How to Use LIVESTRONG's Free MyPlate Calorie Tracker App for Android
Keep track of your nutrition and fitness with the LIVESTRONG.COM MyPlate Calorie Tracker for Android, and reach your health goals in no time! This handy guide will walk you through how, with a simple tap, you can track how many calories you consume, burn and net on a daily basis.
Keep track of your nutrition and fitness with the LIVESTRONG.COM MyPlate Calorie Tracker for Android, and reach your health goals in no time! This handy guide will walk you through how, with a simple tap, you can track how many calories you consume, burn and net on a daily basis. Keeping track of your progress for everything from your weight and daily calories to your protein, fat and carbohydrate macros has never been easier!
If you have an iPhone or iPad visit the guide for the iOS version of the MyPlate Calorie Tracker. Although the two apps are very similar and we do our best to keep them consistent with one another there are some differences, so you want to make sure you are using the correct version of the app guide for your device.
How to Determine Your Calorie Goal
Complete the quick and easy registration process (or Log in with an existing LIVESTRONG.COM account) to begin using MyPlate. Toggle the switch on or off to indicate whether or not you would like to receive the LIVESTRONG.COM newsletter, which is full of lots of great advice and information about health and fitness, including weight-loss success stories and free workouts!
Your calorie goal is determined by information entered during the setup process, including current weight, activity level and weight goal. It is very important to accurately complete all of the profile details in order for the app to automatically determine the calorie goal that best supports your chance to succeed.
Many of our members who have been successful in losing weight and keeping it off suggest starting with a less-aggressive goal of losing 1 lb. or less per week when you first begin tracking calories. You can edit your weight goal at any time via the "Profile" option on the app menu.
Related: How to Determine Your Activity Level
Set a Custom Calorie Goal
MyPlate uses the Harris Benedict Formula to determine an appropriate calorie goal for you, taking your height, weight, gender and activity level into consideration. To set your own calorie goal manually uncheck the "Calculate My Goal For Me" option on the Profile page. The app will allow you to enter a custom calorie goal between 1,200 - 9,000 calories per day.
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Determine Your Activity Level
It is important to set your activity level correctly in order to receive a calorie goal that will best meet your needs. Your activity level should not take fitness into consideration. Track fitness exercise separately in the Calorie Tracker for best results.
In determining your activity level, choose "Sedentary" if you spend most of the day sitting (desk job); "Lightly Active" if you spend a good part of the day on your feet (teacher or nurse); "Moderately Active" if you spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (mail carrier, waitress); "Very Active" if you spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (construction worker, landscaper).
Related: Help Determining Your Activity Level
Tracking Tips
Select "Track" from the app menu to access a summary of the day on one page, including access to your Food Diary, details for your protein, fat and carbs, exercise, water and weight tracking. Your daily calorie goal and calories remaining for the day are displayed, as well as a breakdown of calories consumed, burned and net.
Calories Consumed - Calories Burned = Net Calories. One method that is popular when weight loss is the goal is to think of exercise as a way to "earn" more calories to eat. For someone following that methodology, the goal would be to end the day with "Net" calories equaling the "Calorie Goal."
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Floating Action Button for Easy Access
The "Floating Action Button" (FAB) allows quick and easy access to the ability to track. Tap the floating action button to access the menu, then simply tap Food, Exercise, Water or Weight to track those items.
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How to Track Food
From the main Track page tap "View Food Diary" to access specific food tracking details for the day. Scroll down that page for a summary of tracking for each meal and snacks. Tap the calendar icon to browse to the Food Diary for a different date. Select any item from the list to edit or delete that item.
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From the main Track page, tap "View Food Diary" to begin tracking your diet. (You can also use the floating action button for quick, easy access anytime!) Once you are in the Food Diary choose the meal or snack you want to track for and tap the "Add Some Food" link.
Tap the magnifying glass icon to search our database for the food you ate. After you select the search icon you can also choose to tap the microphone and use Google Voice for hands-free search if you have that option enabled on your device.
Tap the barcode icon to scan and search for a packaged food item. A list of foods you have tracked recently is available for easy access under the "Recent" tab at the top of the page. Access your custom foods and meals using the "My Food" and "My Meals" tabs.
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Quick Add Calories + Custom Meals
Tap the "My Food" tab to access the list of your custom food items. Tap "Quick Add Calories" to add a new item to the list. Enter a name for your custom food, as well as total number of calories per serving. Tap the "Create Manual Food" icon at the bottom of the page to save the item to your "My Food" list for future tracking. Select any item from the "My Food" list and then tap "I Ate This" at the bottom of the page to track.
Tap the "My Meals" tab to access the list of your custom meals. Tap "Create New Meal" to add a new meal to this list. Enter a name for your meal, then tap the orange floating action button to find individual foods that make up the meal. After you select a food to add to the meal, tap "Add to Meal" at the bottom of the page to complete the process. Tap the checkmark icon in the upper right of the screen to save the meal to your "My Meals" list once you have finished adding foods.
To track a meal, select any item from the "My Meals" list, choose a meal to track from the dropdown list, edit serving size and then tap "I Ate This Meal" at the bottom of the page to save. Delete custom meals from the list at any time by tapping the three-dot icon to the right of each item.
Related: How Ashley Donahoo Lost 137 Pounds Using LIVESTRONG's Calorie Tracker!
View Nutrition Facts
Select any food item from search results or tracking entries to view detailed nutrition facts. Macronutrient details (protein, fat and carbs) are displayed on the main page for each food. Tap the "View Full Nutrition Facts" link to view more in-depth micronutrient information. Tap the nutrition facts label to toggle between the two views. Select the arrow icon at the top of the page to exit.
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Edit or Delete Food Entry From Daily Tracking
Making a change to your daily tracking is easy! Select the item you wish to edit from your Food Diary. Use the "Choose a Meal" dropdown list to change the meal the food is tracked for. Select the serving size field to make necessary changes there.
Or, tap "Delete This Entry" at the bottom of the screen to remove the item from your Food Diary completely. Tap the checkmark icon in the upper right to save changes. Select the arrow icon in the upper left to return to your Food Diary. To make changes to an entry from a previous day, use the calendar to browse to the Food Diary for the correct day, then follow the above steps.
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Track Macronutrients
The handy macro circle chart displays a summary of the percentages of protein, fat and carbs in your diet for the day, as well as a list of the macronutrient breakdown in grams. Tap "View Breakdown" to take a deeper dive into the macro and micronutrient details for your diet on the date selected. Tap the arrow icon in the upper left to return to the Track summary page for that date.
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How to Track Exercise
From the main Track page scroll to the "Exercise Diary" section to view a list of all exercise items tracked for that day.
Tap "Add Exercise" to track a new workout. Tap the magnifying glass icon in the upper right to search for an exercise to track, or select an item from the "Recent" or "My Exercise" tab lists. Edit the duration and tap "I Did This" to to track.
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Create Custom Exercise
From the main Track page, scroll to the Exercise Diary and tap "Add Exercise" to track a new workout. Select the "My Exercise" tab at the top of the page to access or create a custom workout. Tap the "Enter Calories Burned" button to create a custom exercise when you are unable to find the activity in our database, or for easier future tracking of a combination or custom workout you perform often.
Name your custom exercise and enter the calories burned per hour for the activity (Google can help determine this). Once a custom exercise has been created you can access it on the "My Exercise" tab for fast, easy tracking in the future. Tap the three-dot icon at the far right to edit or delete an item.
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Edit or Delete Exercise Entry from Daily Tracking
To change or remove an exercise you tracked by mistake select the activity you wish to make changes to from your Exercise Diary on the main Track page. Make necessary changes and tap the checkmark icon in the upper right to save your edit, or tap "Delete this Entry" at the bottom of the page to remove the exercise completely. To make changes to an entry from a previous day use the calendar to browse to the correct day's tracking details first, and then follow the above steps to make necessary updates!
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Track Water
Keeping track of your daily water consumption is easy in the MyPlate Calorie Tracker app. From the main Track page, scroll down to the Water section to see a summary of your water consumption for the day. Tap "Add Water" to track a glass of water. Water is added in 8 fl oz increments, and you can quickly and easily add or subtract from your daily total. Tap the arrow icon in the upper left to return to the Track summary page for that date.
Update Your Weight
From the main Track page, scroll to the Weight section to update your data. Tap "Add Weight" and enter your new weight on the page that loads. Tap the arrow icon to the left of "Update Weight" to save your information. To update a past weight entry use the calendar to browse to the date you want to change, and then simply follow the above steps to make your changes.
Related: How Often Should You Weigh Yourself
Chart Your Progress
MyPlate Calorie Tracker makes it easy for you to chart your progress for a variety of time-frames and from many different aspects, including the more traditional weight and BMI. You also have the ability to examine how you are faring with your daily calorie goal and keep track of macronutrient intake for carbohydrates, protein and fat. Also available is the option to chart progress for sodium, sugars and dietary fiber, among others.
Tap "Progress" from the main app menu to access this feature. Use the dropdown menus to select which item you want to view progress for and what timeframe you would like to chart progress for. Depending on the item you are charting you can view a graph of your progress and/or compare your daily numbers with recommended targets or limits.
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Community Message Boards
We know how important community support is to achieving your goals. Access to the LIVESTRONG.COM community message boards will be added in the next Android app update, which is coming very soon! In the meantime, please visit the mobile website via your device's web browser to keep up with your community conversations via the link below.
Related: LIVESTRONG.COM Community Message Boards
Customize Your Profile Photo
To customize your profile image tap "Profile" from the main app menu. Tap the default profile icon at the top of the page to add a custom image. Select any image from the photos stored on your device to use for your profile image.
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Settings
From the main app menu, tap "Settings" to edit preferences. Tap "Units of Measure" to change whether the app tracks measurements in pounds versus kilograms, feet versus centimeters, and ounces versus milliliters. Tap "Sign out" to sign out of your LIVESTRONG.COM account and erase the data on your device (app data that was previously synced with our servers will be restored when you sign back in to your account). Your tracking data automatically syncs with the LIVESTRONG.COM website, and you can always access your account there, as well as via the Android or iOS apps.
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Help & Feedback
From the main app menu, tap "Help and Feedback" to review the LIVESTRONG.COM "Terms and Service" and "Privacy Policy." Tap "Email Customer Support" with any questions or issues you have regarding the LIVESTRONG.COM Calorie Tracker app or website. We are here to help!