Recovery Record vs See How You Eat · How It Felt
Recovery Record vs See How You Eat: which feels right?
How It Felt is a local, non-clinical journal for noticing hunger, fullness, feelings and sensory details without targets or scores. Its privacy policy covers ads, analytics and crash reporting; journal entries are stored on your device. Recovery Record is designed for eating-disorder recovery and can connect a person's logs with a treatment team. See How You Eat is a visual meal diary built around photos, regular-eating reminders and optional sharing. The useful question is what kind of attention and support feels appropriate for you.
What each app optimises for
Recovery Record vs See How You Eat
Recovery Record is designed for eating-disorder recovery with treatment-team connection; See How You Eat focuses on a visual meal record, reminders and sharing options.
How It Felt
Local self-reflection about the experience of eating, with no assigned programme, target or score.
Side-by-side
| Feature | Recovery Record | See How You Eat | How It Felt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Recovery Record Eating-disorder recovery, with self-help or treatment-team use described by the service. | See How You Eat A photo food diary for seeing meals, building regular habits and reflecting on eating. | How It Felt A local, non-clinical journal for noticing how eating feels. |
| What gets recorded | Recovery Record Meals, thoughts and feelings, with custom questions and recovery-focused logs described in official materials. | See How You Eat Meal photos, notes and related food-journal details; the listing says meals can be logged in two taps. | How It Felt Hunger, fullness, feelings and optional taste, texture or setting notes. |
| Numbers and calorie counting | Recovery Record The clinician overview says the patient app has no calorie counting. | See How You Eat The App Store listing describes meal tracking without calorie counting. | How It Felt No calories, macros, weight or numerical food targets. |
| Guidance and prompts | Recovery Record Meal plans, coping strategies, reminders, meditations and affirmations are described; treatment teams can customise some prompts. | See How You Eat Meal reminders, progress views, challenges and a mindful-eating course are described in its public materials. | How It Felt No assigned programme, reminders, challenges or progress score. |
| Sharing and professional connection | Recovery Record Logs can be shared with a treatment team; the clinician product supports linked client data and secure communication. | See How You Eat Public materials describe PDF sharing with a coach, dietitian, doctor or friend; its PRO product provides a professional client view. | How It Felt No professional portal or direct sharing; export is manual if you choose to pass something on. |
| Privacy and storage | Recovery Record A treatment-team link is an intentional sharing relationship; review the service's current privacy and account terms before recording sensitive details. | See How You Eat Review its current privacy policy and store disclosure for account, diary and device data before recording sensitive details. | How It Felt No account for the journal; entries are stored locally. The current privacy policy covers ads, analytics and crash reporting. |
| Clinical role | Recovery Record Recovery Record is positioned for recovery support but does not replace emergency help or professional judgement. | See How You Eat A consumer food diary and coaching service, not a diagnosis or treatment. | How It Felt A self-reflection journal, not a clinical tool or replacement for care. |
When to pick which
Pick Recovery Record vs See How You Eat if…
- You are working with an eating-disorder treatment team and want a recovery-specific log that can be linked with clinicians.
- A visual photo timeline, reminders or a professional sharing workflow is what you want to explore.
- You have checked the current prompts, account requirements, sharing controls and privacy terms for the service you choose.
Pick How It Felt if…
- You want a local place to notice the experience of a meal rather than follow a recovery programme or photo routine.
- You are looking for a general reflection journal outside treatment, and your care team agrees that noticing hunger or fullness is appropriate for you.
- You want to pause without reminders, challenges, clinician links or a progress score.
Verdict
Recovery Record and See How You Eat are not interchangeable: Recovery Record is recovery-oriented and can involve a treatment team, while See How You Eat is a visual meal diary with prompts and sharing options. How It Felt is a non-clinical journal, not an alternative to recovery support or treatment. If you are in eating-disorder recovery, ask your care team before using any food-related app.
Frequently asked
What is the main difference between these apps?
Recovery Record is designed for eating-disorder recovery and treatment-team connection. See How You Eat centres on meal photos, reminders and a visual diary. How It Felt is a local reflection journal about hunger, fullness and feelings.
Do Recovery Record and See How You Eat count calories?
Their public materials describe both apps as avoiding calorie counting. Their other prompts and forms differ, so check the current apps and settings if numbers or structured logging feel sensitive for you.
Can a clinician see my entries?
Recovery Record supports linking logs with a treatment team. See How You Eat describes sharing diary reports with professionals and has a separate PRO product. How It Felt has no professional portal; you export manually if you choose.
Is How It Felt a replacement for Recovery Record or treatment?
No. How It Felt is not a clinical or recovery-treatment tool, and it is not an alternative to Recovery Record or care. If you are receiving eating-disorder care, ask your treatment team before adding another food-related app.
What should I do if logging makes eating feel harder?
Pause the app. You do not have to continue a record that increases pressure or distress. Consider discussing the experience with an eating-disorder-informed clinician.
Sources and review date
The official product, help, store and privacy pages linked above are the source of truth for current features, access and data practices. Details can vary by plan, platform and region.
- How It Felt product page
- Recovery Record official site
- See How You Eat official site
- Recovery Record patient overview
- Recovery Record clinician overview
- See How You Eat App Store listing
- See How You Eat mindful eating features
- See How You Eat privacy policy
- How It Felt privacy policy
- Recovery Record patient overview: Recovery Record patient overview
- Recovery Record clinician overview: Recovery Record clinician overview
- See How You Eat App Store listing: Food Diary See How You Eat Log
- See How You Eat mindful eating features: Mindful eating app
- See How You Eat privacy policy: Privacy policy
- How It Felt privacy policy: Privacy policy
- Katie M. Babbott et al. (2023): Outcomes of intuitive eating interventions: a systematic review and meta-analysis
- E. Martin et al. (2019): Interoception and disordered eating: A systematic review
- Sandra Schlegl et al. (2026): Therapist-Guided Smartphone-Based Aftercare for Inpatients With Severe Anorexia Nervosa (SMART-AN): A Randomized Clinical Trial
- Alexis Ruffault et al. (2019): Mindfulness-based intervention among patients with obesity and binge eating disorder: Preliminary results of the MindOb randomized controlled trial
- Fidan Turk and Glenn Waller (2020): Is self-compassion relevant to the pathology and treatment of eating and body image concerns? A systematic review and meta-analysis
- The patient overview describes Recovery Record's recovery-focused logs, prompts and treatment-team connection; it is not evidence that a general journal can replace that support. [Recovery Record patient overview]
- The clinician overview describes linked client data and professional communication, which distinguishes Recovery Record from a private self-reflection journal. [Recovery Record clinician overview]
- The current store listing describes photo meal logging, reminders and sharing without calorie counting; features and access can change by platform or region. [See How You Eat App Store listing]
- The product page describes See How You Eat's mindful-eating and regular-meal prompts; those prompts are not a substitute for guidance from a clinician or dietitian. [See How You Eat mindful eating features]
- The privacy policy is the source for current account and diary-data practices; review it before recording sensitive information. [See How You Eat privacy policy]
- How It Felt's privacy policy describes current device storage and service-data practices; it does not make the journal a clinical or recovery-treatment tool. [How It Felt privacy policy]
- This review concerns intuitive-eating interventions in general; it does not test or establish the effectiveness of How It Felt, Recovery Record or See How You Eat. [Katie M. Babbott et al. (2023)]
- This review concerns interoception and disordered eating in general; it provides context for the topics in this comparison, not evidence about any named product. [E. Martin et al. (2019)]
- The SMART-AN trial used the Recovery Record app in therapist-guided aftercare for severe anorexia nervosa. It found no clear additional symptom benefit over treatment as usual; this does not make How It Felt or See How You Eat treatment. [Sandra Schlegl et al. (2026)]
- This trial studied a mindfulness intervention in an obesity and binge-eating population; its findings do not establish efficacy for any app named here. [Alexis Ruffault et al. (2019)]
- This review concerns self-compassion and eating or body-image concerns; it is general background, not product evidence or a treatment recommendation. [Fidan Turk and Glenn Waller (2020)]
Last reviewed: September 8, 2026.
Learn the concepts
Plain-language explainers behind the comparison.
Try How It Felt
A calmer way to be with food.
How It Felt is a local place to notice how eating feels, without a programme to complete. Its privacy policy covers ads, analytics and crash reporting.