If you want to strategically lose weight, gain weight or recomp; tracking calories in is a game changer.

1. Visit your respective google or apple app store and download Myfitnesspal app for free. It is made by Underarmour, it’s awesome.
2. Open the app and fill in the information. If you want to lose or gain weight usually 1 lb a week is a very good option to choose. If you want to recomp don’t add a weight change goal. For weight gain and loss a pound a week is really good and not easy to do. It will ask you for your activity level. Your daily non exercise activity level is one of the biggest variables of energy/ calories burned. If your on the fence about one setting or another for activity level go with the less active option.
3. Add exercise and select cardio every time. Even though you strength train add it as cardio and estimate your calories burned. An hour training session is probably anywhere from 250-750 calories with an average I’d guess of about 450. Smart watches give you an estimate to base off and just use that if you have it but its probably not super accurate. Human testing just isn’t where it needs to be people. If you worked really hard or did like a 90 minute session obviously go more just guess but if it was a beat workout and you were bullshitting on your phone and dogging reps without hard effort go on the lower end. Just know if you cheat your diary in any way your only cheating yourself. Love you read on.
4. Don’t change anything with your nutrition at first. The goal of tracking is to learn about your nutrition and what you are already doing. Once its in the app you can then start to dial in the healthy vs unhealthy options. Learning about what you actually like to eat everyday is an empowering process. If you have have a breakfast lunch and dinner you really like and that also aligns with your health and fitness goals you can consume that way forever. You don’t have to eat the same way all the time experiment with options and see how they affect your nutrition goals. If your friends and family don’t eat in a way that aligns with your goals you can modify portions or do your own thing and just say I’m doing this for my personal nutrition goals and they should respect that.
5. First work on tracking 3-4 days a week with one day being a weekend/high calorie day. See what a high calorie day vs a maintenance or low calorie day actually looks like and be honest with snacks and eating while cooking and everything that goes in. If your someone with serious health conditions I’d recommend tracking every day.
6. Once you know how to track start dialing into calorie goals then learn to dial into protein goals. At first don’t stress or worry too much about macros likes carbs fats and proteins just hit your overall calorie goals or get close. Also know the FDA allows something like a 20% variance in calories on food labels so what you think is 300 calories could be 360 calories or 240 calories. When you getting close or consistently hitting calorie goals around 80% of the week you will start seeing results. You just have to be going towards your goal most of the time and not get too off track with crazy days where you way overeat or drink.
7. Don’t stress it but seriously track because the upside is amazing. My clients who track can lose weight and my clients who don’t track; don’t lose it. You can lose or gain weight without even working out just by tracking and putting yourself into a caloric deficit or surplus. If you do lose or gain a decent amount of weight without working out it may not be the physique you were looking for but its certainly an option and usually a very good one for many people especially if you have injuries or disabilities. In 2018 when I wanted to gain 7 pounds of lean body mass I tracked and ate a ton of protein and it worked. Learning to track and ultimately dial in nutritional habits to achieve health and fitness goals is a process but the result is an understanding of food and drinks far beyond any restrictive diet and you once you know your favorite meals you eat those and track less and less while looking amazing. Are you ready to track and get serious?