Welcome to RestinCal! This guide has everything you need to get started and make the most of the service.
1. Getting started, up and running in 5 minutes
RestinCal is a free tracking tool for calories and nutrients. Create an account with your Google account, no separate password needed.
- 1Open restincal.com on your phone or computer.
- 2Click Sign in in the top right corner or the Google button in the middle of the page.
- 3Accept the terms of service and privacy policy, choose your Google account and sign in.
- 4Choose a username, this is used as the attribution for community foods and recipes. Others only see the username, not your Google account.
- 5Go to the Macros tab to set your daily calorie goal. You can also use the BMR Calculator to estimate your energy needs.
- 6Done! Go to the Diary tab and start logging what you eat.
Tip: Add RestinCal to your home screen, the browser will prompt you automatically, or you can do it from the browser menu "Add to Home Screen". It then works almost like a native app.
2. Using the food diary
The diary is the app's main page. Here you log all your daily meals and see calories and macros accumulate in real time.
Adding food by search
- 1On the diary page, tap the + Add food button.
- 2Type a food name in the search field, e.g. "banana" or "oatmeal".
- 3Select a suitable product from the list. You'll see the nutritional values per 100 g immediately.
- 4Enter the portion size in grams, or select a preset serving size if one has been defined for the product.
- 5Tap Add, the food appears in the diary and calories update automatically.
Switching days
The arrows at the top of the diary let you browse previous and upcoming days. The green circle marks today. You can log food in advance or retroactively.
Editing or removing an entry
Tap a diary entry, an edit menu opens where you can change the portion size or delete the entry.
Accuracy tips: Log food as soon as possible after eating so the portion size is fresh in your mind. Using a kitchen scale to measure grams improves accuracy significantly compared to guessing.
3. Barcode scanner
The fastest way to add packaged products. Scan the barcode on the package and nutritional values are fetched automatically from a third-party database.
- 1On the diary page, tap + Add food and then the barcode icon next to the search field.
- 2Grant camera permission if the browser asks.
- 3Point the camera at the barcode on the package, recognition happens automatically within a few seconds.
- 4If the product is found, nutritional values fill in automatically. Check the information and enter your portion size.
- 5If the product isn't found, you can add it yourself to the food database, see section 8.
Note: The barcode scans best in good lighting. Hold the phone steady about 15–25 cm from the barcode.
4. Logging portions and cooking factors
Foods can be logged either as raw weight or cooked weight. Cooking changes the weight of food, meat loses moisture and rice absorbs water, but the total calorie count stays practically the same. Note that the factors below are indicative estimates, not exact figures.
🥩 Meat and fish
Frying and boiling reduce weight. 100 g raw meat ≈ 70–75 g cooked. Use a factor of ~1.33 if logging cooked.
🍚 Rice and pasta
Cooking adds weight due to water absorption. 100 g dry rice ≈ 300 g cooked. Use a factor of ~0.33 if logging cooked.
🥦 Vegetables
Variation is small. For most vegetables the factor doesn't matter much, but spinach shrinks significantly.
✓ Commonly used estimate
Weigh the ingredient before cooking and log it at raw weight. Choose "No correction", this avoids guessing with factors.
5. Calorie and macro goals
On the Macros tab you can set your daily goals for calories, protein, carbohydrates and fat.
- 1Go to the Macros tab.
- 2Enter your desired calorie goal. If you're unsure of the right amount, use the BMR Calculator first to estimate your energy needs.
- 3Set your macro goals. A common split is: protein 30%, carbohydrates 40%, fat 30%, but you can customise it to match your own goals.
- 4Save. On the diary page you'll now see progress bars showing how many calories and macros you have left in the day.
BMR Calculator: Find it on its own tab. Enter your age, weight, height and activity level, the calculator gives an estimate of your daily energy needs (TDEE). Use this as the basis for your calorie goal.
6. Weight and body fat tracking
Log your weight and body fat percentage from the diary page. Long-term trends appear as charts on the Weight Tracking tab.
- 1Open the Diary tab and scroll down to the weight entry field.
- 2Enter your morning weight in kilograms. The best time is first thing in the morning before eating or drinking, so measurements are comparable from day to day.
- 3Optionally, log your body fat percentage too. You need a measurement device such as a bio-impedance scale for this.
Remember: Weight can vary 0.5–2 kg in a day due to fluid balance, this is completely normal. Track the weekly average rather than individual days to see your actual progress.
7. Your own recipes
On the Recipes tab you can create your own recipes from multiple ingredients. Once a recipe is saved, you can add it to the diary with a single tap.
- 1Go to the Recipes tab and tap + New recipe.
- 2Give the recipe a name and add ingredients one by one by searching for them in the database.
- 3Enter the gram amount for each ingredient in the recipe.
- 4Save. The recipe automatically calculates total calories and macros for all ingredients.
- 5When adding the recipe to the diary, enter the weight of the finished serving, calories scale automatically to the correct amount.
8. Adding your own food to the database
If a product you're looking for isn't in the database, you can add it yourself. Added foods are visible to all users, keep the information as accurate as possible.
- 1Go to the Food Database tab and tap + Add food.
- 2Fill in the brand and name, e.g. brand "Chobani", name "Greek Yogurt 0%".
- 3Enter the nutritional values per 100 g. You'll find these on the nutritional information panel on the packaging.
- 4Optionally add serving and package sizes for quick logging, e.g. "Full package 200 g".
- 5Save, the product is immediately available in the diary.
Nutritional values not in /100g format? Use the form's Calculate /100g automatically calculator: weigh the product, enter total calories and macros, press Calculate, values fill in automatically.
9. Tips for effective tracking
Consistency is everything. Perfect tracking isn't the goal, logging even roughly is enough. 80% accurate is far better than nothing.
Weigh, don't guess. Using a kitchen scale makes tracking significantly more accurate. Especially with fats (oil, butter, nuts) it's easy to underestimate portion size by eye.
Log before you eat. A meal logged in advance is easier to adjust than trying to recall it afterwards. This has also helped the developer build discipline that has indirectly influenced eating habits too.
Use your own recipes. If you make the same dishes often (e.g. oatmeal, smoothie), create a recipe once, then you can add them to the diary in seconds and tracking becomes much easier.
Don't stress about individual days. One over-budget day doesn't undo weeks of work, and it isn't a failure, as long as it doesn't become the norm. Every setback creates an opportunity for a new success later. Look at progress at the weekly and monthly level.
10. Frequently asked questions
How many calories should I eat per day to lose weight?
There is no single exact number because energy needs and a suitable rate of change are individual. Use the TDEE estimate as a starting point and compare it with several weeks of tracking. An estimated deficit of 300–500 kcal per day can be moderate for many people, but actual weight change, hunger and energy levels vary.
What are macros and how much do I need?
Macros, protein, carbohydrates and fat, are the three nutrients that provide energy. Protein (4 kcal/g) builds and maintains muscle, carbs (4 kcal/g) are the body's primary energy source, and fat (9 kcal/g) is important for hormones and vitamin absorption. When losing weight, a good starting point is 1.6–2.2 g of protein per kilogram of bodyweight, with the remaining calories split between carbs and fat to taste.
What's the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the number of calories your body burns at complete rest, just to stay alive. TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) also accounts for movement and everyday activity, so it reflects what you actually burn per day. TDEE is the number your calorie target is based on.
How fast is it safe to lose weight?
A commonly cited safe rate is about 0.5–1% of bodyweight per week, i.e. roughly 0.3–0.8 kg for most people. Losing too fast increases the risk of muscle loss, fatigue and nutrient deficiencies, and makes the result harder to maintain. A moderate deficit with enough protein and good recovery produces the most durable results.
Do I have to count calories forever?
No. For many people, calorie counting is above all a learning period: a few weeks or months of tracking teaches portion sizes, the energy density of foods and your own habits so well that you can later estimate without logging constantly. Some continue because they find it clarifying, but it isn't required for success.
Why does my weight fluctuate daily even when I eat well?
The scale varies day to day for reasons unrelated to body fat: hydration, salt intake, carbohydrate stores, gut contents and hormones can swing your weight by 1–2 kg within a single day. That's why you should watch the trend over several weeks rather than individual days. Our weight tracking tool draws a trend line that smooths out the daily noise.
Can I use RestinCal on my phone or add it to my home screen?
Yes. RestinCal works in the browser on phone, tablet and computer with no download required. You can add it to your home screen like an app: open the site in your browser and choose "Add to Home Screen" (from the Share menu on iPhone, or the browser menu on Android). After that it opens with its own icon like a regular app.
Do I need exercise to lose weight?
Weight loss happens primarily through a calorie deficit, which mostly comes from your diet, exercise is not mandatory for losing weight. It is still highly beneficial: it helps preserve muscle mass, improves fitness and mood, and increases expenditure so the deficit is easier to reach without a very strict diet. The best results come from combining a moderate deficit, enough protein and everyday activity.
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