Living a healthy lifestyle in today’s busy world can be difficult. Thankfully smartphones have many apps that can make it easier to manage, track and analyze our exercise schedules and intensity and keep track of our weight, health and fitness goals. Let’s start with fitness apps that help you set up an exercise regimen and stick to it.
What Fitness Apps Can Do For You
There are hundreds of different fitness apps available and many of them are free. They set reminders and objectives and help you keep a record of your progress as you go, whether your goal is weight loss, lifting heavier weights, running more, eating less calories, eating more protein or tracking your heart rate when you work out.
Since many people carry their phones around with them these days it is not so difficult to take your smartphone along and log in your progress at the gym or after a run. Whether you’re on Android or iPhone there is lots available out there that will help keep your motivation and fitness at a consistently high level.¹
7-Minute Workout
In terms of the best app out there for a short workout the Johnson & Johnson 7 Minute Workout is highly recommended. It costs nothing and it is easy to do wherever you are located, with recovery time built in between each exercise. This one is definitely a keeper and will help keep your fitness on track. If you want more suggestions try Nike Training Club, Shred, and Keelo as well, all of which are excellent and unique workout assistant apps which will take your fitness to the next level.¹
Nutrition Apps
There are numerous free nutrition apps that can help you record and assess your diet as well. Some of the top apps in this category are MyPlate, Noom and MyFitnessPal. Essentially you put in what you eat and the app will measure your carbohydrates and protein and other intake and make suggestions about how to optimize your diet for weight loss, muscle gain or other goals you may have. Nutrition apps can give you realizations you hadn’t thought of before about what you’re eating, when you’re eating it and how to improve your overall diet.¹
Health Apps
Apps that help you track heartrate, blood pressure and your overall health levels are highly useful. One that goes above and beyond is called HealthTap. What this app does is it connects you up with a group of licensed physicians whose job is to answer health questions. This can often save inconvenient or costly trips to the doctor and the price of the app is very reasonable so it is well worth considering.²
Meditation Apps
In addition to exercise, health and nutrition, meditation has become increasingly popular and been recognized for its significant health benefits. There are a number of free apps such as Headspace and Calm which give you small meditations that you are guided through which can be especially focused on improving sleep, de-stressing and finding inner calm.³
Improving Sleep
Sleep is absolutely vital for overall health—and getting enough exercise is also a good way to improve your sleep quality and cycle incidentally. Sleep helps with everything from blood sugar levels to cardiac health, and getting enough will also leave you refreshed and ready to get your day started with enthusiasm. One of the best apps out there is called Sleep Cycle which will help you keep track of how—and when—you are sleeping. It can also wake you at the optimal time so that you get the best sleep possible and wake up ready to take on the world.⁴
[1] https://www.pcmag.com/news/the-best-fitness-apps-for-2020
[2] https://www.healthtap.com/
[3] https://www.menshealth.com/health/a19529987/meditation-benefits/
[4] https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/sleep-deprivation-and-deficiency