I’m going to start this week off with an app that I’ve been using for years.
Pact
This app motivates its users to work out and eat healthy the only way that really works — by taking their money if they skip on those healthy habits. Let me explain: Users make a weekly pact on whether or not they’ll exercise or eat healthy. They also wager money on the success of their pact. At the end of the week, those who completed their pacts successfully earn money from those who did not.
The Pact app also connects to other fitness apps to keep track of your exercises, your meal logging and more. For example, I participate in a gym pact and a food logging pact each week. The meals are logged using MyFitnessPal. The gym pact is really more of an exercise pact, so it can be logged a few ways. Pact itself can be used to monitor whether or not I’m physically at a gym, RunKeeper can be used for days when I run or walk and FitBit can be used as well (10,000 steps in a day equals one workout).
Pact is available on iOS and Android for free.
Overcast
I used the Apple’s podcast app on iOS for years, until I got a bit more serious about my podcasting habit. Now I use Overcast. The app is incredibly easy to use and — if you’re someone who listens to a lot of podcasts — it helps you use less data and save battery life. Overcast also offers a web-based login, where users can sign in and keep listening where they last hit pause.
Overcast offers some extra features that are listener-focused like Smart Speed. This feature shortens longer pauses or random silent chunks in a way that still sounds natural. Smart Speed can also (surprisingly) help you get through episodes more quickly. Speaking of getting through podcasts fast, Overcast also lets you listen to podcasts sped up and the speed change doesn’t sound awful. Another great feature of the app is Voice Boost. This helps normalize the audio you’re listening to so every episode is crystal clear.
Overcast is available on iOS for free.
