Geist Couple Launch Online Weight Loss Tool

John Porten, the entrepreneur behind MyGraphite.com.

While doctors, trainers and health gurus alike tell all who will listen the importance of counting calories, most dieters will simply say, “Yeah, whatever.” After all, the idea sounds so cumbersome and overwhelming. Who has time during their day to keep track of caloric intake?

Well, according to Geist resident John Porten, owner of Graphite Wellness Solutions, LLC, counting your calories just got easier. Porten and his wife and co-founder Lauri, who is also a personal trainer, has launched a Beta version of the first online tool to calculate both calorie intake and calories burned on a daily basis. The service is based on the Energy Balance principle, which refers to the relationship between caloric intake (in the form of food) and caloric output (in the form of metabolism and activity).

The Web-based application allows users to track the amount of calories going in and out by recording meals and exercise activity. Whether the goal is to lose or maintain weight, Graphite calculates the exact amount of calories to be consumed in order to reach a predetermined goal weight, in accordance with a specified timeline.

“I have tried more diets than I care to admit and after much frustration, I discovered the concept of Energy Balance. I soon realized that the key to long-term weight control is balancing calorie intake with calorie expenditure. But I really needed a tool to help me,” John explains. "Studies show that meal tracking is one of the most effective weight control strategies available. So I started tracking what I was eating, as well as any exercise I was getting, all on one spread sheet. I then started losing weight, he says.

To date, John has shed 54 pounds since June of 2008. “Because I saw how well this process worked, I figured I could take that same functionality and build it into a web-based application,” he adds.

“One of the best things about this online tool is that it allows users to create a personal profile, and the program calculates the number of calories you burn every day, no matter how active you are,” John explains. “Once you set your weight-loss goal, you can adjust what you eat according to the amount of calories you burn. Our goal was to create the simplest and most functional calorie tracking application in the market, and I feel that we succeeded,” he says.

For a monthly fee of $5, subscribers have online access to an extensive food and exercise database, in order to accurately track intake and reach health goals. The site is also free of pop-up advertisements and message boards by design. Graphite intends to launch a mobile version of the Web application this April in order to accommodate on-the-go users, as well as group-based sites for fitness professionals and their clientele. For more information, visit www.MyGraphite.com.