The Daily Plate

THE DAILY PLATE is a very good site to track your food intake as well as your exercise. After my MI in 2004, I used a program called Crosstrainer. At the time it was the premier exercise program and I was able to readily shed many pounds and inches from my girth. For me, being fit is about being anal retentive. There is no middle ground. When I track my food and exercise regularly things fall into place (albeit sometimes it takes a while to get there).

The Daily Plate is a one of the crop of so-called Web 2.0 sites which employs AJAX and other techniques to create a program that rivals stand-alone software. The interface is good, but far from intuitive. If there was one area where I think they should work on it would be the navigation system. They need to have a better system to navigate. Additionally, they really should open up the social networking features a bit better. While you can join a group, there does not seem to be a RSS feed of it and I think they should look at Tumblr or even Facebook or My Space for a method of interaction.

One thing that I have bee very impressed with thus far is the amazingly large database of food. Unlike standalone programs which are expensive and therefore have a limited audience, the Daily Plate's basic features are free and therefore they have an enormous penetration. Why is this relevant? Because the food database is VERY extensive. I have only stumped it when I put a local delicatessen on it. Other than that, if you search Trader Joe's Organic Green Tea... it's there.

This site was recently purchased by WomensForum.Com. I hope they do not spin this into a women's centric site as it will be a lost opportunity. The site was already predominantly women, but some of the longest users are men. `I certainly understand and respect that women may want to have a forum of their own, but there is no reason why could not have a forum or a group within the Daily Plate.