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Researchers reported that app users who engaged with an online community — thereby getting encouragement — or interacted with the social features of their app accumulated more exercise minutes than those who didn’t.
Those aren’t the only discoveries they uncovered about exercisers who prefer working out with apps. Turns out they’re a pretty competitive group.
“Individuals with higher levels of trait competitiveness engaged in significantly higher levels of physical activity, suggesting that those with a general disposition toward competition may benefit most from using apps,” said the researchers.
It’s clear that app developers know how to tap into the psyche of exercisers who love a good challenge. The more popular apps include features like leaderboards, monthly challenges and badges to reward those who continue to push their limits. While some of the competition is between members of the app’s larger community, a fair number of exercisers are content competing against themselves. Among this group, improving personal statistics — like the number of steps taken per day/week/month, most consecutive daily workouts or the length of time it takes to finish a workout — is the type of motivation that makes exercise happen.
Of course, the key to using an app for motivation is finding one that appeals to your particular interests. If competing against others in your demographic makes you want to pull on your exercise gear, then choose an app that connects you with a large community of fitness fanatics who strive to be at the top of the leaderboard. But if you’re looking for an app that provides the kind of motivation that simply gets you off the couch, consider one that offers reminders to get moving, helps you set modest goals and gives you high-fives when you achieve them. The good news is there’s no shortage of apps to choose from, and most are free to try. And according to the Australian researchers, they work.
“Commercial physical activity apps are clearly beneficial given their widespread reach (and) acceptability by the population at large and, based on the current findings, are associated with certain psychological constructs (i.e., social support, self-efficacy and motivation) which have been linked to increased physical activity behaviour,” they write.
