How using AI to track your calories is a game changer in meeting your caloric needs and SHEDDING the FAT.
Losing weight is a well-understood science, contrary to what many fitness gurus would tell you. Usually spurned by the goal to sell you some diet or fat-burning tea or ritual, they tout such nonsense or rather misunderstood terms like "fat-burning zones", "metabolic disease," etc. The truth is, if you eat more than you need, you will add weight, and vice versa. Regardless of genetics or medication, this truth still stands. If anything, the rise of medication such as Ozempic highlights this fact, as these drugs' main goal is to reduce food consumption. In fact, every single bariatric surgery or procedure accomplishes weight loss by the same mechanism, regardless of metabolic rates or genetic suppositions.
In summary: Calorie in vs Calorie out is King.
Now for the bad news:
Calorie counting is not an easy habit to adapt, and for most, it is not a sustainable long-term strategy. It's annoying, inconvenient and, honestly, can lead to some less than ideal habits when it comes to our relationship with food.
Regardless of its negatives, it can shed light on what your true relationship with food is. Remember, data is hard facts, and your perceptions, on the other hand can lie to you. In other words, you might think you are eating within a certain caloric range, only to track and find that you are well off.
Some Context:
So why does calorie counting suck soo much? You need to weigh stuff, deconstruct meals to its individual ingredients, measure stuff in cups, look at company websites and hope that they are honest with their caloric counts, write stuff on paper or use an app etc.....do you see where i am going with this? It can be A LOT of work, especially when you just want to eat or you are making some traditional meals with unique ingredients.
How can we make this easier? If only there was a way to avoid all these many steps and just find out what the calories and macros are in each meal without all the extra steps. That's where AI comes in, and I would like to walk you through it.
The Good News:
For starters, this method of using AI to track your calories is super fast, convenient and mostly free. Most of us take pictures of a good meal when we are out anyway, so why not use that for more than just likes on social media? What I will share with you here is a free way to do this with any of the popular AI programs out there on the market right now.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to do this:
Step #1 - Download the App
Whether you are an apple or android user, your app store definitely has an app for one of the many AI programs available now. If you are using a newer device, these programs are already pre-installed on your phone. However, i still prefer downloading the app on your phone if possible as it would log your activity as well based on older search queries.
Step #2 - Create and Account
I know right? Pretty basic at this point but this step is crucial in keeping track of your previous prompts. You can create one with your google email account, facebook etc.
Step #3 - Give Access
Give access to the chosen app to access your pictures and or camera. You can limit this to only when the app is open.
Step #4 - Take A Picture
Take a picture or upload a picture of the food item or whole plate and ask the AI software, "What are the calories and macros in the meal". Hit send and watch the magic happen. If you want to, you can upload multiple pictures at once (eg all you ate that day) and it would give you a break down as well.
How to Improve Accuracy of AI Calorie Tracking
Give the program some help: a small description of what the meal is can dramatically improve the quality of the estimated calories in the meal.
Do not include any food items in the picture other than the amount you are trying to track.
One key factor to remember is that the results are estimates, and the best way to get an accurate count is by doing it the hard way. But, for getting an overview of your eating habits, this is one of the most powerful FREE tools available.
If you hit a limit on how many images you can upload on any of the platforms, just use a different one for the rest of the images.
What to Do With This Information?
Compile it together and take an overall look at your nutrition, and see where you can make changes that would get you to your goals. Not getting enough protein? Add some. Eating a lot at lunch and crashing? Spread your calories a little better. Feeling sleepy after breakfast and crashing before noon? Maybe you need more food at breakfast, or you need to move your simple carbs to later in the day, etc. The data can help you get a better look into what you eat and how your food choices make you feel.
Fitness does not have to be complicated; use technology where possible to make the journey a little less stressful.
To Help You Out
Need help coming up with a meal plan? try any one of these. They come with a days worth of eating for different dietary options including vegetarian, meditaranean etc as well as tips and tools for weight loss.
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