How Social Media is Changing Fitness

For every 10 tweets, you can lose .05 percent of your body fat. We're not kidding.

social media

Social media is making getting fit easier, and having that support can help IRL “in real life” when those everyday distractions get in your way. A recent study conducted by the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health determined that people who turned to Twitter for their social support system lost more weight than those who went at it alone. These individuals lost an average of .05 percent of total body weight for every 10 tweets.

With the use of a hashtag, fitness movements can become global. A popular, local fitness movement on Twitter is called #PlankaDay. The brainchild of Dr. Sherry Pagoto, associate professor of medicine at UMass Medical School, and Mike Bauman (a.k.a. the @PlankPolice), this hashtag is all about working the core. Boston.com’s Get Moving blogger, Elizabeth Comeau, refers to Pagoto and Bauman as her fitness gurus. The challenge is simple, at least once a day stop, drop, plank, and tweet. Go three days without planking and the @PlankPolice will be there to hold you accountable.

Another popular fitness movement on Twitter is the @FitFluential community, a nationwide network of fitness enthusiasts founded by Chicago based @KellyOlexa. On any given day, you will find hundreds of her ambassadors tweeting with the #FitFluential hashtag to help you with your health and fitness goals. In addition to their other hashtags like #Eat and #Move , you can join any one of their weekly Twitter chats for ideas and support.

Then there is #UpnOut, a useful hashtag pioneered by Self magazine. #UpnOut encourages people to wake up and work out, and of course, tweet about it.

Some other helpful hashtags to check out next time you’re on Twitter include: #Runchat, #YogaADay, #FitBlog, and #Mamavation.

Instagram and Pinterest are also great for getting in shape. You can easily find healthy snack ideas, tips on how to eat clean, workouts, links to videos, inspirational quotes, and so much more. @InstagramFitness shares fitness photos from around the world and many are accompanied by special tips aimed to slim you down and tone you up.

Online gambling is a huge business, but why not make it a healthy wager? That’s where DietBet steps in. They have four week “games”, similar to poker, where you put money into a pot and then compete to lose four percent of your starting body weight. Players that hit their goal at the end of four weeks split the pot. According to DietBet’s website, 90 percent of those who play win. Weight loss and money? Sign us up.

What is your go-to social media platform for fitness and weight loss support?