Your Fitness App Probably Isn't Helping You Trim Your Waistline
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: There’s an app for everything. From one that allows you to track the places you’ve used the bathroom in public to another that lets you pretend your phone is an electric razor (minus the shaving aspect), apps are limited only by the human imagination. And while most of us have a weird app or two lurking on our phones, everyone (it would seem) prefers to use technology for practical reasons. One of the biggest trends has been fitness apps. It makes sense; we have our phones with us at all times, so we're able to essentially carry our workout helpers with us at all times. And by having our apps with us, we’re all working out more, getting healthier, and generally getting ready for bathing suit season — right? Actually, that is pretty much nothing more than wishful thinking. Turns out these fitness apps are about as useful as pretending your phone is an electric razor.
Bad news, would-be weekend warriors: fitness apps aren't really that effective in helping you get into shape. But don’t worry, you’re not to blame for your couch-potato tendencies. Most of the apps released focus less on your motivation, and far more on teaching you different types of exercises. A Penn State University report analyzed 200 of the top fitness programs for your phone, and determined that all the knowledge in the world won’t help you get up and go like an old-fashioned burst of encouragement.
“You need motivational support to turn that knowledge into action,” professor of kinesiology at Penn State and leader of the study David Conroy told NPR. Unfortunately, that’s where most apps are severely lacking. 46 percent of apps studied offered no motivation for users, preferring to teach you to do the exercises, without bothering to encourage you to keep them up. And only 10 percent of the apps used the tried and true method of rewards as an incentive to keep sweating.
One of the biggest problems with fitness apps, according to the report, is that it gets easier to slack off as time goes by. Even the programs that promise to motivate users can be felled by the most basic of human inclinations: sheer laziness.
“After a few weeks you find it easier to say, ‘I’ll skip it today to work on this project,’” Conroy explained in his interview with NPR. “Those little lapses build, and you’re back where you started. So many people in this country have trouble maintaining a regular schedule of physical activity, myself included. I think one of the big reasons is that we’ve been giving incomplete advice on how to do it.”
So are we just wasting valuable time and data space on all these fitness apps? Not necessarily; the secret is to find apps that encourage you to keep moving. Motivation is the key to any successful workout regime. Worry less about how-to tips (you can find those anywhere online), and focus more on changing your behavior in healthy and exercise-friendly ways.
Researchers are still looking for the perfect balance between information and motivation in fitness apps. While they’re working, here’s our tip: Put down your phone and go for a jog — Flappy Bird will still be here when you get back.
[Pic via Flickr - Health Gauge]
