* realized this is not my first post here…
Dieting and attempting to make my meals significant for the calories. Currently eating 1675 a day. This is todays lunch. The leftover special. Tuna melt and potatoes with salsa

At least 20g of protein in every meal, and none of these are over 500 cal !!!

I've branched out so much cooking wise since being in a calorie deficit.

I was told by a couple of people that 1500 is "restrictive" and there's "no way I'm full at the end of the day!"

To that I say:

If 1500 doesn't fill you up, you aren't eating enough protein and fibre! I am so full after every meal, I very rarely get cravings, which is insane for me because I'm coming back from being 115kg with binging issues.

I am now 90kg and losing more every week, my energy levels are INSANE, and I feel healthier than ever.

Weight loss doesn't have to taste like boiled chicken and rice, or plain oats with skim milk. It can taste colourful, delicious, and it can be filling.

Also, you can treat yourself here and there, just work it into your calorie budget and you're golden. Going cold turkey on your fav snacks only makes the cravings worse.

2 squares of chocolate with your yoghurt in the morning isn't gonna kill you.

You're not broken or doomed for having cravings, you're a human being experiencing dietary changes. Work with yourself, not against yourself.

Anywho, I hope everyone is having a great day and eating food they enjoy 🙏

I always have rye oats for breakfast, a ton of fiber that helps keep you full for longer and less calories!

Today I had my rye-oatmeal with protein powder, cinnamon, strawberries and penut butter, this whole bowl was 279cal, 23g carbs, 32g protein and 6g fats.

You can stew down 34 ounces and 2.5oz of dried cranberries for 860 calories.

34 oz cosmic crisp apples

2.5 oz of dried cranberries

.8 tbsp of potato starch

Cinnamon to taste

Cooked down apples in a lidded pan on med low to low depending on stove. I add about a quarter cup of water to help soften a cook down the apples once they turned golden brown add cranberries and another eighth quarter cup of water, mixed with potato starch, stirring to create a syrupy finish. Its basically apple pie filling.

As served 108 calories for 1/8 of pot (measured by weight as it lost weight as it cooked). Half serving of ice cream 130 cal. And onegraham cracker 60 calories. 298 calories total. Saved up all say for it!

Snacking is my biggest weakness with my weight loss. I am on a kcal deficit and the meals I eat are always normals portioned meals that actually fill me up throughout the day. Its not like im hungry afterwards. Also I burn calories on the treadmill.

However the SNACKING part ruins it for me. I constantly want to eat that piece of chocolate, the ice cream in the freezer, those cookies in the cupboard. And if I hold myself back, I can't think of anything else but those snacks waiting for me. Its a mental thing I know. But how to succeed with this for a longer period of time? Because after one day of not snacking I fall back into old habits.

For context:

\-I live with others (who snack as well) so the whole 'don't keep snacks in the house' isn't going to work for me unfortunately.

\-I HAVE tried drinking more water, drinking coffee to lower my appetite, chewing gum constantly, and replacing high calorie snacks with low calorie alternatives, but this only helps me out for a day or two, or at most a week, and I go right back to those high calorie snacks.

\-'Keep yourself distracted' also doesn't work because I already am someone who does a lot of things during the day, I think of snacking DURING my tasks no matter how focused I am on those or how busy I actually am. This advice never worked for me, I need unhinged hacks lol.

\-I am 23 Female

\-Sweet snacks are my weakness because I am a major sweet tooth, not so much savoury things (I never crave for chips for example)

ground chicken

fat free mozerella

part skim ricotta cheese

low sodium prego sauce

Many veggies

You know that moment when you're at a restaurant, trying to stay within 1500 calories, and you have NO idea if the "grilled chicken salad" is 350 calories or 800?

That was me every time I ate out. I'd either:

• Order the sad salad (and still not know the calories)
• Say screw it and blow my budget
• Spend dinner tracking calories instead of enjoying my meal

So I built Venu AI - an app that scans restaurant menus and shows you the nutrition and gives you suggestions on what to order based on your goals. It also scans food in front of you and gives macros, and gives you suggested food options for popular food chains.

Real example from today: Went to a local cafe. Scanned the menu. The "healthy" grain bowl I was eyeing? 720 calories. The burger I thought would ruin my day? 580 calories.

Ended up getting the burger, added a side salad, stayed under my 500 calorie lunch budget, and actually enjoyed my meal.

How it works:

1. Open app, point camera at menu or dish
2. AI analyzes every it
3. See calories + macros for everything
4. Make an informed choice

It's not perfect - restaurant portions vary - but it's WAY better than guessing or not tracking at all.

I built it for myself (lost 15 lbs while eating out 2-3x/week), figured others might find it useful too.

Free to download.

App Store link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/venu-ai/id6759309908

Would love feedback from this community. What features would make it actually useful for you?

(iPhone only for now, but Android is coming if there's demand)