Researchers found that tracking apps like MyFitnessPal sometimes play a factor in promoting unrealistic goals and feelings of shame, leading to users struggling to meet their health goals or abandoning them altogether
Fitness-tracking platforms have made it easier for anyone to download an app, set a goal and simply follow algorithm-based recommendations on their health journey.
For some, that experience is gratifying, as users can quantify their progress, have measurable targets to hit and find greater motivation toward their fitness goals. But recent research suggests these apps could have the opposite effect for some users.
In a study published in the British Journal of Health Psychology, researchers from University College London and Loughborough University analyzed nearly 60,000 social media posts on X with references to five popular fitness apps: MyFitnessPal, Strava, WW (formerly WeightWatchers), Workouts by Muscle Booster and Fitness Coach & Diet.
The researchers distilled five main themes from the posts:
Emphasis on quantifying diet and physical activity
Complexity of tracking calories through oversimplified algorithms for diet and physical activity
Loss of data disrupting the continuity of the self‐monitoring experience
Emotional and psychological impacts of logging daily activity
The role of apps in improving the health of individuals and society
Many of the themes and posts related to MyFitnessPal, used to track calorie intake, monitor macronutrients (protein, carbs and fat) and set personalized goals based on hitting a target weight.
The app’s algorithm provides guidance on how many calories to eat per day based on that goal and your calories burned, with the ability to import recipes or scan barcodes from food packages. Around 13,000 of the posts contained negative keywords the researchers were tracking, with more than half mentioning the popular calorie-counting app.
Why Fitness Apps Might Be Problematic
Researchers found that users struggling with these apps often diverted their energy away from the goals themselves and the progress being made as they became preoccupied — and sometimes frustrated — with tracking, data and listening to the algorithms.
For instance, some users felt that the apps did not take into account the complexities of daily life or other non-exercise calorie expenditure, like breastfeeding.
Others expressed doubts about the accuracy and unclear guidance and recommendations that could lead to a recommended calorie deficit that was potentially unachievable and unhealthy. They found some users who cited experiences of “starving too often” while trying to maintain the recommended calorie deficits.
Researchers noted one person who posted on X, “My Fitness Pal should be used for tracking calories ONLY. If you allow it to prescribe your calories you’ll end up with a deficit that’s unachievable, unsustainable and very unhealthy.”
They also highlighted the emotional and psychological implications that come with using these apps, leading users with bad experiences down two main paths: feeling guilt, irritation and shame, and/or a loss of motivation from lost streaks and difficulties achieving targets.
Some users appeared to give up on using the apps — and their goals — when they felt they couldn’t hit the targets. Others, however, did find the app to be even more motivating to hit those missed goals.
One previous study found that self‐monitoring could demotivate individuals, potentially leading to negative feelings and unhealthy behaviors like excessive restriction.
Additionally, rather than focusing on progress over time, the study reflected that users became preoccupied with missing app targets and losing streaks, which led to greater discouragement over time. While some might engage more in reducing caloric intake or increasing physical activity, it reinforces findings from another study demonstrating that while tracking increased how much of an activity people do, it also decreased their enjoyment of that activity.
“The implications of these findings, then, (are) that fitness apps may have the counterproductive effect of ultimately reducing users’ motivation and the likelihood of desired health behavior change, rather than supporting it,” they added.
