We’re in the final stretch of 2014, with a new year just around the corner. For many people, this is a time to reflect on the past year and set goals for the coming one. In fact, about 45% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions every year, but only about 8% manage to successfully keep them. Fortunately, technology may be able to help resolution-makers improve those odds.
No matter what your New Year’s resolution is, there’s an app out there that can help. We rounded up the best apps for 10 of the most common New Year’s resolutions. Each of these popular and highly-rated apps puts the tools and motivation you need to stick with your goals, right in the palm of your hand.
Resolution: Lose weight, eat healthy, or exercise more
Apps: MyFitnessPal, Fooducate, Fitocracy
Health-related goals are always at the top of the list of most popular resolutions. If your goal is to get healthy in 2015, these three apps are some of the best out there.
For people looking to lose weight, MyFitnessPal is an extremely popular solution. This calorie and exercise tracker has an extensive food library making it easy to log calories for individual foods and even restaurant meals. You can also track your exercise, weight, measurements, and other statistics, and view your progress over time. This free app is available for iOS and Android, and also includes a web tool and large online community for support and advice.
If you’d like to eat healthier in 2015, Fooducate is an easy way to change your habits and find healthy options. Fooducate rates grocery products and restaurant and fast food items on a scale of healthiness, including nutritional content, calories, sugar, and other factors. Just scan a package or search for a type of food, say cereal or yogurt, and Fooducate will show you a rating and suggest healthy products, saving you time reading nutrition labels and comparing products in the aisle.
If exercising more is your goal, Fitocracy is a fun and free exercise tracker to try. The app makes hitting the gym into a game—users earn points for exercises logged and can unlock badges and special achievements. It also suggests workouts, lets you track tons of different exercises and view progress, and offers an active community for support and motivation.
Resolution: Improve finances—save more, spend less
Apps: Mint
Mint is one of our favorite apps for parents, but it’s great for anyone to use. The app is linked to your accounts and lets you track expenses, set budgets, work towards financial goals, and see all your transactions in one place. Mint is available for free for iOS and Android devices and also includes a web-based dashboard.
Resolution: Learn something new
Apps: Code Hour, Duolingo
Lifelong learning is incredibly important. so it’s no surprise that education-related resolutions are very popular. Learning a new skill is fun, but it can also be valuable to your career. Learning a second language is always a good idea, and is often valuable to employers in this increasingly connected world. Duolingo is one of our favorite language learning apps for both kids and adults. It’s free for iOS, Android, and Windows phones and offers a good basic intro to nine different languages.
Coding is an increasingly important skill, one many experts say everyone could benefit from learning. Even if you’ll never be a developer, it’s not a bad idea learn a little. Not only will many jobs in the future require coding, but it can also improve problem solving and thinking skills. If you’d like to try learning a programming language, Codecademy is a great place to start. Try the free Code Hour app for iPhone to get a taste of coding, then continue learning with Codecademy’s free online lessons.
Resolution: Break a bad habit (or start a good one)
App: Lift
Many people resolve to break habits, like quitting smoking, or aim to start new ones, whether simple things like flossing or drinking more water, to sticking to a new exercise program, or practicing a new skill every day. Lift uses the power of community to motivate users. Sign up for a few goals and connect with others who have the same goal. Users can track their progress and share encouragement and motivation and can also access plans offered by expert coaches.
Resolution: Help others
App: Pay it Forward
The official app of the Pay it Forward Foundation, this iOS and Android app sends users a daily act of kindness suggestion, with the idea that when enough people do small acts of kindness, they can have a big impact. The classroom version intended for teachers also offers acts to be done in the classroom, with an emphasis on being kind as an antidote to bullying.
Resolution: Stop procrastinating and use time better
App: Finish
Billed as the to-do list for procrastinators, Finish is an iOS app that’s easy and satisfying to use. Adding and checking off tasks is simple, plus you can assign timeframes to tasks, making it easy to prioritize tasks.
Resolution: Manage stress
App: Breath2Relax
Breathe2Relax is an app to teach diaphragmatic or “belly breathing.” This type of deep breathing is proven to help with stress and anxiety and can help to improve mood and anger control. Free for iOS and Android devices, the app guides you through breathing exercises to help you learn this type of breathing and implement it during stressful situations.
What are your New Year’s resolutions? Will you use an app or another tool to help you reach them? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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