9 Apps to Make You Smarter, Stronger and More Productive
With more than 140 billion apps having been downloaded from the Apple Store and 65 billion from the Google Play Store, it’s becoming evident that the marketplace is getting crowded. Trying to find the right apps to download can be challenging — the options are endless. Here’s a look at nine apps that we love, that are sure to help you better yourself this year.
1. Blinkist
Blinkist gives you short, 10–15 minute long summaries on any of their 1500+ non-fiction books. It allows you to introduce yourself to a subject before picking up the book for yourself. They also offer audio summaries, so you can listen to their summaries while you’re on the go. It’s a great app for refreshing yourself on past reads.
2. Stacked
Tracking your workouts hasn’t always been easy on your mobile device. Many have resorted to using a Google Spreadsheet or Evernote note to track their progress, which is clunky and uninspiring.
Stacked is a new app from the creator of Bigger, Leaner, Stronger, Mike Matthews. It allows you to easily track your workouts, and recommend pre-set schedules to keep you on track. It’s the best app for workout tracking on the market.
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3. Slack
Slack is the ultimate app for anyone working remotely or with a team. It’s a business chat application that you can use on both desktop or mobile, and it allows you to stay in touch with your team via chat, voice or video call. You can also use the app to notify you throughout the day, to monitor email subsrcribers, and even let you know when you get mentioned on Twitter. It’s a productivity powerhouse.
For more tips on working remotely, check out this video.
4. Tinycards
Tinycards are a fantastic way to improve your retention. Think of them as the flashcard app. Whether you want to learn the state capitals or the planets in the solar system, there’s likely a course for you. It makes learning fun. They were created by the same folks who developed Duolingo, which is also worth checking out if you’re trying to learn a new language.
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5. Zero
The benefits of intermittent fasting are powerful. It can help you lose both weight and body fat, but it hasn’t always been easy to track. Now thanks to the founder of Digg, Kevin Rose, you can track your fasting in a simple, easy to use app. Zero will let you know when your fast is over, and offer you insight into your eating patterns.
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6. Sleep Cycle
Sleep Cycle is a simple concept, with flawless execution. All you have to do is set your alarm, and Sleep Cycle will wake you up with a gentle alarm that silences when you touch your phone. It progressively gets louder for 30 minutes prior to your wake up, allowing you to start your day on a softer tone. It also provides tons of interesting data for you to analyze — you’ll be surprised at how much worse your sleep quality is on nights after you’ve had a few drinks.
7. Otto Radio
Now that you’re out of bed with Sleep Cycle, Otto Radio should be the next app you open. The app learns your listening preferences and blends the daily news with podcast recommendations to listen to in the car, or as you get ready for work. It’s a great way to start your day.
8. Momentum
We all have tasks that we’d like to accomplish. Some of them are one-offs, but others repeat daily. Momentum offers easy tracking for accomplishing these continuing tasks. It also lets you keep track of your streaks, motivating you to keep going and maintain your good habits.
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9. Calm
We could all use a little more mindfulness in our lives. The Calm app allows you to follow along with their guided meditations, or start an open-ended meditation (for those who don’t care to be interrupted). The app has different meditations for whatever mood you’re in, and it teaches you about mindfulness along the way.
Originally published at 52weekblog.com on February 28, 2017.
