Olivia Graham
Want to get fit and stay fit? There's an app for that. The government's recent list of its top 500 health apps struck a chord with our smartphone-savvy healthy team. Our tried and tested edit of the top 15 will do wonders for your wellbeing. You know what they say: an app a day...
Five of the best
The Running
MotivatorCouch-to-5k (£1.49)
Set aside 20-30 minutes, three times a week, to let Active.com's
award-winning Couch-to-5K app transform your phone into an exercise
log book and personal trainer.
The Mood Monitor
Moodscope.com (free)
Moodscope.com is designed to lift your mood in the same way Weight
Watchers helps dieters lose weight: measure, track, share. If
you're worried about someone, suggest they start Moodscoping and
register you as their buddy; you'll receive their test scores
daily.
The Body & Brain
TrainerBrainyApp (free)
Having a healthy heart can lower the risk of dementia and improve
brain health. Take this app's survey and get three recommendations
to improve your 'brain-heart score'. We love the insightful
factoids, such as the average weight of an adult human brain...
it's 3lbs.
The Ingredients
ScreenerFoodwiz (free to download; £25 for
12 months' subscription to product database)
Supported by Allergy UK, this is a godsend for anyone with food
intolerances. Input the ingredients you wish to avoid and zap the
product barcodes in the supermarket aisle to find out instantly if
they are suitable.
The Energy
TrackerActiveME (£1.49)
Developed by NHS experts for chronic fatigue sufferers, ActiveME
tracks daily energy levels. Enter your dips and spikes into the
graph and visualise your pitfalls in the weekly charts.
Olivia Graham
And the rest...
Sleep Cycle (£0.69)
Do you jump out of bed at the sound of your alarm or wake up
feeling groggy and slam on 'snooze'? We all hanker after that
elusive eight hours, but could the key to a good night's sleep be
more aboutwhen you wake up, instead of when you go to bed? Sleep
Cycle uses the iPhone's accelerometers to measure your movement
during the night and calculate your sleep pattern. It will trigger
an alarm when you are in a light sleep moment as close as possible
to your chosen wake-up time.
Baby Bump Pregnancy Pro (£2.49)
Nine months feels like a lifetime for many of us, but in this app
you have the perfect prenatal pal. Track your baby's growth (don't
let landmarks like 'pumpkin size' pass you by), try the "kick
counter", plus get informed with birthing videos and updates on
what bodily changes you can expect. If you're so inclined, you can
even use it to update your Facebook profile when you go into
labour. Too much information, perhaps?
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St John Ambulance (£2.39)
It's no substitute for a first aid course, nor is it as in-depth
as a first aid manual, but this app's simple illustrated guides and
voiced instructions could make all the difference in a crisis. The
app includes the latest first aid advice and protocols for dealing
with emergencies, such as choking, severe bleeding and heart
attacks.
iTreadmill (£1.49)
No armbands, shoe chips or belt clips needed: just drop your phone
into your pocket. This app doesn't rely on GPS to track your walks
and runs - it uses pedometer step-detection - so it works just as
well indoors on a treadmill as it does walking up the high street,
or on a cross-country run. Set target speeds and keep a record of
your distances, calories burned and average pace stats.
Desk Yoga (£1.49)
The name says it all really. No mat or stretchy leggings
necessary. Stay seated and follow the video demos for a
stress-busting, tension-relieving pick-me-up. Let's face it, as
desk breaks go this is far more productive than updating Twitter or
catching up on celebrity gossip.
Olivia Graham
Headspace On-the-Go (free)
Converted Buddhist Andy Puddicombe spent 10 years as a monk in a
Tibetan monastery and returned to the UK on a mission to free us
from life's stresses by bringing meditation to the masses with
Headspace. The first 10 guided mediations are free (you can then
choose whether or not to sign up for £4.99 a month). Download
videos to use offline on holiday and set 'meditation reminders' and
'mindfulness buzzers' to keep you on track day-to-day.
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iBreastCheck (free)
Breast cancer is the UK's most commonly diagnosed cancer and early
detection is crucial. Get into the habit of checking your breasts
regularly by using this mobile app to set reminders, then follow
the video demos so you know exactly what to look for. You can also
create your own 'risk report', based on family history, lifestyle
and environmental factors, to highlight what risk factors might be
most relevant to you. .
Diabetes UK Tracker (free)
If you have Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, this app will make logging
your levels quicker and simpler. You can track blood glucose,
carbohydrates, insulin, calories, weight and ketones, see what your
daily averages are and spot any telling patterns or trends on the
colourful graphs (which can be emailed directly from the app to
your nurse or doctor).
NHS Quit Smoking (free)
Keep this app on hand to make cutting down on smoking as painless
as it can be. What better motivator than money? Tap in the number
of cigarettes you smoke per day, your quit date, and watch the cash
you've saved pile up on the screen. You'll also receive daily
messages of support during the first 30 days, instant tips from
other smokers who have stopped and horrible smoking statistics,
such as smoking ages your skin and dulls your tastebuds.
Instant Heart Rate (£0.69)
With no accessories or plug-in devices required, we couldn't
understand how this app would work, but it does (more so with the
iPhone 4 or 4S)! It's incredibly simple: lightly press the tip of
your index finger on the camera lens for about ten seconds - the
amount of light that passes through your finger as the blood is
pumped from your heart gives you your heart rate reading - which is
added to a nifty timeline of results.
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