If you use your phone to help keep track of your health, you’re not alone.  According to the Pew Internet & American Life project, 15 percent of adults with cell phones use health applications on their devices and 17 percent of cell phone users look up health information while on the go.  There’s also growing evidence that keeping track of weight loss, diet and fitness goals on an electronic device may benefit those who are trying to lose weight, especially if they are clinically overweight or obese. According to new research, presented at a recent American Heart Association meeting, obese and overweight patients who used an electronic logging system that provided feedback and that was tailored to their needs, were more likely to stick to a five-point plan that was associated with sustained and successful weight loss, compared to control groups that used a paper log or an electronic log without feedback.

With that in mind, check out some of the top apps for healthy living.  They might just help you achieve and stick to your weight loss goals.

Fibit

Fitbit lets you track food, water consumption and exercise, but it recently revealed a new feature that will be released in May: the Fitbit Aria Wi-Fi Smart Scale, which provides BMI, body fat percentage and overall body weight data to a user’s profile on Fitbit’s website.  This new feature can help the program remain dynamic, tailoring eating and exercising plans to a changing body.

Thin-Cam

Thin-cam is the food diary with no excuses. As any nutritionist can tell you, people are terribly unreliable at reporting the portion sizes of the meals they’ve eaten. So Thin-cam has you take a photo of your meal before you dig in. The photo is uploaded to Thin-site, the app’s paid membership website, and analyzed by nutritionists. The app also has fitness, diet and weight loss related news and tips to keep users engaged and informed.

Gain

This fitness app allows about as many excuses as a boot camp instructor would: none. Just plug in the amount of time you have available to work out and the equipment you have available and GAIN will generate a custom workout for you based on those constraints and your overall fitness goals. You can pre-schedule workout times and the app will remind you when it’s time to head over to the gym. And if you’ve been stuck at work and you miss a session, the app will offer a quick “Plan B” regimen to be completed anywhere.

Fooducate

Before the food even makes it to your pantry, it’s best to know if it will be a diet buster. Fooducate lets you scan bar codes of grocery items to get a full nutritional rundown, as well as a letter grade for the food’s overall quality. Rather than just focusing on calories alone (although it does that too), the scan will provide information on potential hidden ingredients — like added sugars, trans fats and even controversial food additives.

What are your favorite fitness apps?

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4 Comments

  1. My Fitness Pal is one of the best apps out there. I’m surprised it’s not on here. You input your fitness goals and it tells you what your net calories, carbs, fat, & protein intake should be. It’s mainly a calorie counter, but you can track everything you eat

  2. Lol never mind, I just realized that Fitbit and MyFitnessPal are related and can be linked. Both are great apps!

  3. I use the Myfitnespal app. I use it to track my exercise s well as count my calories. You think twice about what you put in your mouth when you can see how many calories/fat/sugar/sodium it contains.

  4. Great apps! Are they available on both the iPhone and Android?

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