No more excuses! It’s never been easier to get a personal trainer or special diet plan; thanks to digital apps, health solutions are literally at your fingertips, says Fiona Adams...
January is traditionally a time when we re-evaluate our lives and take stock. Are we happy? Are we healthy? What can we improve on? If your aim is to get fitter, and therefore healthier and happier, there’s no better time. With health-driven insurance companies like Vitality booming and Brexit looming, the benefits of an exercise and wellbeing routine could be felt both physically and financially.
One easy way to kick-start your way of thinking is to use an app; available on your phone or tablet, they can help you keep track of your exercise, pelvic floor, alcohol units or calories, get alerts, earn badges and give you moral support. And the best bit? Most are free of charge or cost only a couple of pounds – infinitely cheaper than a gym membership – so what are you waiting for? Here are my five top picks – you don’t even have to leave the sofa to download them...
1. MyFitnessPal
MyFitnessPal is used by the rugby player and healthy food guru James Haskell, who recommends it in his new book Cooking for Fitness. Out this month it includes a barcode compatible with the app so you can log your meals. James uses MyFitnessPal to track his daily dietary intake and as the app acts as an online food diary and database too, you can log your own recipes. It will give you a personalised profile and can support specialist diets if you wish. If you are trying to lose weight, then the MyFitnessPal app is great – as James so rightly says, “any weight loss, fat loss, any kind of whittling down is simply about calories”.
Download it here.
2. Drink Less
I have been using this free app since I watched Adrian Chiles’s BBC documentary about alcohol. Shocked at the ease with which we consume units (and how calorific they are), I decided to chart my drinking. With Drink Less, you can set goals and monitor your progress. The app reminds you to track your alcohol and provides an easy guide to unit size. The recommended weekly intake is 14 units, which equates to 14 spirit shots or just over six 175ml glasses of red wine. In my first week, I logged a staggering 21.7 units (1,533 calories) and now average about 10. Trust me, you will feel better when you log those green alcohol-free days.
Download here
3. 7-Minute Workout
Initially finding fame in the US, this app is now gaining in popularity here too. It is perfect for the time-poor as it requires just seven minutes to complete. There is no need for fancy equipment either and voice commands will lead you through the entire HICT (high-intensity circuit training) workout. However, this is not for the faint-hearted, so make sure you are in good shape before you start. Gut health guru Jeannette Hyde is a fan: “People think they have to spend hours in the gym to lose weight but with high-intensity bursts, you can exercise anywhere, even if you’re on holiday miles from a gym.” At £1.99, it’s also far cheaper than a gym membership.
Download here
4. Squeezy
This app, recommended by the NHS and the expert Baz Moffat, is ideal for anyone who is trying to strengthen their pelvic floor – be they male or female. At £2.99, it is relatively cheap, and it is designed by physiotherapists who specialise in this area. There are visual guides and you can get a personalised exercise plan and reminders of when to do your kegels. There is also a diary that allows you to keep track of your symptoms. Baz says: “I always recommend Squeezy; it gives you a lovely visualisation of what your pelvic floor should be doing (pulling up gradually and not just being on or off) and is very straightforward to follow.”
Download here
5. Couch to 5K
This free NHS app is an oldie but a goodie and has dragged countless sofa lovers out of their comfort zone and into the parks around the UK. A self-styled ‘running plan for beginners’, it offers a nine-week scheme to get you from shuffle to continuous jog, involving three runs per week. Our Showtime editor Jane McGowan is a fan: “I’d never run a step, even at school I used my asthma as an excuse to get out of cross country, but this really works. For the first few runs, you are mostly walking then running for a minute at a time, or 90 seconds. I found that really hard to start off with and so it is unbelievable that nine weeks later I could run 5km in about 37 minutes!
Download here
