A few years back, the fitness trend took off, and people all across the world started to follow it like a religion. Now going to a gym is a status symbol and earns you relevance points. The technology market was quick to respond to this sudden boom in the fitness sector and delivered a plethora of apps and devices which helped people in their pursuit of self-care. From fitness bands to activity tracking apps in your handheld devices, there is no shortage of tools you can use to take your exercise regiment to the next level. Now smartphone app marketplaces like Google Play Store and Apple App Store are packed with fitness tracking apps, each one offering something new to their customers. According to Statista.com, Fitbit, the most popular fitness app in the US, has 27.4 million unique users every month. Furthermore, in the year 2017, Fitbit was able to reel in the yearly revenue of 1.62 billion US dollars.
After looking at this number, there is no doubt that the fitness trend is far from over and there is still a lot of room to grow. But while new apps are released every month, very few of them can outlast in this tumultuous market. So today we will be discussing all the features your fitness app needs to have in order to survive in the market.
List of 10 Features That Must Have in Fitness Tracking App
1. Make it Personal
2. How far can you walk?
3. Push Notifications
4. Give them Challenges
5. Pit them against each other
6. Multi-device synchronization
7. Sleep tracker
8. Food Tracker
9. Water Tracker
10. Consultation
1. Make it Personal
The first thing that every smartphone app needs, is a user profile. But this has a much bigger significance in a fitness tracking app. You need to design a series of questions to get various metrics from your user, like weight, height, age, etc. All these metrics will be used in the inner working of your app. Then you need to have a couple of features in your app which the user can use to customize it according to his needs. For example- personal stats saver, exercise plans, diet plans, timetables, and other such things. You cannot follow an objective plan of action to track the fitness of everyone who uses your app. Different people have different requirements, and so you need to be able to cater all of them.
2. How far can you walk?
The other features you cannot miss adding are location tracker and step counter. Location tracker is a simple geographic location tracking interface which tells the users the route that they have taken during their run, jog or walks. You can also store the information about the most traveled routes by a user. Then you can use that data to suggest directions to the user.
One of the most basic metrics to track fitness is the number of steps you have walked, ran or climbed. However only telling people how far they have walked in round figures like KM or Miles is acceptable. But when you add the number of steps they have walked, it builds their motivation and also helps them track their fitness more closely.
3. Push Notifications
Every app needs to have push notifications. But they are substantially more relevant in fitness tracking apps though. These notifications can be used to alert users of their timetable, their meal times and can be used to give users exercise reminders. Furthermore, they can be used to send motivational quotes to the users to maintain their enthusiasm and not give up on their pursuit to live a healthier life.
Push notifications are a powerful marketing tool as well. They can be used to share a discount on some merchandise you might be providing, or notify users about new updates of the app. But keep in mind not to overdo it. Users get annoyed when they get too many notifications from an app.
4. Give them Challenges
It is a common practice for fitness tracking apps to give their users some target to achieve. Humans are hardwired to take upon challenges and push themselves to conquer them. So when there is a target of 20 reps, and a user feels like he can only do 17, this target will compel him to push himself for three more reps. This is an excellent way to make sure that your user always keeps improving.
5. Pit them against each other
You can take it as another variant of giving your users a target. In this case, they give each other a target. When a group of friends is using a fitness tracking app, they are bound to compete with each other. So you need to give a feature in your app using which, they can monitor others workouts as well. This will push those who are lagging behind and enhance their fitness level.
6. Multi-device synchronization
There are people out there who take their fitness very seriously. They want to keep a track of the steps they’ve walked, the number of stairs they’ve climbed and calories they have eaten at all times. Now when there are so many devices in the market to track fitness, it is natural for fitness enthusiasts to have more than one of them. And they are not looking for multiple apps to run on their various devices; they need just one which can track their fitness at all times. So it is necessary that your app is capable of being synchronized on multiple devices.
7. Sleep tracker
Sleeping is just as crucial for you to live a healthy life as it is to work out. In today’s time when we live such fast lives, sleep deprivation can lead to a lot of health problems. So you need to make sure that you track your users sleeping hours as well. Furthermore, you can always use AI to find some sort of pattern in your users’ sleeping hours. This can further allow your users to change his habits or timetable to make sure he gets his required time of shut-eye.
8. Food Tracker
People these days are very body conscious. They watch over every calorie they intake and keep a firm record of it. So a food and calorie tracker is a must have for your fitness tracking app. This feature can be used to plan diets for people who want to lose weight or gain a couple of pounds as well. Furthermore, it can be customized according to body types. Some people put on weight easily; some people lose it quickly. But there are some who struggle with both of them. So for them, different diet plans will work. You can also merge a small chat system in this feature. This chat system will work as a bridge of communication between a user and a certified dietitian. This way, people will be able to get their diet plans made directly from a professional.
9. Water Tracker
One of the prime health hazards people suffer from these days is dehydration. Especially people who work out at a gym; they need to stay hydrated, or they face a lot of health problems. But they are not the only ones who can benefit from this feature though. An average human body needs a certain amount of water every day. So those who don’t go through rigorous physical training sessions on a regular basis can keep track of their water intakes through this feature as well.
10. Consultation
Some people like to go solo; they have been working out long enough to do it on their own. But some people need help and guidance, and for them, you need a consultation platform and chat support. You can allow people to talk to professional trainers and get tips about some exercise, forms, and diet.
A chat system between users might also be a good idea; this way they will be able to coordinate their exercises if they are following the same exercise regiment.
Also Read- How is IoT Revolutionizing the Healthcare Industry?
Conclusion
Fitness trend is only getting fierce and more widely accepted these days. With the amount of money people are investing in personal-care, it is a booming market for anyone who offers such a product. Fitness tracking apps are going to see a steep rise in profits in the coming years, and it might be a good time to invest in having one built for yourself.
