By 
My physical, financial, and mental health are important to me. After some reflection, I knew I could be doing a better job at self-care. I wanted to relieve the stress I felt about not understanding these components of my life. I also wanted the relief to be easy to manage. There is an app for nearly everything, and with my phone always at my side, using these healthy living apps makes total sense.
Here are three healthy living apps I use myself, and highly recommend!
Flo
Flo was designed as a period and ovulation tracker, yet it’s so much more than that! The app lets you track everything daily water consumption, alcohol intake, mood, and how your body is feeling physically each day. Did I mention it’s also free?
I love this app because it helped me to take ownership of my physical health. I never tracked my cycle before. I’d try to keep a mental note and always forget. When I started to understand my cycle, I became more in tune with my moods and had compassion for myself if I was having a rough day.
I work in an elementary school and never drink enough water! The app has encouraged me to set daily water intake goals. It helps hold me accountable and think about if I’ve had enough water. I went from drinking about 32 ounces of water, to 64 ounces of water each day after I started using the app.
Money Manager Expense & Budget
I have tried about a dozen different ways to track my expenses, everything from keeping a notebook in my car to creating a custom budget spreadsheet. Nothing stuck. And while there are about a hundred finance tracking apps out there, I needed to find something I would actually use. Money Manager clicked with me.
I love this app because it’s a visual representation of my financial health. It shows how much I spend on everything from groceries, gas, and student loans each month. I can compare it to my monthly income. I used to worry about spending too much on gas or going out to dinner.
After I started using the app, I was relieved to learn I spend about the same amount on gas each month. However, I did cut how much I was spending on take-out, and started cooking dinner at home more!
When I did need to ask my parents for money one month, I was able to present them with a chart that showed my expenses versus my income and it helped aid our conversation.
Insight Timer
When I finally wanted to take charge of my mental health, I turned to Insight Timer and haven’t looked back. My friends will tell you, I drag my feet about going to yoga and can hardly sit still to save my life. I mentioned I work at an elementary school, right? But when my anxiety got really bad last year, I needed something.
The app is intended to support meditation practices. I was hesitant to try meditation. I still refer to it as a, “intentional sitting calmly” practice. This works for me. In front of a big window, I will sit with eyes open, and observe my forest filled backyard, trying my best to stay focused on the present moment. The app has a timer with over a dozen soothing sounds to choose from. You get to decide how long you to set the timer for. There are free guided meditations as well.
The app gives me the chance to take 10 intentional minutes out of my day to do a mental check in with my myself in a calm and quiet manner. I’m able to listen to my gut and reflect on things like, “How am I feeling?”, or “How was my day?”, and “What does my body need right now?” I make choices based on this reflection time that I am proud of. My body appreciates the chance to sit and breathe.
What apps do you use to encourage physical, financial, mental health? I would love to know!
Joelle Dent
Joelle Dent is a Frederick native who moved back to the area after a few years of travel and self-exploration. Cooking and eating meals with friends is important to her. She appreciates baking, hiking, coffee, supporting farmers markets, trying new restaurants, and exploring locally-run bookstores.
What do you think?