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Food Intake Calculator for Weight Loss

Counting calories, and making sure you are burning more calories each day than you eat, is a relatively simple way to lose weight. It is important to keep accurate count of the calories for everything you eat though. There are many components to this equation and several options you can use to keep track of your daily calorie intake.

  1. Calculate Calories Needed

    • The amount of daily calories you need is different from those needed by someone else. Your doctor can help you figure this out, or you can consult an online BMI (body mass index) & Daily Needs Calculator. (See References 3) Input your height and weight and level of daily activity and it will give you a rough approximation of how many calories you need to maintain your weight. If you want to lose weight, you need less. How much less depends on how fast you want to lose weight.

    Calculate Calories Eaten

    • In order to know how many calories you've eaten in a day, you need the calorie count for each item of food you eat. Some foods have labels that list this. For these, remember to read the full label to make sure of the number of actual servings you have eaten. The label will tell you what constitutes a serving and how many calories each serving has. But some foods don't have labels. Fresh fruits, vegetables, meat from the deli or the butcher counter, and restaurant foods don't come with food labels. There are websites that can help you by giving you actual food labels for fresh foods such as bananas, and calorie and nutrition information for foods from most common restaurants. (See References 1 and Resources 1)

    Calories from Fat, Carbohydrates and Protein

    • Besides charting the total calories, you may want to keep track of the calories that come from fat, carbohydrates or protein. In general, you want carbs to be 60 percent of your total calories, protein to account for 10 to 20 percent, and fat to make up no more than 30 percent of your daily calories. Labels often tell you the number of calories from fat, and sometimes also from carbs and protein. The calorie counter websites listed in References and Resources can also help with this information.

    Keeping Track of It All

    • The old-school method of keeping track of your calorie intake may still be the best: keep a small notebook listing food and calorie totals. If you are eating in a place where you can't reference the calories, at least write down the foods and approximate portion sizes, and you can look up the calories later. You can also buy a book that lists common food calories if you are often eating on-the-go. Another option is an application (or app) that runs on a smart phone, if you have one. (See Resources 3) Some of the websites listed in References and Resources will let you create an account and input the food you eat each day. These sites have the advantage of letting you track trends and easily analyze things such as calories from fat. The option you choose is a matter of personal preference; the important thing is to choose an option that you will use to keep an accurate count of your calories.

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