It’s not easy to maintain a healthy weight. We know as part of any healthy lifestyle, we need to stay active, and watch what we eat, but how? Where can we go to get all of the information we need on diet, nutrition, and fitness? There’s one website with all of the tools, information, and calculators you need, from menu plans to calorie calculators, and best of all, the site is free. Where is this magical website, you ask? It’s MyPyramid.gov, and to get you started, here are 7 of their helpful diet and wellness tools.
Find it here: mypyramid.gov
Wondering how much dairy you ought to drink in a day? Or how many calories you ought to consume? Use this handy calculator tool to develop a plan made just for you. Enter your age, sex, weight, height, and level of physical activity, and the tool will tell you exactly how many calories you ought to be consuming, and how much of each food group to include each day. What a perfect place to start!
Find it here: mypyramid.gov
This is the same tool as above, only designed with a toddler’s needs in mind. This plan will help you teach your child healthy eating and exercise habits for a lifetime. We all want our children to grow up happy, so let’s get started when they’re little!
Find it here: mypyramid.gov
If you’re pregnant or nursing, your fitness and nutrition needs are different, and this tool helps you plan healthy levels of both. This tool also helps with a guide for pregnancy weight gain, dietary supplements, and food safety warnings, then nutrition guides and weight loss tips for nursing moms.
Find it here: letsmove.gov
First Lady Michelle Obama is dedicated to helping us raise a generation of healthy, active kids, and this site has all the tools you need to get your kids on that path, and help them stay here. I love the blog, and the banner at the bottom with the “5 Simple Steps to Success.” It’s so inspirational!
Find it here: mypyramidtracker.gov
Enter some basic information, and this tool will help you plan menus for the week within your target calorie and food group ranges. You can register with this tool to save menus and recipes… how helpful!
Find it here: mypyramidtracker.gov
Register with this portion of the site to keep track of all of your information, which will help you set goals and track your progress towards achieving them. These tools will also help you assess your starting point food intakes and physical activity levels.
Find it here: cnpp.usda.gov
Find out where the food you eat comes from, what’s in it, and how it can be beneficial to buy local, organic foods, or to even grow your own. You can also use the menu planner and recipe finders to choose recipes with specific ingredients, from artichokes to zucchini and everything in between.
Find it here: myfoodapedia.gov
Simply enter the name of a food, and this calculator will tell you how many calories are in one serving, as well as what a serving size ought to be, and which food group it belongs to. You can also compare two foods to see which is the more healthful choice.
Those are a few of the tools you can find at MyPyramid.gov, and they’re all so helpful… and they’re all free! I use the calorie tool all the time, and the specialized pyramid plan is fantastic! Which of these tools have you tried, and which do you like best?
Top Photo Credit: L.M.Designs