HELLO, my fabulous friends! Long time no chat… i know i know, it’s pretty typical at this point. (I’m working on it, okay? lol). I won’t go into a ramble about that right now, instead, we will just jump right into today’s blog topic which is…
TRACKING THE UNTRACKABLE.
What do I mean by this?
Well… if you follow me on any of my various social medias (if you don’t follow me, what you doinnnnnn? You definitely should, duh, find my social media handles here), you know that since i moved down to NOLA, i am beyond obsessed with doughnuts… District Donuts to be exact.
I have been a “flexible dieter” for quite some time now so tracking my macros is nothing new to me. I am enjoying tracking at this time and i know that it is a really great way that i can continue to reach my goals without feeling restricted or deprived. Yes, i am currently in a cutting phase. However, this does not mean that i can’t still eat donuts, or other foods that i enjoy. I am not dieting for a show, or something super strict, more so just doing a “lifestyle” diet , for lack of a better word. It is a lot less strict or extreme than a bikini prep diet, so if i still want to go out and enjoy donuts i can easily do so.
But, because District Donuts is a local shop as opposed to a large chain like Dunkin Donuts, Tim Horton’s, or Krispy Kreme, the calories and macro nutrient breakdowns cannot be found on apps such as MyFitnessPal. Does this stop me from enjoying these donuts? ABSOLUTELY NOT.
So how exactly do I still enjoy these donuts, track them (or not), and still make progress towards my cutting/physique goals? Continue reading below.
*Please note, that this is more so my philosophy for everyday life, lifestyle “diets, and simply living… as opposed to something that needs more structure and accuracy with macros like a bikini competition prep.
- The BIGGEST piece of advice i have for tracking untrackable foods, is find a food equivalent on MyFitnessPal, or online, that is a similar food or the same food, as the food you are going to be eating. For example, if I was going to be eating a glazed donut from district, i would search on MFP “glazed donut”. While the macros may not be exact, you can get the general idea.
- Once you have searched the food item on MFP, take the time to look at several of the entries. Generally, i choose the item that seems to be the average. For example, if the majority of the entries have about 50 carbs, i would choose one of those food entries as opposed to one that says it has 25.
- It is also important to use your common sense. By now, if you have been tracking for a while you know a little bit about the macronutrient breakdown of the foods you eat. Roughly estimating the macros for donuts is possible…. i would say at least 12 ish grams of fat, carbs depending on the complexity of the donut, and low protein at about 5 ish grams. Obviously this varies between what type of donut it is, if it’s filled, what it is topped with, etc…
- You could also use the more manual approach and add the donut toppings individually. Say it’s a yeast donut with chocolate icing and peanut butter cups on top. You could add each part into MFP separately. Yeast donut + chocolate icing + peanut butter cup. From here you would guesstimate the amount of each. If a serving of chocolate icing is 2 tbsp and your donut appears to have two servings, add two servings. If it looks like there’s two crushed up reese cups on top of your donut, add two reese cups.
- Some basic donut knowledge to throw in there: Krispy Kreme tends to be a “lighter” type of donut while donuts from say Dunkin seem to be more dense. So, if you are eating a more light and fluffy glazed donut, search “glazed donut krispy kreme” and go from there.
- You also need to be okay with not being 100% accurate. It is important to realize that since you are roughly tracking, you might not be hitting your macros perfectly, but you are doing your best and that is okay! You need to be okay with estimating, enjoying your donut, and then be able to move on your day without stressing about whether or not you went over your macros.
- If you are super concerned about going “too far” over your macros, or concerned with underestimating the macros, you can always overestimate. Tack on a few extra fat grams or carb grams into MFP. (You can add 1g of fat by searching “fat in grams” on MFP. Same goes for carbs and protein).
The above tips for tracking donuts, or other “ultrackable” foods may seem complicated or overwhelming at first, but i promise it does get easier each time you do it. I keep using donuts as an example (because let’s be honest, i have been eating them a lot lol) but these tips can apply to pretty much anything… from donuts to cupcakes, froyo, pizza, you name it.
I wanted to do this post to show you guys that it is possible to eat delicious foods that are difficult to track without stressing because the food doesn’t have a nutritional label attached to the back. Simply find a similar food item on MFP, use your common sense, guesstimate toppings and portion sizes, and ENJOY IT without stressing over the accuracy of the numbers. If you don’t want to track your macros or guesstimate, that is COOL too. There is a time and place for tracking and guesstimating and there is a time and place for just eating donuts because you want to. Moral of the story? Just do what’s best for you, boo.
I really am going to try to get back into the swing of blogging on a regular basis so please leave a comment and let me know what you want to see. I am open to any and all suggestions so please don’t hesitate to throw out any ideas. The more ideas the better lol.
Please like and share this post if you found it to be helpful and be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss out on any exciting posts to come!
Thanks so much for taking the time to read my blog and keep checking back for more.
Talk soon (promise),
PBandLaurenKelly 
I had no idea you could track fat by gram, etc!!! So incredibly helpful 🤗
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Yay I’m glad you found it helpful! Thanks for reading!
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