Healthy eating can be difficult, but finally taking the leap to make a change means you can improve your well-being and live a happy life. As technology advances, it’s becoming even easier to have access to tools to help you stay on track – a food-tracking app is a great example of this.
These apps can be used to help you stick to your diet, give you healthy eating ideas, and help you track your progress, so you can see how far you’ve come. There is such a huge range of apps to choose from, how can you possibly choose the best option for you? Read on as we take a closer look at what these tracking apps can provide, and the features to look out for to help you make your decision.
What is a food-tracking app?
Food tracking apps are used to log the food you eat during the day. Different apps have different features, for example, some give you access to meal plans, some are simply used to log and count calories so you can stay on track, and some allow you to become part of a community to keep you motivated.
These apps can be accessed easily and downloaded to your smartphone so you can use them throughout the day, whenever you need to. They can also track things like water intake, completed exercise, calories burnt, and steps you’ve taken. There is a huge range of food-tracking apps on the market, so it’s never been easier to stay on top of your diet and make changes for the better.
How can you choose the best one?
So, as we mentioned above, there are so many food-tracking apps to choose from – how do you choose the app that’s right for you? Thankfully, there will be something to suit everyone’s needs, but to help you make the right decision, there are a few factors you should think about – we’ll look at these in more detail below.
Think about your goals
One of the most important factors to consider is what you’re hoping to achieve. If you’re hoping to take advantage of a calorie counter that is on the more basic end of the scale, simply keep track of what you’re eating each day, one of the many free apps will suit you perfectly.
If you’re hoping for a tracking app that will help keep you motivated to stay on track, give you meal plan or recipe ideas, as well as tracking your exercise, you may have to use a premium service to help you achieve your goals. Thinking about what you’re hoping to achieve with your app is the best way of ensuring you’re choosing the right one.
Budget
You should keep your budget in mind when it comes to choosing your ideal tracking app. Some apps can be expensive, especially if they’re offering features like one-to-one personal support, diet and meal plans, as well as exercise classes.
You should weigh up which apps are the best value for what you need them to achieve, and make sure they suit your budget. There are free apps to choose from to help you with the basics, so if you’re not looking to spend on a monthly subscription, these can help you get started.
Diet plans
If you’re looking for a tracking app that provides recipes and meal plans, think about whether you’re following a specific diet and if your app can accommodate this. For example, if you only eat a plant-based, vegan diet, make sure you’re choosing an app that can offer these options.
If you’re following a keto diet plan, make sure your app has options to help you on your healthy eating, or weight loss journey. Generally, thinking about what you need from your app in terms of dietary requirements, tracking and what you can afford can help you choose an app that will help you towards your goals.