary as well as the well populated database of food choices and meals.

HOW TO GET STARTED ON THE APP

1) Once you have downloaded the app, you will need to create a free account. This process will ask you a series of questions regarding your body composition goals as the app will make its own recommendations on what you could do to reach them. You will create a username at the end of this series of questions.

2) Make your Food Diary shareable through your profile settings. Here is how to do that:

-Go to “More” in the bottom right

-Go to “Settings” (scroll down)

-Go to “Sharing & Privacy”

-Go to “Diary Sharing”

-Choose “Public” or “Friends Only” (I have never seen a stranger be creepy about your food diary so ‘public’ should be just fine)

3) Send a Friend Request to @BlackWolfNutrition. This will allow your coach to see your Food Diary and give you feedback. If you skip either of these steps, you will delay your first round of Food Diary feedback.

4) Begin logging each of your food choices in your Food Diary. Be as exact as you are able with the quantity/amount of each choice, but the first priority is simply recording everything you eat. The precision with which you need to measure those food choices will vary depending on your goals and your coach’s advice.