.FLYINGHEAD PRODUCT REVIEW
.TITLE Chow down and limber up with CalorieKing
.AUTHOR Heather Wardell
.SUMMARY Remember your New Year’s resolutions way back when? Was one of them a plan to lose weight? If it was, and you haven’t done anything about it, the CalorieKing Nutrition and Exercise Manager software might be able to help you make it happen.
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Remember your New Year’s resolutions way back when? Was one of them a plan to lose weight? If it was, and you haven’t done anything about it, the [[http://www.calorieking.com/software|CalorieKing]] Nutrition and Exercise Manager software might be able to help you make it happen.
CalorieKing is available in Windows and Palm versions. These are separate versions; on the Palm, the software is called Diet Diary. They do synchronize reasonably well, although custom foods and exercises are not fully synchronized. The Palm version works well on its own, as does the Windows version; it is not the case that you absolutely need both for functionality.
.CALLOUT Everything I checked was accurate, including the pre-packaged meals that are part of my current weight loss strategy.
When you first install the software, it asks you to create a profile. You tell the program your height, age, current weight, and activity level, and it sets a calorie level for you, which you can change if you’d like. This process is very straightforward and well explained.
.TEASER Is this program worth your money? Tap here for Heather’s full review.
.H1 Tracking food and exercise
Once the profile is complete, it’s time to start entering food and exercise. As Figure A below shows, the software’s main screen provides a lot of information in a well-designed format.
.FIGPAIR A The food database is available on the right-hand side of the screen.
I did find the order of the food items on the right-hand side to be less than intuitive, and some of the groupings of items didn’t work for me. Including ‘fruit’ as the third item in the ‘nuts and seeds’ group, for example, means that I have to hunt for fruit every time because I don’t expect it to be where it is. Once I got used to the groupings, though, it was fairly easy to find items.
To add a food, you find it in the list (or use the very effective search feature) and then drag it to the appropriate meal. The size of the portion can be edited either before or after adding the food to the meal. The screen automatically updates your remaining calorie budget, as well as your intake of carbohydrates, fat, protein, and fiber.
On the Palm, the process of adding foods is very similar. Figure B shows a part of the food list.
.FIGPAIR B Adding a food item on the Palm is easy.
The pull-down menu that reads ‘Milk’ can be used to move back up the food list, which is useful if you’ve accidentally clicked the wrong item. Once you find the item you want, you click it, make sure its serving size is correct, then press Add.
Adding exercise works in the same way: find the exercise (or a reasonable facsimile thereof) in the list, set how many minutes you spent in the activity, and add it. I find the software’s assessment of how many calories I burn while running to be nearly identical to the results my heart rate monitor gives.
.H1 Managing your health strategy
After you’ve entered your information, you can look at reports and graphs to show you how you’re doing. Figure C shows a report of the composition of the two meals shown earlier, back in Figure A.
.FIGPAIR C The Windows software shows detailed graphs and charts. The Palm software does have some graphic information available, but not in the same detail.
I have tried many other diet management programs, and often find that the food lists provided don’t give accurate information. This does not appear to be the case with CalorieKing. Everything I checked was accurate, including the pre-packaged meals that are part of my current weight loss strategy. This made it a lot easier to trust the program.
The main problem I had with the software was in the synchronization between the Palm and Windows versions. They are indeed stand-alone programs, and it shows. If you add a custom food on the Palm, for example, that food will not be available on the desktop. I saved a meal on the Palm; it does show on the Windows version but I cannot use it. When I attempt to add it to a meal, the software does nothing.
This issue makes the software less useful if you plan to use both versions interchangeably, since any food or exercise you use that was not in the original database will not transfer when you synchronize. I would recommend using only one for most of your data entry, using the other only when you cannot access your main platform.
Each piece of the software is solidly designed and works well. On their own, each would rate a strong four out of five. As a package, however, the combined rating is a three.
.RATING 3
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.H1 Product availability and resources
Visit [[http://www.calorieking.com/software|CalorieKing]].
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.BIO
