Meal-planning site offers tips on diet

Two years ago, when Louis DeMenthon was trying to bulk up, he encountered the ubiquitous challenge faced by those seeking physique changes: meal planning. In vain, DeMen­thon searched for an online planner that would tell him exactly what to eat in order to pack on muscle. When he came up empty-handed, DeMenthon says, "I decided I would just create it myself."

The 23-year-old recently launched Eat This Much, a free meal-planning website that plays the part of a virtual nutritionist. It has more than 20,000 registered users.

Based on three simple questions — Do you want to gain or lose weight? How many calories do you need? And how many meals do you want to eat each day? — it spits out a meal plan with nutritional information, recipes, cost and a grocery list. If, for instance, a user wants to eat 3,000 calories split over five mealtimes, the tool would generate a random assortment of five 600-calorie recipes, such as pork ribs with a side of blueberries or strip steak and kale with caramelized onions and garlic.

"The hardest part of dieting is knowing where to start," DeMenthon said. "If you have a plan to follow, it's easier to meet your goals."

Washington Post

App will help you plan your pregnancy

When it comes to getting pregnant, the size of your data does matter. That's the premise behind Glow, an app for the iPhone and iPad that couples can use to figure out the best time to try to get pregnant. The app predicts a woman's chances of conception on a particular day based on personal survey the user takes each day.

The app sends women daily recommendations for increasing their chances. Men can receive alerts on how best to help in the effort.

Additionally, users of the app can apply to join Glow First, a community fund for infertility treatment. When a couple join the program, they pay $50 a month for 10 months or until they get pregnant. The money is pooled into a nonprofit fund that includes money from other couples that joined Glow First in the same month.

At the end of the 10-month period, the fund is divided equally among the women who could not get pregnant. The money is sent directly to the fertility clinics of the women's choice and can be used for fertility treatments. A new fund is created each month, and to kick-start the program, cofounder Max Levchin donated $1 million of his own money.

Los Angeles Times