Hey fellow plant-eaters,
I went vegan for the animals and the environment, and I love it. But for the longest time, my energy levels were a total lottery. Some days I felt amazing, and other days I was completely drained, and I couldn't figure out the pattern.
I’m a developer, so I decided to build a tool to solve my own problem. I created a simple journaling app called GentleCal that lets me log my meals in plain language ("tofu scramble with nutritional yeast" or "lentil soup") and track my energy, without any calorie-shaming.
After a few weeks of feeding it data, the app's AI started to reveal the patterns I was missing:
My highest energy days were always days where I combined legumes (like lentils or chickpeas) with a whole grain (like brown rice or quinoa). It wasn't enough to just eat one or the other.
It also sent me a nudge: "We noticed you often log spinach. To boost iron absorption, try adding a source of Vitamin C, like a squeeze of lemon juice!" This was a game-changer.
It highlighted that my mood was consistently better on days I remembered to add a fortified source of B12, like my nutritional yeast.
It’s helped me move from just "being vegan" to truly optimizing my plant-based diet for my own well-being.
by Oct4Sox2
3 Comments
Thanks so much for sharing! This is helpful. I’ve also noticed that my energy fluctuates a ton, although I’m not sure if it’s my diet or my ADHD. I’ll try to make sure to pair whole grains with legumes and see how I feel.
tracking really is eye opening; it’s a reminder for me to eat more nooch today
I’ll look up the all, thanks. Trying to get to the bottom of some issues. I log on Cronometer but don’t get the pattern recognition