February has just begun! Only some 30 odd days have passed since we left our 2012 selves in the past, but to ensure that 2013 remains a dynamite year, you have to stick to your word and make things happen.
(Josh Shettler/CU Independent Graphic Illustration)
The first thing to do when revamping your New Year’s resolution is to re-examine your goal. Ask yourself these few simple questions:
1. Is it realistic? It’s great to aim for the stars, but consider the steps involved first; you can’t run before you walk.
2. Is it really something you care about? If you have no desire to achieve your goal, then it is pointless.
3. Is it specific? If you don’t have a clear destination, then you may be more likely to stray off from your original intention.
If you can answer these three questions, then you are already that much closer to conquering your goal. With the new year, many students have pledged to exercise more, eat healthier and drink less. There are some awesome apps that address these goals that you can take with you everywhere and will keep you motivated. Of course, there are thousands of apps dedicated to fitness and health, but in light of another common goal, saving money, here are some free ones.
Starting off with exercise, we have RunKeeper. This app can be used to track all kinds of exercise. You can choose from a list of activities like running, cycling, walking, hiking, skiing, snowboarding, skating, swimming, wheelchair, rowing and elliptical. You can either plug in data from your work out at the gym, or you can turn on the GPS feature when you exercise outdoors. Not only does this app give you all sorts of encouraging numbers–like calories burned, miles and speed– but a voice will give you a summary of your progress every ten minutes. All of your data is stored and accessible to get you excited about beating your personal best. There are also work outs to choose from that will giveD you a schedule to follow. So even if you aren’t an avid runner, this app can help improve your cardio and get you moving.
As far as eating well and not over eating, try the Lose It! app. This app is full of charts and numbers that will keep you on your toes. You can enter literally anything and everything that goes into your mouth with just a few taps of the finger. The app will tell you how many calories a day you can afford if you want to lose a certain amount of weight in a certain amount of time, while keeping track of everything from proteins, carbs and fats. Plus if you can’t find what your looking for in Lose It’s huge food library, you can just scan the bar code of whatever you’re eating, and Lose It! will find it for you. On your food log, you can also log your activity for the day and see how many calories you earned by picking up the basketball with your friends. Friends can also be a part of your success with this app. The motivation tab will take you to a list of your friends’ goals and data, letting you can compare your activity to theirs. Over 3,000 other app users have given Lose It! a five star rating, so check it out for yourself and see if it motivates you.
Last, but certainly not least, is drinking less. We are all aware of the dangers of drinking, whether you heard about them at freshman orientation, from your elders or maybe in an alcohol class, but have you ever thought about how your physique will suffer if you keep up those nasty drinking habits? The “Drinking Mirror” app is the result of the Scottish government’s “Drop a Glass Size Campaign,” in which the government is trying to encourage people to cut back on excessive drinking. The app allows you take a head shot of yourself and choose how many drinks you indulge in per week. The results vary, depending on whether you have 0, 1-5, 6-10 or 10+ drinks a week. The end product can be quite startling. Some of the most obvious changes are deep wrinkles, sunken eyes and a fat face. You can save the picture to your phone and keep it for a time when you may be facing a heavy night of drinking to resist the temptation.
Each of these apps is sure to give you some extra motivation and inspiration, but the most important part of achieving any goal is having support. Ask your friends and family to embark on the journey with you, so you can keep each other going. It’s only February, people! You have 330 days until 2014; make them count.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Leala King at Leala.king@colorado.edu.
