Fitocracy: A Social Network for Health & Fitness

Fitocracy.com

I stumbled across this site the other night, and have actually just joined it.  It's a free, social networking site for those looking to get fit.  Unlike some sites, Fitocracy is aimed for pretty much everybody.  If you are just getting into a fitness routine or trying to gain a healthier lifestyle you can feel right at home.  But on the other hand, if you are someone who has been in the fitness game for a long time and are doing great when it comes to things like diet and nutrition, and you love visiting the gym; then don't shy away because there is plenty going on here for you too.

So here is the deal.  It is a social network much in the same vein of Facebook.  It features you're run of the mill social networking goodies like a Feed (a place where all of the stuff you want to see from people you follow show up i.e.: Facebook's Wall), Friend's List, Group's List, etc.  You can share pictures and media and such.  But where it is different is that it uses "gamification" help people attain their fitness, diet, or exercising goals.  And as an avid gamer, this is an idea that I like a lot.  As some days, I just lack the desire to get out and do something healthy.

It breaks goals down into "quests" much like an RPG game.  Completion of these quests gives you points.  These points add up much like experience points (or XP) in a role playing game.  Once you fill up your point bar for your current level; you level up.  As you level up and complete certain "quests" you get achievement badges to share on your Feed for bragging rights.

Sounds pretty cool, doesn't it?  I signed up this afternoon.  And one of the most daunting things to do once you join a social network is to get friends to follow.  If you don't know someone who is currently using the site, then it can be pretty lonely.  The Fitocracy solution: not only recommend a few friends for you, but actually connect you with new friends to get your feet wet.  The site will also set you up as a member of several groups based on what interests you picked during sign up (Cardio, Strength Building, etc.)  So when you first get to your feed, you actually have some stuff to look at.  From that point forward it's up to you to continue to build your friends list, add exercises (remember to be honest), and have fun reaching your goals!

There are two tier's of membership on the site.  You can join and use the site for free (I'm a free member), or you can sign up as a Fitocracy Hero which gives you some extra features on the site and let's you challenge other user's to duels.  A Hero account will set you back $4.99/month or $44.99/per year.  There is also an app for the service but it currently only supports iOS (Apple's iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad).  Supposedly an Android app is in the works.  For Android user's, you can visit the site via your device's web browser and use the mobile version of the site (which coincidentally is just a mobile version of the sign on screen, but loads the full browser version of the site after login).

So get out and meet some people with similar goals as you, and let's work together to encourage each other!  Follow this link and sign up and hit me up: Fitocracy Sign Up

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App Review: Lose It! by FitNow

Our first app review is going to cover one of the very first fitness apps I ever encountered.  It is called "Lose It!" by FitNow, Inc.  I found this app a couple of years ago when I had went through a fitness spurt and installed this one on my iPod Touch.  I liked the layout of it and it seemed to flow nicely.  When I gave up my iPod Touch and migrated to an Android based smartphone, I wasn't sure if there was anything comparable in the Android Market.  A couple of weeks ago I found it again.  And I am glad to see that not much has changed, with the exception of a few added features.

And it is still FREE!!  Free is good. :)

What is the purpose behind "Lose It!"?
Too many people think there is some kind of magic behind honest to goodness weightloss.  Maybe there is a magic pill or a "wonder-exercise" you can do to melt the pounds away.  But (for me anyway) none of those options are a true-blue way to loose weight.  For me I have had success over the last couple of weeks mixing regular exercise with keeping watch on my calorie intake.  The concept: eat less calories than what you burn to kick off weight loss.  Controlling the calorie intake and maintaining it at different levels can lead to a safe loss in weight.  The goal is not to starve yourself, it's to shock you back into eating healthier by putting into perspective what you eat everyday.  And it can be shocking.

So, this app is basically a fancy way to count your caloric intake (or how to inventory the number of calories you eat everyday).  You can also log exercise time and find out how many calories you have burned.  Of course the calories burned are estimates.  But they seem to match pretty closely other resources found online.

There is a large database of foods built into this app.  And quite a few chain restaurants are included as well.  What I like about it is if you eat something fairly regularly then it will be added to your 'My Foods' category for quick reference.  This makes it easy to enter food on the fly.  You can also add your own foods to the database as well, just in case you can't find a particular food listed; which occasionally happens.

There is also a large number of exercises listed in the database as well.  Personally, I walk a lot.  So I use walking and some weight training quite a bit.  And as mentioned earlier, it does a good job a estimating how many calories you burned during a particular workout.

Setting Up The App
After installing the app, there is a very short setup process involved.  Basically, it prompts you for your account credentials.  If you are a new user, it is a quick registration process.  Then you are prompted with some basic information to get started.  It will ask your current weight, what is your target weight, and how long you will take to achieve that target weight.  The length of time is interesting.  I have seen some online resources in the past let you pick however long you'd like.  From a couple of days to a year.  But the "Lose It!" app seems to let you pick from several preset choices that gives the impression it is for a controlled weight loss and not a crash diet.  That is a good thing.  Based on the figures you enter, the app will generate a daily total number of calories to be consumed in order to achieve your predetermined goal.

Post Install

After installation and a couple minute setup you can start cataloging your food.  Simply pick 'Add Food' and select for which meal: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, or Snacks.  From there pick your category of food or search for the food you'd like to add.  And add it.  The calorie totals will automatically tally based off of food and exercise entered so you have a real-time view on how you have done for the day.  As you use the app it will build a form of analytics that you can use to keep track of your progress over the course the last several weeks.  It will even build some neat charts you can glance at quickly to see your progress.

For me, I tend to loose motivation easily when it comes to certain types of food.  And as I go through my day entering my intake, I can keep a bird's eye view of what I have eaten versus what I can still use for the day to try and stay right at or just under my daily allotment.  Think of it as a sort of 'Weight Watcher's Point Counter' but instead of points you are counting physical calories.

And if keeping up with yourself isn't enough for you.  FitNow has added a whole social media swing to the app as well.  You can sign up on their website (http://www.loseit.com/) and you can basically do the same stuff that the app allows but also interact with others and build a network of friends to help coach and motivate you along.  Which is pretty cool.  And from the app you can also choose to Sync the app data to their website as well.  There is also a barcode scanner that allows you to scan and retrieve calorie information using the camera on your mobile devices (which is a cool feature).

So what if you loose some weight?  How does the app know?
For example over the last couple of weeks I've lost about 5 pounds.  If you tap on the 'Goals' tab across the top of the screen you can record your weight for that day.  As you record your weight across time a chart is drawn showing your progress.  This reflects loss and gains as well.  And at the top of the screen it is clearly worded what your goal weight is, how many pounds you plan to loose per week,  and what your daily calorie budget is.  Just in case you forgot. :)

One thing to make a note of, is as you log your weight.  Your daily calories budget will gradually change to reflect the amount of calories you take in to maintain loosing weight by your current plan.  So if your plan starts you off at 2,000 calories a day and you loose 10 pounds after a month.  Then your will naturally be expected to take in less calories to continue loosing weight.  That's the idea.

And overall the app does what is advertised.  Of course how you use it actually negates how well you accomplish your goals that you set when starting the app initially.  For me, I try to adhere to it but not beat myself up too bad if I go a little over my daily calorie budget.  But it helps me keep an eye on what I am taking in during the course of the day.  And with a "watching eye" kind of steering me along I tend to find the motivation to stay away from the needless snacking and high calorie stuff that I would like to eat.

Does this app 100% break bad eating habits?  Nope, that is your job.  After all, this is just an app (or a web service if you use it).  It is up to you to enter you foods on a daily basis.  It takes a little training to remember to enter your meals.  But if you stick with it and exercise regularly I guarantee it can't hurt.  It hasn't hurt me.

And as I mentioned above, with a little help from keeping myself inline using "Lose It!" and regular exercise I have already lost a little better than 5 pounds.  I plan on continuing to use "Lose it!" if for no other reason that to keep an eye on my daily intake.

"Lose It!" is available on both the iOS and Android mobile platforms; as well as being available via their website to be used from a desktop PC or tablet.

I rate "Lose It!": 5 out of 5 stars



Find "Lose It" by FitNow, Inc. at:
Cost: FREE
Google Play (former Android Market): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fitnow.loseit
Apple App Store: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/lose-it!/id297368629?mt=8

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**I am in know way affiliated with FitNow, Inc., LoseIt! mobile app or web service, Google Play, or Apple App Store. Screen captures sourced from my mobile device.

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Motivation:Why Is It Important?

One of the biggest problems I personally have when it comes to exercise and fitness is a complete and utter lack of motivation.  This has plagued every half-witted attempt I have taken at getting fit.  Usually I start off strong by working out regularly and trying to eat right then after a couple of weeks something will happen.  Almost as if I flipped a switch off in my mind that says "Okay, I'm done.".  From that point forward it becomes a lot easier to sit inside and play games or do other things on days we have nice weather or lay out of the gym.

So how do I combat that lack of motivation or drive?  For me, I have found that when I can't motivate myself; that's when I need to get other people involved.  The first person I started bugging was my wife.  Initially, when I told her what my personal goals were for things like walking and weight loss she was surprise, worried, concerned (whatever you want to call it, she though something was up).  But after she actually saw me get out and start working, it was almost like catching a cold.  She jumped right in and started contributing with me.  After a couple of days I started mentioning my efforts to others like my Mom.  My Mom is a nurse and understands the point of good health practices and likes to get out and about herself.  So she jumped on the wagon with us too.  Essentially, I surrounded myself with people who I knew would be proud of me if I succeed and will help encourage me when I don't quite feel like going that extra mile.  And so far, it is working.

With a form of what I will call "external motivation" from other people, that pushes me to be more inclined to get out and put forth an effort.  And so far with this motivation, I have walked since March 1st, 2012: 34.37 miles.  Which may not sound like a lot but a month ago I was spending almost all of my free time sitting around either infront of a television, computer, or video game.  Now I am walking at least 5 days a week (oftentimes 6 days) and am pushing myself farther every time I go out.  And I have already started to move my belt in one notch.  And for a guy whose belt hasn't moved in 7 years; that's a big deal!

So how can you find that extra motivation to help encourage you?  First, don't think of your workouts/eating better as a diet.  If you start out by saying "I can't go there or eat that because I'm on a diet"; you will find that you are limiting yourself within constraints that may make life a little more difficult on you.  And who needs that stress, as it will kill motivation for you.  Yes, you should be conscious about your diet, but not to the point you have put yourself in a doorless room with rice cakes.  If you happen to splurge (which it is healthy to do once in a while), just make a note and work a little harder on your next trip out.  NOTE: Please don't read that Techie said to go crazy with your moderation.  That's nuts.

Second, set goals that you know you can achieve.  Not something that is unattainable.  In my case, if I started out doing no exercise whatsoever (which was my case actually), and I decided to go out and run for 10 miles.  I would have flopped in my attempt that day.  Instead, I started out determined to walk no more than 2 miles.  When I hit the 2 miles mark, I was feeling pretty good and ended up walking 5 miles my first day out.  Yes, this killed me since I wasn't used to much activity.  But, I rebounded after a day or two of rest and haven't stopped since.  So, goal setting is very important.

Third, you have to find some form of "external motivation".  Whether be friends or family, or maybe there is a local walking group in your community.  If not, start one up instead of waiting on someone else too.  If you are scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to finding others to participate, look online.  There are communities online that are there to help.  Sites like Endomondo, LiveStrong, etc. are there for the purpose of helping you.  Sure, sites likes these have paid services.  But usually they offer some free services by way of forums and message boards or even online fitness trackers that you can share on Facebook or Twitter.  And believe me, I have used some of these (and still do use a couple) and they can be a big help.

I am by no means, a fitness expert or a doctor of any kind.  However, the above points are what continues to help me everyday.  If you have other factors for motivation, chime in below with a comment and share with all of us as we may need the help too!

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Credits: Image: Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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