# Log a meal by photo, voice or a sentence

> Photograph the plate, say it out loud or type it like a text. Anlo turns it into calories and macros, and your notes override the photo. Forgot a meal? Say when.

Log it whichever way is quickest. A photo, a voice note and a typed sentence all end up in the same log, as items with calories and macros.

## Photograph the plate

Take a photo or pick one from your library. Anlo names each item and estimates the portion, then shows you the result to confirm before saving.

**Your note overrides the photo.** Add a few words, like "no sugar", "half portion" or "cooked with olive oil", and Anlo treats them as facts about the meal and uses them over what it sees. That's the fix for the things photos are bad at: hidden oil and butter, sauces, drinks that look alike, and mixed dishes where you can't see what's inside.

## Say it, even later

Tap the mic and say what you ate. Mention when, and Anlo files it there:

> "Two eggs and sourdough toast, yesterday around eight."

That becomes breakfast, yesterday, around 08:00. Anlo shows the items, the meal and the day and time so you can check them before saving. It understands today and yesterday, and you can speak English, Chinese, Spanish or Japanese.

## Type a sentence or tap a favourite

Type it the way you'd text a friend: "chicken rice bowl and a miso soup". Foods you save to **My Foods** and meals you eat often are one tap away. For packaged food, photograph the **nutrition label**: Anlo reads the values and you confirm them before saving. (There's no barcode scanner.)

If you type a question instead, like "how's my protein this week?", it goes to the coach.

## Which method when

| Situation | Quickest way |
|---|---|
| At the table, food in front of you | Photo, plus a short note if something's hidden |
| Walking, driving, or you forgot earlier | Voice, and say when you ate |
| The same breakfast as always | Tap it in My Foods or your frequent meals |
| Something from a packet | Photograph the label |
| Anything else | Type a sentence |

## What happens to the photo or sentence

To be turned into items and calories, the photo or text is sent to an AI model, and the result is saved on your phone. Anlo doesn't keep it on its servers or use it for training. Voice is turned into text by your phone's speech recognition first, and Anlo receives only the text. The full picture is on [how Anlo keeps your record on your phone](/private-calorie-tracker/).

## Everything is an estimate

Nutrition values are estimates, from a photo, a sentence or a label. Tap or long-press any meal to edit it, re-estimate its nutrients or delete it. To see how meals add up over time, read [why Anlo works in 14-day periods](/14-day-food-tracking/).

Anlo is in early testing. [Leave your email](/#join) and we'll send an invite.