I think I need to establish some givens in order to make this post as relevant to ADHD as I know it to be.
1st given: Exercise positively effect ATTENTION as well as mood and lessens anxiety. It helps manage hyperactivity and internal restlessness.
2nd given: Most ADHDers have a hard time setting up any routine, especially one that, by definition, requires consistency and intensity.
3rd given: I get demonstrable benefits from working out everyday. And, I’d say about 80% of my clients struggle to get the exercise I would argue that they need.
4th (not quite) given: There is plenty of emerging research that there is such a thing as an ADHD friendly diet. Lots of veggies, higher in lean protein, lower carbs, very low sugar, plenty of good fats, etc. Pretty much what’s good for humans, but it’s extra good for us.
So, that’s why I’m reviewing fitness apps. I’ve always said that keeping track of success is a great way to establish routine and make lasting life change. I alway suggest my clients use a blank calendar to keep track of days exercised. I do is as a seperate calendar in my digital calendar world. But I mark all my work outs and it feels sooooo good at the end of the month to see all those gold bars representing my work out “events.” But I also like to keep track of what I do. Specifically when running, I want to know how far and how fast. Which leads me to:
App no. 1: Map My Run (Might be Map My Fitness now…) Apps Website I’m sure many of you have already heard of it. I’m also sure that there are many equally good competing apps. This is just the one I use. It is overall great. You can also log all your other workouts if this is the place you want to keep track of what you do.
App. no. 2: My Fitness Pal. App’s Website My wife got hipped to this app when doing a month long health/weight challenge about a year and a half ago. It is great. You put in your weight and your goals and it calculates what you need to do in terms of calories to make that goal. I get the impression that the paid version is even cooler with many more features. But even the basic is great. You can create your own recipes and everything saves for you so you don’t have to reenter ever time. It scans bar codes and has a tremendous number of items in its database. Relatively intuitive and seems to be very accurate.
And, it’s great for us as ADHDers because it challenges us to be present in the moment and make good choices, it teaches us the reality of what we are eating, and it give us a record so we can’t forget. I have a nutrition background as a former chef. But, I can easily get complacent and say that a certain food isn’t that bad. But when it’s there in black and white that that piece of pizza is 300 calories, that will make me think twice about have 3 more.
And they are both Under Armour owned so you can link them and make them work together. Hooray technology!
Last suggestion with the eating app. Challenge yourself to do if for a week. See how it goes. If you’re moderately successful. Challenge yourself to finish out the month. See how you feel. How’s your ADHD? How’s your anxiety?
Standard Disclaimer: In an effort to foil my own perfectionist tendencies, I do not edit my posts much… if at all. Please and typos, mistakes, grammatical errors, or awkward phrasing. I focus on getting my content down. An imperfect post completed is better than a perfect post that goes unposted.
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