New Year's is lurking right around the corner and you know what that means…fitness resolutions. Expect extra crowding at your local gym and longer waits for equipment as memberships soar to accommodate those "new year, new me" vows. But, what happens come early spring when that commitment begins to wane? Welp, there's an app for that!
Software developer Justin Anyanwu, came up with an app called Lazy Jar to help motivate those who lack consistency when it comes to maintaining those fitness goals.
"We noticed that the problem with fitness wasn't the routine," Anyanwu told Blavity, "but a lack of discipline and consistency." While there are plenty of fitness trackers that help users to measure their progress, they do nothing to hold them accountable for when they fall below their goals. Lazy Jar takes a different approach by actually penalizing users when they fall beneath their goals."
The app uses negative reinforcement to help the user foster the discipline to achieve their desired results. So, let's say a Fitbit owner sets a goal of 70,000 steps, 35 miles, and 25,000 calories per week. For every week that the user fails to meet their set fitness goals, they are penalized a monetary amount they set for themselves and 80 percent of this penalty is donated to charity.
Lazy Jar just might be exactly what we need to maintain these New Year's fitness goals!