How do I add multiple items to a meal on MyFitnessPal?

MyFitnessPal data shows that people who log their food regularly are seven times more likely to make progress toward their weight loss goals. A powerful way to streamline this process is to know how do I add multiple items to a meal on MyFitnessPal efficiently, saving precious time and effort. This guide will walk you through the simplest methods to log combined foods, from creating custom meals to using the multi-add function.

Quick Summary

This guide provides step-by-step instructions for adding multiple foods to a single meal on MyFitnessPal. It covers creating and saving custom meals, using the multi-add feature, and copying meals from previous days to streamline your food logging process. Advanced techniques like utilizing recipes are also explained.

Key Points

• Save Custom Meals: For foods you eat often, save them as a custom meal under 'My Meals' to log with a single tap in the future.

• Use the Multi-Add Feature: Quickly add multiple foods from your 'Favorites' or 'Recents' list at once by enabling the 'Multi-add' option.

• Copy Meals or Days: If you eat a similar meal or entire day of food frequently, use the 'Copy to Date' function to duplicate entries.

• Create Recipes for Complex Dishes: For home-cooked meals with many ingredients, create a recipe to automatically calculate nutrition per serving.

• Log Strategically: Use a combination of scanning barcodes for packaged foods and the above methods for homemade meals to minimize manual effort.

• Rename Meal Sections: Customize your meal names from 'Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner' to fit your eating patterns better.

Why Master Multiple-Item Logging?

Consistently tracking your food is a cornerstone of achieving health and fitness goals. However, logging each individual ingredient for a complex meal like a chili or a salad can become tedious and discouraging, leading to inconsistent tracking. Mastering the ability to add multiple items at once drastically reduces this friction, transforming a time-consuming task into a quick and efficient habit. This efficiency is especially critical for people who meal-prep or eat the same meals frequently throughout the week, as it eliminates repetitive data entry. MyFitnessPal provides several tools to help, each catering to different logging scenarios. Using these features effectively will keep you engaged and on track.

Method 1: Creating and Saving a Custom Meal

This is the perfect solution for dishes you prepare and eat regularly, such as your go-to breakfast smoothie, a packed lunch salad, or a recurring family dinner. By saving it once, you can log it with a single tap in the future.

1. Log the Individual Items: Start by logging all the ingredients for your meal in your food diary, just as you normally would. Be precise with your measurements using a food scale for best accuracy.
2. Navigate to the Save Meal Feature: In your Diary, find the meal section where you logged the items. Tap the three-dot menu (...) or the 'More' button usually located next to the 'Add Food' button.
3. Select 'Save as Meal': From the options that appear, choose 'Save as Meal'.
4. Name and Save: Give your new custom meal a descriptive name, such as "Sunday Breakfast Scramble" or "Go-To Green Salad." You can even include important macros in the name for quick reference. Tap 'Save New' to finalize.
5. Log the Meal in the Future: The next time you want to eat this meal, simply tap 'Add Food' for the relevant meal slot, then navigate to the 'My Meals' tab. Your saved meal will be there, ready to be added with a single click.

Method 2: Using the Multi-Add Feature

For adding multiple previously logged or favorite foods at the same time, MyFitnessPal offers the 'Multi-add' function. This is ideal for assembling a meal from various ingredients you've logged before without needing to create a permanent custom meal.

1. Access Your Favorites or Recent List: When logging food, tap the '+' button and then select the 'Log Food' option. This will take you to your food search screen. At the top, select the 'Favorites' or 'Recents' tab.
2. Enable Multi-add: On your favorites list, tap the 'Multi-add' button. Checkboxes will appear next to each food.
3. Select Your Items: Tap the checkboxes next to all the foods you want to include in your meal, such as a chicken breast, a serving of rice, and a vegetable side.
4. Add to Diary: Once you have selected all the items, tap 'Add Checked' or 'Add' to log them all at once. The selected items will be added to your chosen meal slot.

Method 3: Copying Previous Meals and Days

If you frequently eat the same food combinations, copying entire meals or days is an incredibly fast method. This is a lifesaver for batch cooking or repetitive weekly meal plans.

• Copy a Single Meal: To copy a single meal to another day, go to your Diary. Tap the three-dot menu (...) next to the specific meal you want to copy. Choose 'Copy to Date' and select the target date.
• Copy an Entire Day: To copy all logged foods from one day to another, go to the Diary tab and tap 'Edit' in the top-left corner. You can then select all food items (or just specific ones) and copy them to another day.

Comparison of MyFitnessPal Logging Methods

Feature	Saved Meals	Multi-Add	Copy Meal/Day	Barcode Scanner
Best For	Routinely eaten, multi-ingredient meals (e.g., breakfast burrito).	Assembling a meal from frequently used single ingredients.	Repeating an entire day's worth of food, or a single meal on another day.	Quickly logging packaged, single-item foods.
Setup Time	Medium (one-time logging and saving).	Minimal (builds over time as you add favorites).	None (relies on past logging).	Instant (point and shoot).
Logging Time	Very fast (one tap).	Fast (tap multiple checkboxes).	Very fast (select and copy).	Fast (scan and log).
Ingredients	Stored together as one entry; can be edited.	Added as separate entries.	Added as separate entries; can be edited.	Single item per scan.
Flexibility	Highly editable for portion changes.	Offers flexibility in which ingredients to add.	Easy to adjust after copying.	Low flexibility, best for single ingredients.
Use Case	Meal prep, favorite recipes, repetitive diets.	Dinner with side dishes from your favorites.	Meal planning for the week ahead.	Logging groceries or packaged snacks.

Advanced Tips for Efficient Tracking

• Create a Recipe: For more complex, home-cooked dishes, MyFitnessPal's 'Create a Recipe' tool offers more detail and flexibility than 'Save as Meal.' You can enter all ingredients and the number of servings, and the app will calculate the nutrition per serving. This is perfect for meal-prepped batches where you want to accurately track per-portion nutrition. Find this feature under 'More' > 'My Meals, Recipes & Foods'.
• Use the Recipe Importer: If you find a recipe online, MyFitnessPal's recipe importer can save you even more time. Simply copy the recipe URL into the app, and it will pull all the ingredients automatically.
• Name Your Meals: For more clarity and easier tracking, especially if your eating schedule varies, you can rename your meal sections (e.g., instead of 'Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner,' use 'Meal 1, Meal 2, Meal 3'). This can be done in the app's settings.
• Leverage Premium Features: Premium users have access to advanced tools like Multi-Day Logging, which allows you to log foods for multiple upcoming days at once. This is ideal for structured meal plans.

Conclusion

Logging multiple items on MyFitnessPal doesn't have to be a chore. By utilizing features like 'Save as Meal,' 'Multi-add,' and 'Copy from Date,' you can significantly reduce the time spent on tracking and dedicate more focus to your health goals. For more detailed, complex dishes, the 'Create a Recipe' and 'Recipe Importer' tools provide accurate, per-serving nutritional data. With a strategic approach, you can turn logging from a tedious task into a quick, intuitive part of your daily routine. Choose the method that best fits your eating habits and start logging smarter, not harder. You'll be amazed at how much faster and easier tracking becomes, paving the way for more consistent progress.

Expert Resources

For more in-depth guidance and official support, explore the MyFitnessPal Help Center. Their articles and tutorials offer detailed instructions on all features discussed, from saving meals to using premium tools. MyFitnessPal Help Center

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the fastest way to add a repetitive meal on MyFitnessPal?

The fastest way is to create and save a custom meal. After logging the ingredients once, you can find it under the 'My Meals' tab and add it with a single tap for future entries.

Can I add multiple items from my 'Favorites' list at the same time?

Yes, you can use the 'Multi-add' feature. Simply go to your 'Favorites' list, tap 'Multi-add', select all the items you want to log, and then tap 'Add Checked'.

How do I log a meal I've already entered on a previous day?

You can use the 'Copy from Date' feature. Tap the three dots next to the meal you want to copy in your Diary, select 'Copy to Date', and choose the day you wish to copy it to.

What's the difference between 'Save as Meal' and 'Create a Recipe'?

'Save as Meal' combines foods already logged into a single entry for faster re-logging. 'Create a Recipe' is designed for more complex dishes, allowing you to enter multiple ingredients and serving sizes, with the app calculating the nutrition per serving.

Can I import a recipe from a website into MyFitnessPal?

Yes, the Recipe Importer tool allows you to paste a URL from a recipe website, and MyFitnessPal will automatically import the ingredients for you.

How can I log my food for multiple upcoming days at once?

Premium MyFitnessPal users can use the 'Multi-Day Logging' feature. From the diary, tap 'Edit' at the top, select the items, and choose which days to copy them to.

Does MyFitnessPal track the macros for a custom meal?

Yes, MyFitnessPal will automatically track and display the combined calories and macronutrients (protein, carbs, and fat) for all the ingredients you saved as part of your custom meal.