Stay healthy with help from technology
Now that summer’s over, the nights are drawing in and it’s getting colder, it’s important to stay healthy and keep active. Thankfully, there’s all kinds of ways that technology can help us to do just that.
We’ve put together a few ideas and some links for apps and gadgets that can keep you on your toes and fighting fit through the autumn and winter months.
Sweet dreams
Getting a good night’s sleep is hugely important for our all-round health. If you have trouble sleeping, help is now at hand in the form of sleep tracking apps that can monitor your sleep patterns and help you get those precious all-important hours of shut-eye. Take a look at apps like Sleep Cycle, Tide, or SleepBot and be sure to get your full forty winks.
Track your fitness
Strap a fitness tracker or smart watch to your wrist and you can monitor your workouts, heart rate and sleep patterns, count your steps and log your food intake. It also serves as a daily reminder to keep exercise and healthy living uppermost in your thoughts. There’s many to choose from including Fitbit, Garmin, Samsung Galaxy and Apple Watch.
Professional help available online 24/7
With hectic work and family lives and difficulty getting GP appointments, many people are now turning to virtual doctors to get online health advice, check symptoms and order prescriptions from wherever they are 24/7. Check out Babylon and Pushdoctor.
You can also search online to find a vast array of therapists and counsellors, and book sessions on video platforms like Facetime or Skype, or arrange a session in person. You can find therapists and personal trainers listed on sites like Bark or specialised sites such as: https://welldoing.org, https://www.anxietyuk.org.uk and https://www.e-therapy.uk/.
Motivate your workouts
If you've decided to get healthier or stronger by working out, your smartphone can provide help and motivation. There’s hundreds of apps that can be used to monitor your workouts, and recording what you’ve done makes it easier to see your progress. Whether you’re a beginner or a pro, prefer walking, running, cycling or more, there’s an app for you. Check out Strava , Runkeeper , MyFitnessPal and One You Couch to 5K
Track your food
Keeping track of the food you eat is now so easy thanks to food-tracking apps that download to your smartphone. Some apps use your phone’s camera to scan food label barcodes and make it simple to track the calories, nutrients and protein in your food. There’s a huge choice with something for everyone, including MyFitnessPal, See how you eat , MyPlate and Fitbit.
Breathe clean air
For many of us living in big cities, air pollution is something that can impact on our health. And, wherever you live, it’s important to create a healthy atmosphere at home where you spend the majority of time. There’s smart home gadgets that can detect air quality level, humidity and temperature in the home and help you to create a healthier environment. Check out Dyson and Philips. And why not invest in a home air purifier or dehumidifier to keep the air clean at home. Take a look at Blueair and Vax.
Train your brain
We spend so long staring at our phones every day, why not use some of that time doing something to exercise your grey matter and benefit your cognitive health. There’s a host of brain training apps that include games to test your mental skills and help keep your mind fighting fit. Try Lumosity, Peak, Elevate, Fit Brains Trainer and many more, available to download free from the App Store and Google Play Store.
Win a Samsung 50" Smart 4K Ultra HD HDR LED TV
We’re offering one lucky winner the chance to win an amazing Samsung Smart 4K Ultra HDR TV
HDR technology gives you scene-by-scene image mastering, so you can see the finer details in the picture, even when the setting is dark. Witness the true beauty of a sun-filled landscape, or discover what’s lurking in the shadows of a horror movie. Better be careful what you watch this Halloween. You could get more spooked than ever before!
To be in with a chance to win, hit ‘Enter now’ to visit the competition blog post and tell us, what’s your favourite horror movie? You’ve got until midnight on Sunday 8th October to enter and we’ll pick the winners at random. Ghoul Luck!
Don’t miss out
If you haven’t already, don’t forget to opt-in to receive iD Mobile emails, newsletters and more great content. With lots of fab prizes to be won in competitions, helpful blogs and community conversations, you’re missing out on a whole iD Mobile community. Be kind to yourself and opt-in today.