Lee & Beata's story - tracking calories for fitness & fat loss

Lee's goal: Training to defend his cycling title

I work full time as a Physics teacher in a school near Manchester. Out of work, I'm a keen cyclist. In 2014 I won the World Masters Track Cycling Championship, and last year took the bronze medal. My goal this year is to compete again to defend my title, so I am training hard for the event which takes place in September.

The hardest thing for me to manage with working and juggling home life, is eating the correct amount of food to support the training I'm doing. I never have a routine as such. The demands of my life and work mean that I have to adapt daily to the demands of the training which I can squeeze in. This results in me either not eating enough, or eating too much based on appetite, not what I need to eat based on the training I do.

The Nutracheck App helps me with this fine balancing act of energy in and out. By entering the training I do and the food I eat, I can easily see if I need more or less based on the training I have done.

I use the text search or just enter the meal combinations as this is simpler as I rarely buy pre-made meals, it is easy to enter two pieces of bread with salad and ham on it for example.

Tips for members using the App for fitness training:

• Use the 'Combined Food Diary View'. Tap on the green button to the right of the search box, then scroll down to 'Diary View and Settings' > 'Choose Diary View' > Combined Food & Exercise'
• Allow notifications from Nutracheck and turn on the home screen calorie badge. Tap 'More' > 'Show kcal badge'
• Our food database contains many sport nutrition brands. If there are products you'd like us to add, get in touch at customercare@nutracheck.co.uk

Interesting reading: How to eat like a Tour de France cyclist

Beata's goal: To lose 1 stone

I'm 35 and I work as a training adviser, which involves a lot of driving, planning and sitting in front of a computer. My work therefore is not very active, however, my home life is very active looking after my two young children and being a member of a running club I run frequently.

I have taken part in several races over the past three years including two full marathons, four half marathons, four 10k races and several other short trail events. I like all kind of sports and have always done some kind of activities.

I also like food and although I have always considered myself a healthy eater being 5'2 I have always been more of "athletic" build. I always wanted to be a few pounds lighter and could not understand why I wasn't losing weight despite all the running and exercise I was doing. I seemed to be stuck at a particular weight that I was not quite happy with. Unless I skipped meals I could not lose weight.

I dislike fad diets and skipping meals is not an option for me. I heard people talking about calorie counting but that just seemed like a lot of hard work for me for which I do not have the time.

One day I was looking through apps available on my phone and came across Nutracheck.

Right from the very start I was impressed with how easy the App was to use! The food database is brilliant and I love the fact that once you put the quantity in it calculates the calories and fat. It is very quick to use and enter the details. It has been a real eye opener for me. When I thought I did not over eat I actually was! It has also made me very aware of how calorific certain foods are and prompted me to look at healthier alternatives.

In the first 2 weeks I lost 3 pounds!!! I have now been using the App for 10 weeks and lost a total of 11lbs, at a steady rate. It is been really easy to use and only takes me 5-10 minutes a day.

I feel a lot healthier, less bloated and although my portions are smaller to what they were previously I don't feel hungry! It's easier for me to say no to sweets and junk food as I am now far more aware of the calories and fat contents, and I feel a lot happier with myself. I also feel that thanks to the App, my new eating habits aren't just temporary, it has given me real boost and confidence to change the way I prepare my meals and foods I choose.

I also love entering my exercise and seeing how many calories I have burnt. My next big event that I am training for is the London Marathon next year.

I am extremely happy with my weight loss and eating thanks to Nutracheck and will continue to use it for a very long time!!!