Valuable Mobile Apps To Overcome
Poor Mental Health
This article will help you identify free and affordable apps. Apps to track your mental health, provide workout videos, discover new recipes, and sit through guided meditations. I am not a medical professional. Please consult a health care provider about lifestyle changes such as exercise and diet, or if you are having mental health problems.
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mental health/Mood trackers
DailyBean:
Cost: Free with ads. The premium version is $1.99 a month or $17.99 a year.
Rating: 4.8 stars on Apple and Google Play Store.
A mobile app that makes tracking your mood easy. It is available in the Google App Store and on Apple. The free version allows users to open the app, choose which bean matches their mood, and record what they did during the day. This quick and easy app would suit those wanting to track their mood and identify patterns.
What's Up? A Mental Health App:
Cost: Free with the option to donate $0.99 to $3.99 to unlock extra content.
Rating: 4.4 stars on Apple and 3,8 stars on Google Play Store.
This mobile app uses cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and acceptance commitment therapy (ACT) to help struggling users by teaching them how to embrace their emotions and respond accordingly. When I opened this app, it started by giving me mental health statistics in an effort to make me feel less alone. Some themes or categories have various articles and interactive features to help users with what they are currently dealing with. There are coping strategies like metaphor stories and steps to manage worries. An information section teaches users about mental health disorders. The ways to calm down category has a fun game to get you grounded, breathing exercises, and more. There is also a personal area for users to write in a diary, keep track of positive and negative habits, and write notes.
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Physical activity apps
FitOn:
Cost: Free with a premium option for $99.99 a year.
Rating: 4.9 stars on Apple and 4.7 rating on Google Play Store.
A mobile and desktop app that has helped me stay active at home. Workouts, reading guides, and advice are free. One can pay for a premium account to get recipe inspiration and specialty courses. Exercises can be selected based on the body part you want to be targeted, type (HIIT, Strength, Yoga, Barre, Mobility, Boxing, no equipment, etc.), instructor, length, and intensity level. It tells you how long each workout is, what equipment you will need, and tracks how many activities you have done in the week. They have workouts for when you are at work and need a 5-10 minute break to stretch, get up, and move. This is an excellent app for those that work out primarily at home or want to start working out without the pressure of signing up and paying for a gym membership.
Nike Training Club App:
Cost: Free
Rating: 4.8 stars on Apple and 4.3 stars on Google Play Store.
A mobile app with more information is available on their website. Like FitOn, workouts can be filtered by muscle group, workout focus, equipment, intensity, user level, and duration. A term that may not be familiar to many is "Whiteboard Workouts." These workouts are drill training with a structured approach, close to what might be found in a gym. Celebrities like NBA All-Star Ja Morant and Megan Thee Stallion lead some workout videos in the program area. Experts give nutrition, training, recovery, mindset, and sleep tips.
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Food apps
Supercook:
Cost: Free
Rating: 4.8 stars on Apple and 4.7 on the Google Play Store.
A desktop and mobile app that focuses on zero-waste recipe generation. It works by having users log everything they have in their kitchen, cupboards, refrigerator, freezer, and spice rack. Supercook will then generate thousands of recipes based on what the user logged. It does not generate specifically healthier options but recipes to help families have zero waste. Recipes can be filtered by key ingredients, meal type, cuisines, rating, and recipe time. I use this consistently when I am the one cooking dinner or want to make a dessert.
Yummly:
Cost: Free with a premium option for $4.17 a month.
Rating: 4.8 stars on Apple and 4.5 on the Google Play Store.
Yummly is a desktop and mobile app full of healthy recipes. It gives users access to recipes and articles. It starts by asking about a person's favorite cuisines, dietary restrictions, allergies, food to avoid, and a description of their cooking skills (beginner, intermediate, advanced). The premium version gives users access to personalized content, meal planning and recipe scheduling, smart search tools, and exclusive instructional videos. Users are given a 30-day free trial to try the premium version.
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mindfulness and meditation Apps
Insight Timer:
Cost: Free
Rating: 4.9 stars on Apple and 4.8 on Google Play Store.
Another desktop and mobile app that gives users access to the meditation library with over 1,700 guided meditations. Meditations range from five minutes to over 20 minutes. The premium version includes the meditation library, courses, advanced audio, and custom folders. The free meditation timer is for individual meditations. The timer has different bell sounds to signify the start and finish of the session. Users can choose from various ambient noises, including raindrops, birds, campfires, and gardens. To help users get the full benefits of meditating, they have a seven-day free course to learn how to meditate and use the time. The app also has a mood tracker and will suggest guided meditations based on a user's mood. Insight Timer also helps users get a better night's sleep with playlists and community tips. For those that work, Insight Timer will give free meditations and lessons to help combat challenges common in workplaces: Burnout, performance under pressure, and speaking out about issues.
Mindfulness Coach:
Cost: Free
Rating: 4.8 on Apple and 4.7 on the Google Play Store.
A mobile app with veterans and those who have served in mind. This app is designed to help start a person's mindfulness journey. The progress on the app is shown by a growing tree. Each level has tasks to build expertise, track progress, and practice before moving on to the next level. Personalized goals can be set. A five-minute mindfulness mastery assessment can be taken for free to help track progress and give you personalized feedback. The practice log helps track when and how often you are practicing mindfulness.
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