There are now a ton of health and fitness apps available that can help you track your calories, steps, exercise, what you eat, and more. Researchers at the University of South Australia found that using these health apps can actually have benefits: Logging into these apps is like having an accountability partner to help motivate you and track your progress in a convenient digital space on your phone, tablet, or Apple Watch.
The growing popularity of health and fitness apps
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As the burden of chronic diseases grows and people become more health conscious, health and fitness apps are soaring in popularity. According to the World Health Organization, one in eight people are now obese and 422 million people have diabetes. Digital apps are a convenient way to improve overall health and wellness and encourage physical activity – no need to go to the gym; many apps include virtual fitness coaches, AI personalization and a variety of useful in-app features.
So why do people choose health and fitness apps? Here’s an example: You decide to try Pilates or gymnastics to improve your fitness and relieve back pain, but you don’t know what movements to do and forget to make time in your busy schedule. A Pilates or gymnastics app can guide you through the right exercises and set reminders.
If you’re trying to lose weight by changing your eating habits, you can use an app to track your calories and what you eat to see your progress.
Research findings
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The researchers evaluated data on 206,873 people across 47 studies.
Survey results reveal that people who use electronic and mobile health interventions, such as digital apps, are:
Walked 1,329 more steps each day Engaged in 55 more minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise each week Engaged in 45 more minutes of physical activity each week Intaked 103 fewer calories per day Increased daily fruit and vegetable intake by 20% Decreased daily saturated fat intake by 5 grams Lost 20 pounds over 12 weeks Improved sleep quality and reduced insomnia
Whether you want to sleep better, lose weight or move more, mobile apps are the latest convenient tool. Regularly using health and fitness apps can help you develop healthier habits, and they only take seconds to download.
