You’ve probably heard of the Calories In, Calories Out (CICO) method of weight management. This is probably the most popular and effective approach.
The concept is quite simple: to lose weight, you need to consume fewer calories than your body burns. And if you consume more calories than your body burns, you gain weight. CICO is a flexible approach to weight loss backed by science (1).
If you’re new to the CICO diet or calorie tracking in general, you may not know exactly where to start. And maybe you know it MyFitnessPal can help you track your calories and nutrients. Actually, MyFitnessPal can be your best friend with the CICO diet. The app can help you set your goals and stay on track when tracking.
Wondering how to use MyFitnessPal can he help you with the CICO method? Let’s go step by step.
Step 1: Set your goals in MyFitnessPal
First, when you sign up for MyFitnessPal, the application will ask you for some essential information: your age, weight, height, gender and daily activity level.
Your answers help calculate the most important statistics that make the CICO method work:
Your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): The number of calories your body burns at rest just to maintain basic bodily functions.
Your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE): The total number of calories your body burns in a day, taking into account your activity level (e.g. how much you exercise, whether you have a physically demanding job, etc.).
Next, you will choose a goal:
- Lose weight
- Maintain your current weight
- Gain muscle
If your goal is to lose weight, MyFitnessPal will offer you a calorie goal that will put you in a calorie deficit. If you achieve this goal, you will consume fewer calories than you burn each day.
Calories consumed – TDEE = calorie deficit
Next, you will set a goal for how quickly you will lose weight. MyFitnessPal will ask you how much you would like to win or lose per week.
You can choose to earn 0.5 pounds or 1 pound per week.
To lose weight, you will choose 0.5 lbs, 1 lb, 1.5 lbs or 2 lbs per week as your goal.
You can also choose to maintain your current weight.
The standard recommendation for safe weight loss is a calorie deficit of 500 to 1,000 calories per day, which typically results in a loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week (1).
But a larger deficit doesn’t mean faster weight loss, according to Stephanie Nelson, RD, principal scientist at MyFitnessPal. In fact, 68% of MyFitnessPal users who have reached at least 90% of their goal weight lost less than 1 pound per week on average.
Step 2: Record what you eat (i.e. your “calories consumed”)
When you log what you consume throughout the day in MyFitnessPal, you’ll know what the calories portion of your CICO diet looks like.
MyFitnessPal‘s food database includes millions of food items, from grocery store staples to popular restaurant dishes.
To log your meals and snacks, search for the item in the database, choose the items you had and add them to your calendar. Ideally, choose from the app’s “Best Matches” options.
For advice: Upgrade to Premium to access our barcode reader. This makes registering packaged foods even easier.
Cook at home or prepare meals often? You can add your own recipes to MyFitnessPalAlso. Enter the ingredients you used and the app will calculate the total calories and nutrients for the entire dish or per serving. This is very useful if you like to repeat the same recipes.
For advice: Weighing or measuring and portion sizes can help improve recording accuracy, but any recording is a win! It’s about progress, not perfection.
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Step 3: Record your exercise (i.e. your “calories burned”)
MyFitnessPal makes it easy to record the calories you burn, whether you manually log your workouts or sync the app with a fitness device, like a Fitbit or Garmin.
When you sweat, record it. MyFitnessPal can estimate your burn for all types of exercise, from strength training to running to swimming.
MyFitnessPal will take into account the calories burned during your exercise and adjust your daily calorie goal for you.
For example, if you have a goal of 1,800 calories per day and you burn 300 calories through exercise, MyFitnessPal will update your remaining daily intake to 2,100 calories. And if you sync your fitness device, your calories are automatically displayed!
A few MyFitnessPal Members choose to turn this feature off, which is easy to do in the app. If you do this, you can still log your exercise, but the calories will not be added to your goal.
Step 4: Add Macros to the Mix
Not all calories are equal! Calories consumed are at the heart of the CICO diet. But paying attention to macronutrients (protein, fats, and carbohydrates) can help you optimize your results.
“One of the downsides of only focusing on calories in versus calories out during a weight loss journey is that it doesn’t teach us the importance of the nutrients in those calories,” says Melissa Jaeger , RD, LD, nutrition manager at MyFitnessPal.
“Tracking with MyFitnessPal can help you not only identify your total daily calories, but also key nutrients to support your overall weight loss health and wellness, such as protein, fiber, saturated fat and more!”
MyFitnessPal contains tons of food data, including macros. When you log foods, you can check your daily macros in the “Nutrition” tab. (If you are a premium member, you can find it directly on your dashboard.)
This section provides a breakdown of how much protein, fat, and carbs you eat and how they contribute to your overall calorie intake.
Adjusting your macros can help you achieve specific goals. For example:
- More protein can promote muscle maintenance and recovery, especially if you lift heavy loads.
- Balanced carbohydrates and fats can keep your energy levels stable throughout the day, helping you avoid fatigue or mood swings.
MyFitnessPal gives you a default setting of balanced macros for optimal overall nutrition. If you have a premium membership, you can customize your macro goals, which is especially useful when following a specific high-protein or ketogenic diet.
Step 5: Get your data and review your progress
It’s super rewarding to see a record of all your hard work. One of the most motivating aspects of using MyFitnessPal is the ability to track your progress. Consistent journaling can show you how well you are meeting your goals. You can see what works and what doesn’t.
In the “Progress” section of the app, you can track changes in your weight, measurements, and fitness goals. MyFitnessPalVisual charts allow you to see trends over time, helping you visualize opportunities for improvement.
Well, okay. Not Exactly. No day is perfect. No two bodies are the same. Even when it comes to counting calories and macros, don’t get hung up on hyper-accuracy.
Instead, strive for consistency rather than perfection. As Stephanie Nelson says: “It’s more sustainable to take a slower approach because you end up making changes that you can follow over the long term. Rather than focusing only on the numbers, focus on the small behavioral changes you can make.
Other tips for the CICO diet
Some additional tips for use MyFitnessPal to succeed in the CICO diet:
- Save food as soon as possible: Whether before or just after a meal, recording food as early as possible means you’re less likely to forget what you ate.
- Set reminders: Use MyFitnessPal’s built-in notifications to remind you to track your meals and workouts.
- Personalize your experience: Premium MyFitnessPal members can adjust their macros, personalize their dashboard and tailor their experience to their goals.
- Join the community: MyFitnessPal community of members helps you connect with others on the same journey. Chat with friends and read success stories to stay motivated.
With the right tools and mindset, the CICO diet can provide you with information and insights into what you eat, how much you burn, and help you achieve your goals with some simple math and science.
Check out some of them success stories MyFitnessPal members to see how tracking has helped change their lives.
The position How to Follow the Calories In, Calories Out (CICO) Diet Using MyFitnessPal appeared first on MyFitnessPal Blog.