National Nutrition Month: Ways to Track Your Wellbeing

It’s fair to say that amidst the numerous national lockdowns many of us have probably failed to stay on top of our physical and mental fitness. Sure, at the beginning of last March, we all tried to keep up with Joe Wicks and his virtual PE classes but by summer we all began to favour something a little stronger than a protein shake.

Besides, with gyms closed for much of the last year and a bevy of binge-able shows to watch on Netflix, are we really expected to find the motivation to do a painstaking HIIT workout in our living rooms?

So as it’s National Nutrition Month, what better time to find that second wind than now. And this time around we have compiled a list of gadgets and smartphone apps you can use to make sure you don’t ever fall off the wellbeing wagon again.

MyFitnessPal

Fitness and wellbeing both start with what you eat, so you’ll need an app that ensures you’re using the right fuel to power your workouts, that’s where MyFitnessPal comes in. MyFitnessPal is a smartphone app that helps you track your diet. Developed by sportswear brand Under Armour, the app gamifies its elements to motivate users to achieve their fitness goals.

You can track your nutrient intake by either scanning barcodes of food items or manually finding them in the app’s pre-existing database that consists of more than 112 million foods! The progress screen helps you chart your progress over time, so you can see which food items are helping you on your fitness journey and those that are holding you back.

FitBit

Wearable technology has become all the rage the past few years with every major smartphone company releasing some form of a smartwatch. However, the FitBit is still unanimously considered to be the best device when it comes to keeping track of your exercise. And for good reason too, the latest Versa 3 model boasts a number of intuitive features that will revolutionise your understanding of your wellbeing.

It automatically provides you with prompts to exercise throughout the day, with built-in GPS you can keep track of your workout’s pace, distance and intensity and it can also relay your Oxygen saturation (SPO2) levels while you sleep. These are just a few of the trackers you can make use of on FitBit to better understand your body and the impact exercise has on it.

Peloton

We’ve all missed social contact the past year when it comes to fitness, especially the camaraderie felt in a spinning class when you’ve all seemingly signed up for an hour of pain. Peloton with its array of home-based workout equipment and app has managed to bring that communal spirit into our living rooms.  The Peloton App lets users access intensive and professionally run fitness classes from their smartphone.

Peloton’s personal instructors guide you through each workout, so whether you’re a novice or an esteemed gym buff you can follow along confident that you’re getting the most from your workout. What’s more, you can chart your progress with in-depth metrics and climb the live leaderboard of other Pelton users.

Headspace

Your wellbeing isn’t just limited to physical fitness, mental fitness is just as important if not more so. After all, you’re unlikely to be motivated to eat healthily or exercise without being in a good place mentally. Headspace is designed to help its users manage stress, cope with anxiety, get better sleep and increase their focus.

The app is led by former monk and renowned mindfulness expert Andy Puddicombe and helps you keep track of your journey towards becoming more mindful with a series of meditation tutorials and exercises. These include ‘Sleep by Headspace’ to help you drift off, ‘Everyday Headspace’ daily meditations on a new topic each day and ‘The Wake Up’ to start your day mindfully.