Lose It! – Calorie Counter

What it does

Lose It! is a comprehensive health and fitness app designed to help users lose weight. Its core function is calorie and macronutrient tracking, but it builds an entire ecosystem around this task. The app creates a personalized weight loss program based on a detailed onboarding quiz, offering customized calorie budgets, nutrition strategies, and even intermittent fasting schedules to guide the user toward their goals.

Where it shines

Lose It! stands out by making the often tedious process of tracking feel structured and achievable. The onboarding itself is framed as a "Program" (00:06), with a clear checklist that guides users through creating their plan, which makes a long setup feel purposeful. Another brilliant moment is the introduction of flexible calorie scheduling (01:41), allowing users to plan for higher-calorie weekends. This small touch shows a deep understanding of real-world dieting challenges. Finally, the app's focus on efficient logging, with features like barcode scanning (06:57) and voice logging (06:39), directly addresses the biggest friction point for users.

UX highlights

Structured Onboarding: The persistent "Program" checklist turns a long quiz into a series of manageable, themed chapters.
Tangible Goal Setting: Weight selection is done via an interactive scrolling wheel (00:19), making the numbers feel more concrete and personal.
Proactive Flexibility: The option to create a "Flexible Weekender Schedule" (01:41) preemptively solves a common user pain point.
Multi-Modal Input: The app offers diverse ways to log food, including voice, barcode scanning, and photo analysis (06:36), catering to various user preferences.
Interactive Tutorials: After onboarding, the app uses a series of guided pop-ups to walk the user through their first food log (04:26), ensuring a successful first experience.
Clear Data Visualization: The main dashboard and goals section use clean bar charts and radial progress meters to display daily and weekly progress at a glance (11:55).

Monetization & growth

Lose It! gates its most powerful convenience features behind a premium subscription. After the user has invested time in building their personalized plan, they are presented with a free trial offer (03:57). The paywall screen effectively uses social proof (star ratings and testimonials) and a trial timeline to build trust and reduce commitment anxiety. The core value proposition for upgrading is centered on enhanced tracking tools like advanced logging methods and detailed nutritional insights, which directly solve the main challenges of calorie counting.

Who it’s for

This app is designed for individuals who are serious about losing weight and want a structured, data-driven approach. It caters to both beginners who need guidance on calorie counting and experienced trackers who want powerful tools to make logging more efficient. The inclusion of features like intermittent fasting and specific nutrition strategies also appeals to users interested in more than just basic calorie restriction.

Notes & opportunities

The onboarding is incredibly thorough, but its length could be a point of friction for some users. While the program structure helps, it's still a significant upfront investment of time before reaching the main app. During the tutorial for logging food (04:27), the pop-ups are helpful but can obscure the interface, potentially causing minor confusion. Finally, while the app has powerful features, the sheer number of options in settings (17:57) and goal types could be overwhelming for a new user without a clear path to discovery.