Why I decided to use a fitness app: My 8fit experience
I had never used fitness apps until about 3 month ago. I have been a regular at the gym and had a go-to YouTube fitness channel for when I wanted to exercise at home or on a trip. So I didn't feel a need for a fitness app, especially the one I needed to pay for (check here to learn more about me).
This January my husband has mentioned to me a fitness app, 8fit, that he wanted to try. This app provides a daily exercise routine and a full daily menu based on your fitness level and goals. At first, I was skeptical for a couple of reasons. I wasn't looking for a structured program aimed at loosing weight or building a specific group of muscles. My fitness goal over the last few years was to maintain my weight, stay fit, and gradually build strength as I explore different types of fitness activities. Secondly, I don't want someone to tell me what to eat. I think I know enough about healthy and nutritious food, I like cooking and have enough ideas to keep our meals diverse and healthy.
However, it is a fact that online training and nutrition programs and virtual personal training sessions have been on the rise. More and more people opt for a 'virtual gym' or a 'virtual nutritionist' in an effort to save time and money. This really got me thinking. And about a week later my curiosity took over my reasoning. So I signed up for the app. And here is what my experience with it has been so far.
HOW the fitness app WORKS
For about $60 / year you get a daily exercise and meal plan. The program is created based on your weight, heights, current fitness level (subjective) and fitness goals. Based on that you are assigned one of the exercise level: beginner, intermediate, advanced, expert, etc. You have an option of adjusting the exercise level to a harder or easier one.
One of the main premises of the app is that exercise should be efficient. You don't need to exercise for an hour to burn 300 calories or build muscles. If you select the right type of exercises, do them properly (no cheating!) and combine them with a tailored nutritious meal plan, you can achieve the same fitness goals with just 10-20 minutes of exercising a day. And therefore, all exercises offered by the app are high intensity 10 - 20 min long routines. They have also started offering 15 - 25 min yoga routines for extra stretching and flexibility.
HOW I USE 8fit
To be honest, I only use the fitness part of the app regularly. I do exercise routines provided by the app about 3 times a week on the days when I don't go to the gym. Since moving to San Francisco a few weeks ago I have been using it much more as I haven't joined the gym yet. This being said, I personally won't use it as a replacement of a gym membership as I still enjoy fitness classes very much. But it works well as an addition to my weekly routine.
As for the meal plan, I haven't been using it on a regular basis. I do look at the menu every now and then for inspiration and new ideas, but I do not follow it. If you ask me why - same reasons as above. I'm not looking for a structured meal program and I feel like I know enough by now about healthy eating.
WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THE 8fit APP
1. Convenience
You can do it anytime and anywhere. It's short enough that you can always find time for it. And it doesn't require any equipment. It is convenient to have a mat, but you can easily go without it, as well. There are a couple of equipment items used in the videos very rarely but they can be optional.
2. Helpful videos
The entire exercise routine is a series of timed videos that you follow. No need to guess how to do each exercise.
3. Exercise intensity
Once I got to the level that felt challenging enough for me, I really feel that I'm spending these 15-20 minutes productively.
4. Preview of the routine
When you click on today's routine, you can see a list of exercises and pictures for each. So you can get an idea what to expect.
5. One less decision a day
I don't need to decide which exercise to do today, it's already decided for me! Ironically, it's opposite with the food, where I actually want to decide for myself.
6. Warm up
The routine includes the warm up as well. I find it very important. If I was told to just warm up on my own before the exercise I would often jump right into the exercises.
7. Opportunity to provide feedback and adjust
When you complete the exercise the app asks you how the exercise was ('Easy', 'Perfect', 'Hard') and whether you enjoyed it or not ('Hell no', 'It was ok', 'Awesome'). It also offers you to leave comments. And based on your feedback the app offers you to join a different exercise level. For example, when I started I was advanced a few levels up as I found exercises to be quite easy. Be honest to yourself. If it's easy, tell the app that it is easy. If you want to get results after a 15 minutes exercise, put your heart and sweat into it. If you didn't feel anything at all, you must be at the wrong level.
8. Scheduling your next exercise
At the end of each exercise the app asks you when you'd like to exercise next and then sends you a reminder. Another boost of motivation right here.
9. Diverse meal options
For those who are interested in an individualized meal program, this app can be very convenient as you can see all your meals for a week, do all your groceries on the weekend, and then you are all set. My husband, who used the meal planning portion of the app for a few weeks, said that he really liked meal diversity in the program.
10. Free month-long trial
30 days is a long enough period to try it and see if it works for you or not.
WHAT COULD BE BETTER
1. More accuracy around calories
Sometimes I wonder - did I really just burn 400 calories in a 15-min tabata? I know, for example, that in a super intense 45-min spinning class I burn 400 calories and I work so hard that I can hardly breathe. So how is it possible that I burn the same amount of calories in just 15 minutes?
2. Adjusting for pauses
The app doesn't seem to adjust the calories for pauses. For example, this week I got interrupted during my workout by someone knocking on the door and had to pause the workout for about 10 minutes. At the end the app showed that I burned nearly twice the calories because the total duration of my workout was almost doubled (including the pause).
3. Price
The 8fit app costs $60 per year. To me personally, all the benefits of the app are worth $60/ year or $5/month. It really provides me with piece of mind, convenience and motivation, especially on the days that I don't go to the gym. But I can see that this price point would detract some people from using the app.
Overall, even though I only use this app for the exercising portion and not for the meal plans, I still find it worth the money for me. It provides a great way to squeeze a great intense 15-min exercise in my day. If you chose the right fitness level, you will definitely sweat and you will feel it the next day. That's what I'm looking for in my workouts. Even with a gym membership and a regular workout routine I still find this very handy. It's not a gym replacement option for me but a handy addition to my routine. It is also an effective way to stay motivated when you really can't drag yourself to the gym. Some meal planning and exercise apps, including 8fit, offer free trials.
So if you are looking for quick and effective exercising routines and ideas for nutritional meals, or a full meal program, take advantage of the trials and see if it works for you. If you want to try the 8fit app for yourself, you can download it on their website here. Enjoy your journey!
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DISCLAIMER:
This post is not sponsored by 8fit. All the views and opinions in the post are solely based on my own experience.