Step-by-Step Guide: Building a MyFitnessPal Clone with Adalo

Key Takeaways

• Build a fully functional nutrition tracking app in weeks without writing code
• Set up a relational database to track foods, meals, users, and calorie totals using Adalo's built-in database
• Implement custom formulas for calorie calculations, macro tracking, and progress visualization
• Save thousands of dollars compared to hiring a developer for custom app development
• Publish directly to the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and web from one platform

This comprehensive tutorial walks you through building a nutrition tracking app using Adalo's no-code platform. You'll learn how to create food logging, calorie tracking, macro calculations, progress dashboards, and goal setting—all the core features that make MyFitnessPal popular—without writing a single line of code.

Whether you're a fitness coach wanting to track client nutrition, an entrepreneur building a wellness startup, or someone who simply wants a custom nutrition app, this guide covers every step from database design to app store publication.

Understanding the Core Features of Your MyFitnessPal Clone

Before building, you need to define what features your nutrition tracking app will include. A solid MyFitnessPal clone requires these essential components:

Defining Essential User Stories

Your app should allow users to:

• Create an account and set personal health goals (daily calories, macros)
• Search and log foods from a database
• Track meals by category (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks)
• View daily calorie and macro totals in real-time
• Monitor progress over time with charts and history
• Update personal stats (weight, activity level)

Key Functionality Checklist

Based on the fitness app build guide, your app needs:

• User authentication with profile management
• Food database with nutritional information
• Meal logging connected to specific dates and meal types
• Calorie calculations that update automatically
• Progress tracking with visual dashboards
• Goal management for personalized targets

Setting Up Your App's Database with Adalo

The database is the foundation of your nutrition app. Getting this right prevents costly restructuring later.

Step 1: Create Your Adalo Account and App

1. Go to Adalo.com and sign up
2. Click "Create New App"
3. Choose "Mobile App" for the best nutrition tracking experience
4. Name your app (e.g., "NutriTrack")
5. Select a fitness template from health & fitness cloneables or start from scratch

Step 2: Configure the Users Collection

1. Click the Database icon in the left sidebar
2. Click on "Users" collection (already exists by default)
3. Add these properties (click "+ Add Property" for each):
   
   • Weight (Number) – in pounds or kilograms
   • Height (Number) – in inches or centimeters
   • Age (Number)
   • Daily Calorie Goal (Number)
   • Activity Level (Text) – Values: "Sedentary", "Light", "Moderate", "Active"
   • Protein Goal (Number) – grams per day
   • Carbs Goal (Number) – grams per day
   • Fat Goal (Number) – grams per day

Step 3: Create the Foods Collection

1. Click "+ Add Collection"
2. Name it "Foods"
3. Add these properties:
   
   • Food Name (Text)
   • Calories (Number) – per serving
   • Protein (Number) – grams
   • Carbs (Number) – grams
   • Fat (Number) – grams
   • Serving Size (Text) – e.g., "1 cup", "100g"
   • Category (Text) – Values: "Fruits", "Vegetables", "Proteins", "Grains", "Dairy", "Other"

Step 4: Create the Food_Logs Collection

This collection tracks what users actually eat:

1. Click "+ Add Collection"
2. Name it "Food_Logs"
3. Add these properties:
   
   • Meal Type (Text) – Values: "Breakfast", "Lunch", "Dinner", "Snack"
   • Quantity (Number) – number of servings
   • Log Date (Date & Time – Automatic)
   • Calculated Calories (Number)
   • Calculated Protein (Number)
   • Calculated Carbs (Number)
   • Calculated Fat (Number)

Step 5: Set Up Database Relationships

Using Adalo's relational database capabilities:

1. In Food_Logs collection:

• Add relationship to Users: "User" (A User can have many Food_Logs)
• Add relationship to Foods: "Food" (A Food can appear in many Food_Logs)

2. This structure allows you to:

• Query all food logs for a specific user
• Calculate daily totals by filtering logs by date
• Display food details when showing log entries

Designing Your User Interface: Food Logging and Dashboards

With your database ready, it's time to build the screens users will interact with.

Step 6: Build the Home Dashboard Screen

1. Add a new screen named "Dashboard"
2. Add a Text element: "Today's Summary"
3. Create a summary section showing:
   
   • Total Calories consumed (using Magic Text formula)
   • Remaining calories (Goal – Consumed)
   • Progress bar component

Step 7: Create the Food Search Screen

1. Add new screen "Add Food"
2. Add Search Bar component at top
3. Add List component connected to Foods collection:
   
   • Filter by search term matching Food Name
   • Display: Food Name, Calories, Serving Size
4. Each list item links to "Log Food" screen with current food selected

Step 8: Build the Log Food Screen

1. Add new screen "Log Food"
2. Display selected food details:
   
   • Text: Food Name
   • Text: Calories per serving
   • Text: Macros (P/C/F)
3. Add form elements:
   
   • Dropdown for Meal Type (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snack)
   • Number Input for Quantity
4. Add Button: "Log This Food"
5. Button action: Create new Food_Log record with calculated values

Step 9: Design the Meal History Screen

1. Add new screen "Meal History"
2. Add Date Picker to select viewing date
3. Add List of Food_Logs:
   
   • Filter: User = Logged In User AND Log Date = Selected Date
   • Group by Meal Type
   • Show food name, quantity, and calories for each entry

Implementing Core Logic: Calorie Tracking and Goal Management

This is where your app becomes functional with real calculations.

Step 10: Create Calorie Calculation Formulas

Using Adalo's custom formula system:

1. On Dashboard screen, add Text element
2. Click on text → Magic Text → "New Formula"
3. For total daily calories:

SUM(All Food_Logs > Calculated Calories WHERE User = Logged In User AND Log Date = Today)

4. Repeat for each macro:
   
   • Protein: SUM(Food_Logs > Calculated Protein WHERE...)
   • Carbs: SUM(Food_Logs > Calculated Carbs WHERE...)
   • Fat: SUM(Food_Logs > Calculated Fat WHERE...)

Step 11: Set Up Progress Bar Calculations

For visual progress tracking based on complex calculations:

1. Add Progress Bar component to Dashboard
2. Set value formula:

(Total_Calories_Consumed / Logged In User > Daily Calorie Goal) × 100

3. Use ROUND function for cleaner display: ROUND((calculation))

Step 12: Implement Goal Setting Screen

1. Add new screen "My Goals"
2. Add Form connected to update Logged In User:
   
   • Daily Calorie Goal (Number Input)
   • Protein Goal (Number Input)
   • Carbs Goal (Number Input)
   • Fat Goal (Number Input)
3. Add action on save: Update user record → Navigate to Dashboard

Integrating External Data for Enhanced Functionality

To expand beyond manually-entered foods, connect external nutrition databases.

Step 13: Connect External Food API

Using External Collections (Professional plan required):

1. Go to Database → External Collections
2. Click "Add External Collection"
3. Enter API endpoint (e.g., Nutritionix with over 800,000 foods)
4. Configure authentication with your API key
5. Map response fields to your Foods collection structure

Step 14: Set Up Automation with Zapier

Connect Zapier integration for enhanced features:

• Send weekly progress emails to users
• Export food logs to Google Sheets for analysis
• Trigger notifications for goal achievements
• Sync data with Airtable for backup

Enhancing Your MyFitnessPal Clone with Advanced Features

Take your app beyond basic tracking with premium components.

Step 15: Add Premium Subscription Features

1. Visit the Adalo Marketplace
2. Install Stripe Payment component
3. Create subscription tiers:
   
   • Free: Basic food logging, limited history
   • Premium: Unlimited history, custom foods, charts
4. Add paywall screens before premium features

Step 16: Implement Charts and Visualizations

1. Install Chart component from Marketplace
2. Add "Progress" screen
3. Configure line chart:
   
   • X-axis: Dates (past 7/30 days)
   • Y-axis: Daily calorie totals
4. Add additional charts for weight tracking, macro distribution

Step 17: Create Social and Sharing Features

1. Add "Community" screen
2. Enable users to share achievements
3. Add friend connections via user relationships
4. Create leaderboards filtered by friend groups

Testing and Iterating Your No-Code Fitness App

Thorough testing prevents issues after launch.

Step 18: Add Test Data

1. Create 3-5 test user accounts
2. Add 200-300 common foods to your Foods collection
3. Create sample food logs across different dates
4. Test calculations with known values

Step 19: Test Core User Flows

Work through each critical path:

• New user registration and goal setting
• Food search and logging
• Daily summary calculations
• History viewing and date filtering
• Goal updates and profile changes

Step 20: Preview on Multiple Devices

1. Use Adalo's built-in previewer for desktop testing
2. Download Adalo Preview app on your phone
3. Test on both iOS and Android if possible
4. Verify all conditional logic and calculations display correctly

Publishing Your MyFitnessPal Clone to App Stores and Web

With testing complete, it's time to launch.

Step 21: Prepare for App Store Submission

Based on the publishing guide:

For iOS:

• Create Apple Developer account ($99/year)
• Prepare screenshots (1290×2796 pixels for iPhone)
• Write app description and keywords
• Add privacy policy URL

For Android:

• Create Google Play Developer account ($25 one-time)
• Prepare screenshots (320-3840px width)
• Complete content rating questionnaire

Step 22: Submit Your App

1. In Adalo, click "Publish" button
2. For iOS publishing:
   
   • Enter App Store Connect credentials
   • Upload app icon and screenshots
   • Submit for review (typically 24-48 hours)
3. For Android publishing:
   
   • Connect Google Play Console
   • Upload assets
   • Submit for review (3-7 days)

Why Adalo Is the Right Choice for Building Your Nutrition App

When comparing no-code platforms for health and fitness apps, Adalo offers distinct advantages that make it ideal for building a MyFitnessPal clone.

True Native Apps: Unlike platforms that only produce web apps, Adalo lets you publish directly to both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Your users get a native app experience with push notifications and offline capabilities.

Built-In Relational Database: Adalo includes a relational database that handles complex relationships between users, foods, and meal logs without requiring external database connections.

Cost-Effective Development: Building with Adalo starts at $36/month (annual billing) for app store publishing, compared to hiring freelance developers at $5,000-10,000.

Proven for Fitness Apps: The platform powers numerous successful health and wellness apps.

Extensive Learning Resources: Access the App Academy, detailed documentation, and a community forum to get help whenever you're stuck.

Ready to start building? Sign up free and follow this guide to launch your nutrition tracking app.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I build a complex app like MyFitnessPal without writing any code?

Yes. Adalo's visual builder handles user authentication, database management, custom calculations, and app store publishing without requiring programming knowledge. You can build a functional nutrition tracking MVP in weeks. More feature-rich versions take 3-4 weeks.

How does Adalo handle food database storage and calorie calculations?

Adalo uses a built-in relational database where you create Collections for Foods, Users, and Food_Logs. The platform supports custom math formulas that calculate daily calorie totals, macro percentages, and progress tracking in real-time as users log meals.

What does it cost to publish an app built with Adalo?

Adalo's Starter plan costs $45/month or $36/month when billed annually and includes publishing one app. You'll also need an Apple Developer license ($99/year) for iOS and a Google Play Developer account ($25 one-time) for Android.

Can I integrate external food databases or APIs?

Yes. Adalo's External Collections feature (Professional plan at $65/month or $52/month annually) connects to REST APIs like Nutritionix, which includes over 800,000 foods. You can also use Zapier or Xano for more advanced data integrations.

What support is available if I get stuck while building?

All Adalo plans include access to documentation, help articles, and the community forum. Paid plans include email support. You can also hire an Adalo Expert for hands-on assistance with complex features like External Collections setup or custom component development.