Bad habits aren't easy to break, even though they can negatively affect your health, interrupt your life, and waste your time. The good news is that apps can help you get rid of your bad habits and perhaps replace them with some good ones. Find out more about the mobile apps that can help you break some of the most common bad habits.
1. Beat Procrastination With Forest
One of the worst habits is procrastination, which might be caused by stress, poor time management, or feeling overwhelmed. The Forest app is one of the best productivity tools to help break this bad habit. The Forest app adds a fun gamification element to overcoming procrastination, which can make it easier for your productivity habit to stick.
To get started, plant a tree and stay focused on the selected task, whether you're working, studying, or resting. As you work hard and avoid distractions, your tree continues to grow until you grow your very own forest. Moreover, the app features various modes, and you can even add ambient sounds.
Download: Forest for iOS ($3.99) | Android (Free, subscription available)
2. Stop Consuming Too Much Sugar With Sugarfree
You can find sugar in almost everything you consume—even items that you think are healthy. According to research in Advances in Nutrition, sugar can cause obesity and diseases like type 2 diabetes. Sugarfree is an adorable app that can help on your sugar-free journey.
To track and record your sugar consumption along with how you feel, simply tap Check-in on the app. From here you can monitor your positive and negative symptoms and keep up with how each day is affecting you. The app even features some additional challenges, like cutting out fast foods and soda.
Download: Sugarfree for iOS | Android (Subscription required, free trial available)
3. Stay Focused Instead of Getting Distracted by Your Phone
While using an app on your phone is a great way to change your bad habits, constantly checking your phone multiple times a day is usually not a good thing. To avoid the distractions of social media, emails, and texts, use the Stay Focused app.
Stay Focused works by restricting and blocking specific apps, websites, and keywords. The best aspect of the app is that practically everything on it is customizable. A few of the key features of the app include the ability to set a usage time limit, a quick block, and a wait timer. You can even set a break timer to completely block your phone usage.
Download: Stay Focused for Android (Free, subscription available)
4. Do a 7-Minute Workout Instead of Sitting for Hours
Sitting for excessive periods could be the worst habit yet! An article in Diabetologia says that sedentary people have a higher risk of diabetes and other health issues. 7 Minute Workout is a simple fitness app that'll keep you active at work or at home. Furthermore, you don't need access to any fancy exercise equipment to do the workouts.
The 7 Minute Workout app is straightforward and consists of six different workouts, including a 30-day challenge, a leg workout, and a sleepy time stretch. Each workout involves 12 basic exercises and is no longer than seven minutes long. Not sure how to do an exercise? Tap the video camera icon to watch a video demonstration on YouTube.
Download: 7 Minute Workout for iOS | Android (Free, in-app purchases available)
5. Use TalkLife So You're Not Stuck in a Bad Relationship
Whether it's to a friend or a partner, saying goodbye is never easy. However, it may be necessary if you're just staying in a bad relationship out of habit. To help you battle your bad habits, use TalkLife to chat with an online community of supportive people in a safe place.
With the TalkLife app, you can create a post and share it with other people to whom you can relate. To start, choose a mood and a category. Next, vent about what you're feeling and have conversations with a positive community of real people. You have the option to easily filter and find posts according to several categories, from relationships and friends to self-care and depression.
Download: TalkLife for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
6. Prevent Overeating With Ate Food Journal
Overeating is just one of many bad eating habits. It can be triggered by stress, depression, and boredom in front of the TV. The Ate Food Journal app is the tool you need for support as you break the habit of overeating.
The Ate Food Journal app works by promoting mindful eating, which centers on a number of factors: why you ate, how you felt, where you ate, and much more. Tap Capture to log your feelings, activity, water, notes, and, of course, meals. Then, you can experiment with different eating techniques, such as putting your phone down while eating or eating with smaller utensils.
Download: Ate Food Journal for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
7. Stop Biting Your Fingernails With NailKeeper
Biting your fingernails is a common bad habit that can last a lifetime and be extremely difficult to quit. To help you stop nail-biting for good, try NailKeeper, one of the most uncomplicated and painless apps to use. The NailKeeper app allows you to track how many days, hours, minutes, and seconds it's been since you stopped biting.
Plus, you can take before and after photos to see the difference in your nails and help yourself motivated. There is also an overview of your stats including your streak days, relapses, images, and nail growth. In addition, the app provides helpful tips on how to stop biting your nails and tricks to help them grow.
Download: NailKeeper for iOS | Android (Free, in-app purchases available)
8. Get Help Overcoming Sleeplessness With Sleep Monitor
A lack of sleep not only makes you feel tired, but it can lead to serious potential health problems. An article in Current Cardiological Reviews states that sleep deprivation can negatively affect your immune system, blood pressure, and mental health. Sleep Monitor is an amazing sleep tracker app that is your best bet for a good night's rest.
By tracking your sleep trends, such as the overall duration, efficiency, and regularity of your sleep, you can build better nighttime habits. The app is simple—set an alarm, log any sleep factors, choose an optional soothing lullaby, and tap Start Sleep. Each morning, the app breaks down a full record of your sleep, including any noises captured during the night.
Download: Sleep Monitor for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
Use Your Smartphone to Break Your Bad Habits
Oftentimes, it can be tough to kick bad habits. After all, habits are something you do regularly, sometimes without even realizing it. Whether you want to get more sleep, eat less sugar, or stop procrastinating once and for all you might need a tool to give you that extra push.
Thankfully, with the help of your smartphone along with a few handy apps, you can start building a better lifestyle and do away with those pesky bad habits.