By Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN, LD  

If you are exercising and eating healthy but not seeing results, it may be time to try logging your food and activity.  

Keeping a record of your exercise routine and what you eat can help you see the number of calories you really consume and the energy that you burn.  

Plus, maintaining a record can keep you accountable for your food choices and physical activity and keep you on track with your weight loss goals.  

Here is a list of the five best phone apps that can you help you lose weight and eat healthy.  

        1.  MyFitnessPal  

MyFitnessPal is one of the most well-known healthy eating apps. You can download it for free on most smart phones and use its extensive food database to log almost every food under the sun. You can also track your exercise and see your daily macronutrient breakdown in the form of a pie chart. 

         2. Lose It!  

This free app uses your weight, age, and health goals to calculate your daily calorie needs. After seeing how much energy you need per day, you can log your food choices and exercise to see if you are reaching your goals. Lose It! also lets you scan the barcodes of food you eat to add them to your daily log and snap pictures of your meals to include in your record. 

         3.  Fitbit

A Fitbit is an exercise tracker that you can wear on your wrist. If you have a Fitbit, you can access their free app. Not only can you keep track of your activity and daily steps in the app, but you can also log your meals and water intake. Wearing the Fitbit while you sleep will also track the quality and length of your rest.  

The Fitbit app has an active online community and offers groups that you can join to get support from peers or participate in challenges. 

        4.  Fooducate

Fooducate can help you reach your healthy eating and weight loss goals by making it easier to choose nutritious foods at the grocery store.  

You can use the app to scan a food’s barcode to see detailed information about its nutrition and ingredients. The app will flag less healthy ingredients and suggest alternative options.  

        5.  HealthyOut

Eating out can be difficult for people who are trying to lose weight or make healthier food choices. Luckily, there’s an app to help you!  

HealthyOut is a free app that contains information from restaurants in over 500 cities. You can plug in your preferences and the app will show you healthier options at restaurants in your area. Even though you cannot log daily calorie intake and exercise, it is still a helpful option for making better choices when you eat out. 

Using one of these apps is a great way to stay on top of your health goals. If you take advantage of the calorie calculators and food databases that apps have, you may find it easier to achieve your desired calorie deficit.  

Note from Healthy For Life Meals: Phone-based apps can be a helpful tool for weight loss, but preparing food and logging it can be time-consuming and tiring.  Our mission is to do the work for you and save you time. We've uploaded all 315 of our meals and their nutritional content directly into MyFitnessPal for you - just point and click!  Get started with one of our meal plans today.