Reflections On Tracking My Diet Using Cronometer

I have a number of clients who have weight loss as one of their most important health goals.

Part of the process I ask them to follow in modifying their diet is to track what food and drink they consume for a week or so. This is so we can get some indication of what their diet is like. We use that information to set out some management strategies to help them achieve a healthy weight.

Typically, a client will use a food tracking app like MyFitnessPal or Cronometer to collect the information we need.

Recently, I thought that I had better become more familiar with the ins and outs of this tracking process. I want to know what it’s like so I can speak about it in depth with my clients. So, I tracked my food and drink intake for roughly two weeks - albeit imperfectly. Here’s some reflections on that process.

Initially It Really Sucks But Then It Gets Easier

I won’t lie that it’s a bit of a pain to get started. Learning the app takes some time. And remembering what you ate (and how much) takes time and energy too. It can be inconvenient to weight your food. Plus, there are times when you simply don’t know all the ingredients in a dish and can’t guesstimate the quantities (like if you order a complicated dish at a restaurant).

BUT, after two or three days, you get in the swing. It was actually not as bad as I was anticipating. You learn how to use the app more effectively, and you get better at measuring and estimating quantities. You start to chill a little about whether you’re doing it right and accept it simply as a learning process. After all, the information you’re collecting is just a ballpark figure. You need to stare down the desire to record things perfectly and settle for good enough.

Key Takeaway: The main value in this process lies in familiarising yourself with the energy content and macronutrient (carbs, fats, protein) content in your food - NOT in capturing perfectly accurate data.

I Seemed To Consistently Consume Around 2500 Calories Per Day

I’m not quite sure what to make of this, but even though the tracking process is inherently fraught with inaccuracies, I reliably consumed around 2500 calories per day - according to my tracking. There were discrepancies day to day (of course). Note: My weight is very stable over time.

It’s quite remarkable how accurate your sense of hunger can be. The human body is geared towards maintaining homeostasis - or steady state. On days where I was more active, I instinctively ate more and hardly thought about it. On days when I was less active, the reverse occurred.

Key Takeaway: If you have trouble with a disregulated appetite, I think there’s hope that you can improve things for the better with consistent exercise and sound nutrition. It can be very hard initially, but it won’t always be that way if you persist.

It’s Quite Hard To Get Enough Protein

I was trying to eat around 1.5-2.0 grams of protein per kilo of bodyweight each day (I’m 75kg). This is within the ballpark of what an active male should consume.

It was surprisingly tricky to reach that level!

The main way I was able to get enough protein was to eat eggs (I often have three scrambled eggs - with minimal milk - for breakfast) OR to eat a fair amount of unprocessed meat (steak, chicken thighs etc). Also, I was experimenting wth protein supplements, which I was mixing with greek yoghurt.

On days where I didn’t have a protein supplement, or didn’t have a reasonable amount of meat, I didn’t reach that target. This was quite surprising to me. If I look back on my life to date, I think it is probable that I would not have hit that protein target on most days.

I did feel like I was better rested and more recovered from training when I was focussing on getting enough protein.

Key Takeaway: If you’re looking to lose weight, it will be important to check you’re getting enough protein. This will help you to minimise muscle loss - which is important for your future health. The process of tracking food can really help you in this regard.

A High Protein Diet Seems To Help A Lot With Satiety

I definitely noticed that I felt more satiated when I was eating a lot of protein. I was less likely to experience an empty feeling in my stomach and to be reaching out for snacks out of boredom or a vague sense of hunger. As a child of the late 70s / early 80s (born in 1979) this still does blow my mind a little as it was all “carbs carbs carbs!” when I was young. (Notice I sound young - not youngER!!).

Key Takeaway: A high protein diet may help you to achieve or maintain a healthy weight.

Logging Complicated Restaurant Meals Can Be Tricky

It’s very tricky to know for sure what’s in meals you consume when you eat out. Because I was interested in tracking macronutrients and total energy (as opposed to vitamins and minerals), I was happy to guesstimate the high(er) energy content items - e.g. meat, rice - and not worry so much about the lower energy items - e.g. ginger, garlic. If you’re striving for weight loss, it may be really helpful to calm down your social life for a while so that you can have more control over what you eat and increase your awareness of portion sizes and energy content of your foods.

Key Takeaway: It’s inherently difficult to log/track meals which you have not prepared. Just do your best. It’s an inaccurate - yet helpful - process.

Cronometer Is Actually A Really Good App

I have used Cronometer before, and the app seems to have improved a lot since that time (2019). It contains an extensive list of ingredients and has a nifty barcode scanner you can use. Simply scan the barcode on your food packaging, and it should bring up the nutritional info in the app. There are various other ways to make the process more time and energy efficient, like creating a list of foods you commonly use. To me, it seems like Cronometer is the best free nutrition tracking app on the market.

Key Takeaway: For gaining an awareness of macronutrient and total energy content (as opposed to long term tracking), Cronometer will certainly do the trick.