The Balance Factor

Balance Factor App

What is the Balance Factor?​

The Balance Factor©(BF) is the macronutrient value of a food or meal. It is calculated using the product’s Nutrition Facts table and provides a guide for the consumer to make healthy choices. Healthy choices are those that have the recommended balance of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.

To use the Balance Factor©, simply scan a product’s barcode or search for a product’s brand name or food type using the Balance Factor© app. You have found a healthy choice if the product’s BF© is close to 0 or less. Products with a high BF© can be part of a healthy choice if they are combined with a product having a low BF©.

Foods that have a Balance Factor© close to 0 or less are always healthy choices. Choose healthy meals where multiple products’ Balance Factors© combine to become a single BF© close to zero. For example, a healthy meal choice would be a piece of toast with a BF©=+12 combined with an egg with a BF©=-12 and to give a combined Balance Factor©= 0.

Use the Balance Factor© app to help you make meals with Balance Factors© close to 0. As your body’s metabolism responds to eating balanced meals, your healthy choices will gravitate towards a certain Balance Factor© ideal for your body. A Balance Factor© is specific to each individual and may fluctuate slightly in response to body type and lean to fat mass ratios. However, there is no ideal Balance Factor© that accelerates fat burn or that the user is trying to reach. It is the CONSISTENCY of eating at a similar Balance Factor© at each meal that users successfully reach their fat loss goals.

What is the Caloric Goal?​

The Caloric Goal is the number of calories you must eat to support your body’s metabolism in order to burn body fat. This number has been determined using a Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) calculator and you are given a comfortable range to eat 125 calories above or 100 calories below your Caloric Goal. 

The Caloric Goal is 500-600 calories less than your body’s Caloric Need or TDEE. The Caloric Need is the number of calories your body burns on a daily basis. This deficit of calories causes your body to use stored fat to meet its Caloric Need. The CONSISTENCY of eating at your Caloric Goal and the accumulation of your body giving up stored calories drives the body to burn excess body fat and reduce in size.

As your body size and weight decreases, the deficit of calories also reduces. Your body will slow the release of body fat when there is no longer a difference between the Caloric Goal and the Caloric Need. At such a time, if more fat loss is desired, the Caloric Goal is lowered in 50 calorie intervals until your ideal size is reached.

What do the Progress Graphs show?

The Balance Factor© app plots graphs to reflect your Caloric Goal and Balance Factor© CONSISTENCY. The graphs are produced as a result of you tracking your daily calories.  

The Balance Factor© graph reveals your preferred Balance Factor© by calculating the BF from a weighted combination of daily meals in the tracking program. This graph is dynamic and captures a 20 point Balance Factor© range that dictates where the your meals’ Balance Factors© are as a result of the balance of the macronutrients. For members, an exact Balance Factor© range is calculated and displayed as daily vertical lines on the graph.

The Calorie graph has a static green zone that spans 125 calories above and 100 calories below the Caloric Goal. The goal is to eat within that range of calories. The Calorie graph has a static yellow zone that spans from 100 to 500 calories above the Caloric Goal to the line indicating the Caloric Need.  

Points that fall within the yellow zone just outside the green zone when denoting an “Active” day will not slow the progress of the body burning fat. The CONTINUOUS deficit of calories within 500-600 of the Caloric Need (as well as the CONSISTENCY of the Balance Factor©) drives the speed of fat burn. The goal is ultimately for the dots to stay within the green zone. (For members, the goal is to keep the range lines similar in height to the green zone with the dot inside the zone.)

Calorie Graph

To access the Calorie Graph, tap the heart icon. This button gives you direct access to the How Am I Doing? screen and your progress graphs.

The Calorie Graph indicates whether you are eating enough calories and meeting your Caloric Goal.

Your individual Caloric Goal is the minimum number of calories you must eat to maintain your metabolism and permit the body to burn fat. It is written in the centre of the green zone on the graph.

Your individual Caloric Need is the amount of calories your body requires each day and is written at the top of the yellow zone.

There is a 500 calorie deficit between your Caloric Need and your Caloric Goal.

If your app is set to Fat Burning, your Caloric Goal will be 500 calories less than your Caloric Need. (Though eating 500 calories less per day does NOT equal a weight loss of 1 lb per week, it is safe to have a daily Caloric Goal of 500 calories less than your Caloric Need to elicit a fat burning response).

Maintenance Graph to Stay the Ideal Size

Your goal is simple: Eat enough calories to stay within the green and yellow zones. The closer you are to your Caloric Goal (green zone), the closer to 500 calories you can burn each day in Fat Burning Mode or the easier it is to maintain your metabolism and stay your ideal size in Maintenance Mode.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you are on a diet. The Balance Factor© Program is not about dieting. This app makes sure you are getting enough calories to permit the body to burn unwanted body fat and uses the Balance Factor© to ensure you are getting a balance of the three macronutrients. This is your formula for success!

Staying within the Caloric Zones!

This graph shows a healthy eater where the ideal calorie deficit will encourage the body to give up body fat to meet its Caloric Need.

Poor Appetite and Reduced Metabolism

This graph shows an inadequate caloric intake resulting in a poor appetite, a reduced metabolism and an inability to burn body fat.

Reactive Eating

This graph shows "Reactive Eating" – undereating followed by overeating and an inability to burn body fat due to the yo-yo effect of inconsistent calories on blood sugar. Notice the dot above the graph almost always follows a day after the dot falls below the graph.

Balance Factor Graph

To access the Balance Factor© Graph, tap the heart icon then tap the BF in the bottom left corner.

The Balance Factor© Graph indicates whether you are eating a consistent ratio of carbohydrates to proteins and fats at each meal to stabilize your blood sugar and give your body the ideal environment to burn body fat.

The Balance Factor© Graph guides you to consistently keep your Balance Factors© within a 20-pt range.

Look at the number in the centre of the green line. The Balance Factor© App calculates your average weighted Balance Factor© as you track your meals. A Balance Factor© close to 0 means you are eating a nice balance of carbohydrates to proteins and fats. The higher your BF, the higher the percentage of carbohdyrates you are eating compared to proteins and fats. The lower your BF, the lower the percentage of carbohydrates compared to proteins and fats.

Eating a Consistent Ratio of Macronutrients

This graph represents an eater whose daily weighted Balance Factor© is staying within the ideal 20-point range to optimize the burning of body fat. The weighted median BF is shown at the top of the graph box as well as in the centre of the green zone. The Balance Factor© App helps you discover your ideal ratio of carbohydrates to proteins and fats that guides in sustaining a healthy eating style.

Inconsistent BF’s Outside Green Zone

If your dots are scattered and not staying within the green zone, your carbohydrates are fluctuating and making it difficult for the body to maintain stable blood sugars. This results in "Reactive Eating": cravings, alternating days of under and overeating, and a loss of control over food.

Meal to Meal Balance Factor© Ranges

To see your range of Balance Factors© from meal to meal, tap the Range Icon in the bottom left corner of the BF Graph. The top of the range will be your meal with the highest Balance Factor© and the bottom of the range will show your meal with the lowest Balance Factor©.

Let the Ranges Guide You!

The height of your ranges should be close to the height of the green zone. If you notice days with extreme ranges, find the day in your Calendar by counting the dots from a date on the x-axis and use the magnifying glass in the Daily Tracking program to see which meals were too high or too low in carbohydrates.

What is the Balance Factor Health Challenge?

The Balance Factor©Health Challenge is a challenge designed to inspire EVERY person to improve their overall nutrition regardless of their eating preference, body type, genetic make-up, and/or health and wellness goals. The Health Challenge can be implemented as a Maintenance or Fat Burning Challenge in the workplace, the community, or the home. 

Have the participants download the Balance Factor©App on any Apple device.  Challenge score cards are found by tapping the heart icon on the Home Screen then tapping Summary on each participants app. Score card tabulating requires no input from the participant.

Choose a start date to begin the challenge of building and tracking balanced meals that meet each participant’s individual Caloric Goal.  Each week a winner is declared using the highest Challenge Score amongst the participants. This score is based on 3 measurable outcomes: Calories Burned, Days Exercised, Avg. Cals/Day.  At the end of the 30-day to 90-day challenge period (using 30 day increments), the participant with the highest Challenge Score in the ‘Past 30 Days’ or ‘Past 90 Days’ wins.

Balance Factor Index

The Balance Factor App User Guide

To Scan a Product 

To Scan a Product to Make a Meal

To Scan a Product into Daily Tracking

To Compare Groups of Products

To Make a Meal

To Edit a Meal

To Enter a Recipe

To Add a Personalized Ingredient

 

To Create a Meal Plan using Meals from My Pantry

To Create a Meal Plan from Previous Meal History

To Print or Email a Copy of the Meal Plan and Grocery List

To Find your Caloric Goal

To Add Meals to Daily Tracking

To Add Ingredients to Daily Tracking

To Edit Meals or Ingredients in Daily Tracking

To See a Breakdown of the Day’s Meals and Ingredients

To Edit a Previous Day

 

To Record Active or Fasting Days

To Record Symptoms of Fat Burning

To Record Girth Measurements

To Record ‘Waist to Hip Ratio’ (WHR) Measurements

To Record String Test ‘Waist to Height’ Measurements

To Check Progress on Success Indicators

To Check Progress on your Caloric Goal 

To Check Progress on your Balance Factor

To Check Progress on your Measurements

To Check Progress on your Balance Factor Health Challenge

 

To Share your Pantry with Friends

To Edit the Meals Shared from other Balanced Cafe Users

To Ask a Question

To Send Us Your Eating Summary

To Ask Advice on Your Progress

To Purchase the Balance Factor Playbook

To Access the Balance Factor App User Guide

To Access the Balance Factor Website from the App

To Access the Balance Factor Page from the App

To Access the Balance Factor Health Challenge Page from the App

To Access the Balance Factor App User Guide from the App

The Balance Factor User Guide

Getting Started

The Balance Factor© App helps you achieve your health and wellness goals through fat loss. You can use the Balance Factor© to combine foods into meals that balance the macronutrients – carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Eating enough calories and keeping your macros balanced turns your body into a fat burning machine. 

Download the Balance Factor© App on any Apple device then quickly create a simple Profile to calculate your caloric goal.

Download the Balance Factor App

Identify Balance Factors

The Home Screen, My Pantry, and Daily Tracking programs have a barcode scanner and search bar feature that you can use to identify a product’s serving size, calories, and Balance Factor©.

Use this information to build healthy balanced meals and choose foods to meet your caloric goal.

To scan a product:

  1. On the Home Screen, tap the barcode icon.
  2. Scan the product.
      Note: You can compare this product to another product by tapping COMPARE with another product.

      To scan a product to make a meal:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap ‘My Pantry’, then tap ‘Make a Meal’. 
      2. Enter the meal name, choose the meal category, and tap ‘Add an Ingredient’. 
      3. Tap the barcode icon.

      To scan a product into Daily Tracking:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap ‘Daily Tracking’ on the Home screen, then tap ‘Add an Ingredient’. 
      2. Tap the barcode icon.

      To compare groups of products:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap ‘Daily Tracking’ , then tap ‘Add an Ingredient’. 
      2. Enter a product or a brand name in the search bar.
      Note: To access Balance Factors© without a scanner, tap the search bar instead of the barcode icon as per instructions above.

      Make Meals

      You can make a meal by combining ingredients from the already scanned items in your pantry. These can be used for tracking your calories and creating meals plans. You can edit existing meals including ones shared by friends.

      Use the Meal Categories  B/L/D/S to denote Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snack. This simplifies your meal search when daily tracking and allows the app to calculate a weighted Balance Factor©.

      To make a meal:

      1. On the Home Screen tap ‘My Pantry’, then tap ‘Make a Meal’. 
      2. Enter a Meal Description and choose a Meal Category.
      3. Tap ‘Add an Ingredient’.

      To edit a meal:

      1. On the Home Screen tap My Pantry, then tap the meal you want to edit.
      2. Tap Edit this Meal.
      3. Tap the ingredient you want to edit.

      Create Recipes:

      You can use a recipe to define the number of servings in a meal. The Calories and Balance Factor© for one serving are calculated automatically and one serving is then added to your Personalized Ingredients list.

      To enter a recipe:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap My Pantry, then tap Make a Meal.
      2. Enter a description and meal category for the recipe.  
      3. Tap Add an Ingredient.

      To add a personalized ingredient:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap My Pantry, then tap Personalized Ingredients.   
      2. Tap “+”, then enter the information from your product’s Nutrition Facts label.

      Meal Planning:

      You can create a meal plan instantly by using your inventory of meals in My Pantry or recorded meals from previous days. The individualized meal plan is calculated using your ideal caloric goal and Balance Factor© for a one or two week period.  You can print or email someone a copy of the meal plan and its grocery list.

      To create a meal plan using meals from My Pantry:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap My Pantry then tap Meal Planner.
      2. Choose the My Pantry option, then tap GO!.
      3. In the Meal Planner, tap # of weeks option then tap Create Meal Plan. 
      4. Tap your starting date for the meal plan.

      To create a meal plan from previous meal history:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap My Pantry then tap Meal Planner.
      2. Choose the What I Ate option, then tap GO!.
      3. In the Meal Planner, tap # of weeks option then tap Create Meal Plan. 
      4. Tap your starting date for the meal plan.

      To print or email a copy of the meal plan and grocery list:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Calendar, then tap Upcoming Meals.
      2. Choose the time period options then tap GO!.
      3. Tap a date on the calendar for a start date, then tap a date for an end date.
      Note: Meal plans will be entered into Daily Tracking and the Calendar.  Meals from the meal plans can be edited on a daily basis through the Daily Tracking program.

      Track Meals:

      The Daily Tracking program uses the colors – green, yellow, and red to help you choose meals that accumulate to meet your caloric goal. It calculates a weighted Balance Factor© that reflects the balance of macronutrients you are having at each meal and as a daily total. Do your best to stay in green, meaning that your meals are balanced.

      Meeting your daily caloric goal and eating a good balance of macronutrients at each meal, optimizes your metabolism, helps you burn excess body fat, and reduces your risk of disease.

      To find your caloric goal:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking. 

      To add meals to Daily Tracking:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking then tap Add an Meal.
      2. Tap the Meal Category (B/L/D/S) you want, then tap the meal.
      3. Tap Save.

      To add ingredients to Daily Tracking:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking then tap Add an Ingredient.
      2. Enter a product or brand name in the search bar.

      To edit meals or ingredients in Daily Tracking:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking.
      2. Tap the meal or ingredient you want to edit.

      To see a breakdown of the day’s meals and ingredients:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking.
      2. Tap the magnifying glass icon.

      To edit a previous day:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Calendar.
      2. Tap the day you wish to edit.

      Record Success

      You can record symptoms of fat burning and track “active” or “fasting” days directly in the Calendar program.  This provides instant gratification, motivation and displays patterns of progress to help you stay the course.

      To record “active” or “fasting” days:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking.
      2. Tap Active or Fasting.

      To record symptoms of fat burning:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Daily Tracking.
      2. Tap More.
      Note: An icon representing either an “active” or “fasting” day will be entered into the Calendar. Any combination of the three emojis that represent symptoms of fat burning (i.e. thirstiness, reduced bowel movements, frequency of urination) will be entered into the Calendar by tapping the “More” button and selecting the appropriate emoji. 

      Record Measurements

      You can record progress from changes in girth measurements and clothing size by using the Progress program on the Home screen. This feature uses objective outcomes to graph progress by comparing your results to “normal” standards.

      To record girth measurements:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the Progress button then tap ‘+’ and enter your measurements for that date.
      2. Tap OK, then tap Show Me to see your graph.
      3.  

      To record WHR ‘waist to hip’ ratio measurements:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the Progress button then tap ‘+’ and enter your waist and hip measurements for that date.
      2. Tap OK, then tap Show Me to see your graph.

      To record String Test (waist to height) measurements:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the Progress button then tap ‘+’ and enter your waist measurements for that date.
      2. Tap OK, then tap Show Me to see your graph.

      Check Progress

      You can track your progress by reviewing the graphs on the How Am I Doing? Screen. The Calorie graph has an ‘ideal’ green range spanning 100 calories above and below your Caloric Goal and plots your daily calories. The Balance Factor©(BF) graph has a dynamic green zone that calculates your average weighted BF from the meals you are tracking.

      A good progress report shows most dots being within the green zones.

      To check progress using Success Indicators:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the Calendar program.

      To check progress using Caloric Goal:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the heart icon.

      To check progress using the Balance Factor:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the heart icon.
      2. Tap the BF option.

      To check progress using girth measurements:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the Progress button.
      2. Tap OK, then tap Show Me to see your graph.
      3.  

      To check progress using the Balance Factor© Health Challenge:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the heart icon.
      2. Tap Summary.
      3. Tap Balance Factor©Health Challenge to understand how to use the Balance Factor© Challenge Score.

      Share Meals and Ingredients

      You can share the meals and ingredients that you have saved in your Pantry with other Balance Factor© App users. This expands your meal options and helps to add variety to our meal planning and adds items to your “Ingredients List”.

      To share your pantry with friends:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the three dots then tap Share My Pantry.
      2. Tap OK, then type an email address into the To: space then tap the arrow.

      To edit the meals shared from other Balance Factor© App users:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap My Pantry, then tap the meal you wish to edit.
      2. Tap Edit this Meal.

      Get Support

      Ask us a question or send in your eating summary and Calorie/BF graphs and we’ll respond as quick as we can. Purchase the Balance Factor©Playbook to help you identify and remove your dietary roadblocks and start on your fat burning journey today.

      To ask a question:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Support then enter a subject and question.
      2. Tap the arrow to send the question.

      To send us your eating summary:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Support then enter a subject and question.
      2. Tap Attach my Eating Summay, then tap Send. 
      3. Tap the arrow to send the question.

      To ask advice on your progress:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the heart icon, then tap Send Us Your Graphs for Advice. (Members only.)
      2. Tap the arrow to send us your progress graphs.

      To purchase the Balance Factor© Playbook:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the three dots then tap Balance Factor© Playbook.

      To access the Balance Factor© App User Guide:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Support then tap User Guide.

      Access Website

      You can access the Balance Factor© website including specific pages of interest directly through the Balance Factor©App. This allows you to interact with the website and return to the screen in the app that you were using.

      To return to the Balance Factor©App from the website, tap < Balance in the top left corner of your mobile device.

      To access the Balance Factor© website from the App:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Balance Factor© icon.
      2. On the Home Screen, tap Support, then tap Learn More. 
      3. On the Home Screen, tap Calendar. Tap the Balance Factor icon.
      4. On the Home Screen, tap the three dots. Tap Profile then tap Intro. Tap More…

      To access the Balance Factor© page from the App:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap the three dots then tap Balance Factor.
      2. On the Home Screen, tap the heart icon then tap Balance Factor & You.
      3. On the Home Screen, tap Support, then tap Balance Factor. 
      4. On the Home Screen, tap the three dots. Tap Profile then tap Intro. Tap What’s a B.F.?

      To access the Balance Factor© Health Challenge page from the App:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Calendar then tap Balance Factor Health Challenge.
      2. On the Home Screen, tap the heart icon then tap Summary then tap Balance Factor Health Challenge.

      To access the Balance Factor© App User Guide from the App:

      1. On the Home Screen, tap Support then tap User Guide.
      2. For Non-Members only…On the Home Screen, tap My Pantry then tap User Guide.
      This website is intended to supplement, not replace, the advice of a trained health professional. If you know or suspect that you have a health problem, you should consult a health professional. The administrator of this website specifically disclaim any liability, loss, or risk, personal or otherwise, that is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any the contents on this website.

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      This website is intended to supplement, not replace, the advice of a trained health professional. If you know or suspect that you have a health problem, you should consult a health professional. The administrator of this website specifically disclaim any liability, loss, or risk, personal or otherwise, that is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any the contents on this website.

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