If you’re like me and the rest of the world, you have your phone almost always in hand. We’re definitely not alone in a mobile-obsessed society, and when it comes to losing weight, I can say without a doubt there’s an app for that!
Mobile fitness apps are everywhere, with tons of connective options and supportive additional accessories. The Fitbit comes with an app, Nike has one out there, and several fitness programs like the Mayo Clinic Diet have supportive applications, too!
The decision to lose weight, get healthy, and fix your bad diet habits is a big one, and a lot of people put off taking this journey because of time constraints or accessibility. I love connected fitness apps because of their convenience,
What Are Connected Fitness Apps?
There are tons of different programs out there, both online and at the gym, and the concept for mobile ones is the same. Independent diet and fitness programs work entirely off of your phone and are designed to be able to keep up with any lifestyle!
Using your phone to keep your healthy lifestyle organized is a great way to take off the stress of following programs, and apps usually come at a cheaper price, too. Fitness apps take a lot of supportive elements and combine them together in ways that work very well. For example, you can get Bluetooth access to your favorite workout music, plenty of easy access to worksheets and tracking logs, and everything is so easily located in the palm of your hand.
Over 165,000 fitness and health-related apps exist across Android and iPhones. Some of these are just simple trackers, calorie counters, or mile logs. Others like Aaptiv and Noom are fully-featured enough to support an entire diet and workout revolution.
Another great thing to consider about fitness apps is that several of them offer free versions, so you can use a variety of helpful apps during any specific diet or fitness subscription. I have a folder on my phone that holds all of my fitness apps, and they’re things I use daily.
How Do Fitness Apps Work?
Tons of fitness apps are fully equipped with everything you need to track your activity. Our phones can function perfectly for fitness tracking if you give it the right tools. FitBits and other SmartWatches come in handy, but a lot of apps on your phone can do the same thing, too. Whether it’s running, weight training or yoga, it tracks data with apps and Bluetooth supportive features and keeps your activity levels updated while counting calories, tracking steps and miles, and monitoring your heart rate.
This kind of data is essential to any sort of fitness plan you’re working on, mobile or not. For runners, you can find apps that help you track distance, speed, heart rate, and even design and route your own path. For weight loss, you can download apps that give you great bodyweight training, count your calories, and get you closer to your goals.
4 Reasons Fitness Apps Are Important
Apps like these are really important when it comes to the success of your health goals. The insight, assistance, and connective features they bring to the table are hard to replicate anywhere else, and with the sheer variety of all of the hundreds of apps out there, you can pretty much achieve anything.
These 4 reasons are why I personally have added fitness apps to my daily routine and how they really changed the way I look at healthy living and fitness.
- You need the social media aspects that mobile apps provide for peer support and encouragement. I always connect my Facebook, Instagram, and even Twitter to my accounts with fitness apps and it usually helps me find others with similar goals and challenges.
- Step counting will change your life, literally. It takes about 10,000 steps to shed a pound, and it’s recommended by health experts you should be aiming for at least half that much daily to stay active. You may be entirely wrong about how many steps you’re actually taking each day, and almost every fitness app will include a feature that counts all those steps.
- Tracking your food and calories as well as portion sizes is also one thing that apps make crazy simple. For many of them, you simply need to scan the barcode of whatever you’re eating and it will manually add in all the nutritional value. For others, you can select pre-made diet templates and trackers to know what you can eat. I like using these apps to help me watch myself when I eat out, too, so I don’t over-do it.
- Your phone will make working out fun in surprising ways. One app makes a game out of running, by having you run from zombies and hit speed or miles goals to gather “supplies” by affecting your in-game survival with real-life exercise. It may sound a little silly, but there are tons of apps out there that will reward you with gift cards or game advancement for activity and healthy eating.
Apps VS Other Programs
Weight loss is a hard goal to accomplish, which is why various fitness programs and apps exist in the first place. Why did I switch over to mobile fitness apps? Well, for me, it was truly just easier! I love my fitness apps because:
- It’s portable, always with me
- Tends to be cheaper
- Great social media connection options for peer support
- Great for vacations
- Very discreet
- It comes with me on my workouts!
- Way more options
Almost everything has an app these days, and mobile-based diet and fitness programs are really starting to grow in popularity. That’s why I checked them out, and it was beneficial enough to get me hooked!
Everyone will find different value in fitness apps and everyone will have an opinion over what features are the best and which platforms help them the most. Getting started with a free version of a top-rated app in your phone’s store and checking out what it offers is a great way to dip your toe in!