Calculating calories consumed and burned during exercise used to require pencil, paper, reference books and slide-rule type devices obtained from weight-loss groups. Today these aids can be found online in the form of useful weight-loss applications and tools. Online weight-loss tools can be inexpensive or even free.
Calorie Counters
Hundreds of calorie counters can help you determine the number of calories in foods and drinks. The more comprehensive online calorie counting tools, such as CalorieKing.com, offer weight-loss and calories burned during exercise calculators. You can also determine the optimal number of calories you should be consuming each day to lose weight based on your current activity level.
Diet and Weight Loss Journals
Sometimes it is easier to lose weight when you are able to write down your progress each day, such as what you ate for the day or how much exercise you completed. Keeping an online diary or blog, such as the free option offered by FitDay.com, allows you to track your foods, exercise and goals and to view nutritional tips to help you achieve your target weight.
Weight-Loss Trackers
Tracking your progress as you lose weight from week to week can be a motivational tool. One such tool, at Skinyr.com, allows you to track your weight loss via an online graph for free. You can keep track of your weekly progress to help stay on track with necessary changes to your diet and exercise program.
MyPyramid
The U.S. Department of Agriculture offers a free online tool that can help point you in the right direction in terms of eating healthily. MyPyramid creates a personalized diet plan based on your age, sex, height, weight and daily physical activity level. This useful tool tells you exactly how many calories you should be targeting each day as well as the types of foods you should be eating. It also recommends an exercise program and offers free dieting and weight loss tips.
BMI Calculator
Assess your current body weight to see if you fall into the overweight or obese category. The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute offers a free online body mass index, or BMI, calculator you can use to determine whether your BMI falls within healthy levels. Enter your height and weight and press the "Compute BMI" button. A healthy BMI falls between 18.5 and 24.9, with figures below or above that range considered underweight or overweight respectively.
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