I Used AI To Create An Eating Plan For Weight Loss – Here’s What Happened

AI (artificial intelligence) has morphed from a vaguely interesting idea to everyone’s go-to tool to an all-encompassing technology that we’re now learning to fear. From using it to unlock your phone to navigating with Google Maps, AI has transformed the technological space. And now, it’s coming for our lifestyles, too. With the advent of ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence language model that harnesses information on the internet and condenses it for users, people have been able to come up with myriad uses, from generating workout programmes to helping them with their dissertations (insert dubious emoji!). It shouldn’t come as a surprise that AI eating plans are generated en masse (and in seconds). But do they work? And are they safe? investigates. 

What are AI eating plans?

An AI-powered meal plan works by harnessing the language and methods it’s learned to give you a meal plan that fits into your macro, calorie and other body goals. With just a few prompts and in seconds, models like these can spit out detailed information, including meal plans and eating guidelines. You could ask almost any LLM for an eating plan for weight loss: ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity… they’re all capable. A slew of AI eating plan apps have become available, too. These free and paid-for services promise to personalise your input and help you reach your goals. Naturally, we wondered if it would work for weight loss in a real way.

READ MORE: 6 Simple Hacks That Make Portion Control A (Healthy) Piece Of Cake 

WH Tests It: AI Eating Plan 

Simply put, I was looking to lose some weight and wanted to see if an AI eating plan would cut costs while still being as effective as an expert-led eating plan. A trained dietician studies for years to be able to tailor weight loss and eating to their clients; could a computer generate all of this in seconds? 

Still, I was looking for quick guidance and something to anchor my eating habits to, without opting for take-out every other day when things got overwhelming. I turned to Meal Mate (now Harmony AI), a popular free AI eating plan tool that’s most recommended when searching for this kind of thing.

Step one: make the prompt 

First, what you input into the chat box makes all the difference. When I told the AI that I wanted to lose 1kg a week, it spat out a meal plan with snacks included. This was helpful, but in order for the app to really give you what you want, you need to give it as much detail as possible. 

Without disclosing details, I ended up having to choose from about three different meal plans from all the prompts I had tried. In the end, I opted for the eating plan with the fullest prompt: “I am a busy professional who wants to lose weight. Create an eating plan that will help me lose 1kg a week for 1200 calories.” My calories are low because I am not the tallest. 

READ MORE: Exactly How To Burn More Calories For Weight Loss 

Step two: cook the meals 

The AI eating plan included a ton of variety – perhaps too much, because it meant having to cook three meals a day, every day. This meant I found it difficult to stick to the plan, since prep time was competing with my household chores, work and jetting off to my workouts daily. Still, I ate chicken salads, scrambled eggs for breakfast and stuck to most dinner guidelines, which ended up being a variation of protein with vegetables on the side.

Step three: navigate the gaps 

The AI’s meal plans didn’t specify portion sizes or any other kind of cooking guidelines. One meal –  “chicken salad” – didn’t specify which greens to put into the salad, for example, nor the exact amount of chicken to prepare. Since I was using a calorie-counting app to account for my goals, I measured out portions that would fit within my calorie goals for each meal. But had I not known to do this, I could have been left eating far more calories than I should have been eating.

READ MORE: ​The Best Weight-Loss Plan For You, According To Your Favourite Workout

The results

Since I had to forgo takeout for a week and eat mostly vegetables and lean protein, I managed to lose about one kilogram on this meal plan! I was surprised: despite loosely sticking to each meal and following the guidelines the AI meal plan provided, I still saw results.

So, Is An AI Eating Plan The way To Go? 

In short, I’d only recommend this for anyone experienced in nutrition; someone who just needs pointers or a guide as opposed to rigorous support. An academic review published in 2023 considered the ethics of AI applications in health, including “chatbots for lifestyle intervention, dietary assessment with food photographs and food composition applications.” The authors found concerns with AI apps and ultimately called for regulatory frameworks to be put in place to govern how AI is used.

If you have an underlying condition, it’s a good idea to have your doc go over the eating plan and flag any concerns before you get going. And always, a computer won’t replace an experienced (human) registered dietician.