If you’ve ever looked into using a calorie counting app, you may have been daunted by the idea of logging every single thing that goes into your mouth.Â
Truthfully, it does take some getting use to. But with the convenience of smart phone apps – and even the webpages themselves – like My Fitness Pal, you’ll find that a few taps of the screen isn’t really that bothersome after all.Â
And then you’ll start noticing other benefits to using a calorie tracking app.Â
For instance: you might start saving money. How?
It’s pretty simple Really.
   Related: How To Have a Healthy Diet For $20 A Week
6 Ways Calorie Counting Saves You Money
1. You’re less likely to overeat. It’s funny how the simple act of logging what you eat makes you think twice about overeating. And of course, overeating costs you money. yay for savings!
2. It makes you think twice about impulse snacking. Because you have to weigh the momentary satisfaction of a quick snack, against the effort of logging, and adjusting the rest of your daily calorie budget to fit.
3. You find out that expensive junk foods contain more calories than they’re worth. Yup, Put that Little Debbie Cake down! It’s just not worth using up such a large amount of your calorie budget.Â
4. You find that cheaper foods actually make it easier to hit your macro-nutrient goals. I have one word: beans. Not until I started using beans as my main source of carbs was I able to start consistently reaching my daily protein goal. The good news? They’re super cheap, super filling, and you can eat a lot of them!
5. You don’t want to eat out as often. Logging restaurant food is a pain in the rear. First you have to guesstimate how much is on your plate. Wait that’s second. First you have to substitute unhealthy sides for healthy, and try to negotiate your portion sizes.Â
6. It makes you choose cheaper, healthier, lower calorie snacks. For instance, inexpensive, relatively healthy and low calorie frozen fruit over expensive, calorie dense, and super unhealthy popsicles.Â
I’ll be honest and tell you that I’m an on again off again calorie tracker, and that I’ve only been on again for about two months. But without exception, I find these experiences to be completely true, and not only will it save money on your own personal food intake, but it saves money on the whole family, because your kids will follow suit on your eating habits. When you implement cheaper snacks for yourself, they inevitably want some too. Or if you’re like me, you don’t even offer them the more expensive options. 🙂Â
Using a calorie tracker has trained me to eat less, eat more healthy, and choose cheaper, more filling options. It’s worth every extra minute it takes to log in that food!
Your turn: What’s your experience with tracking calories?
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