JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

In today’s society commercial physical activity apps (e.g., Fitbit, Strava) are ubiquitous, and hold considerable potential to increase physical activity behaviour. Many commercial physical activity apps incorporate social components, in particular app-specific communities (allowing users to interact with other app users) or the capacity to connect to existing social media platforms (e.g., Facebook, Instagram). There is a growing need to gain a greater insight into whether commercial physical activity apps and specific components of these apps (social components) are beneficial in facilitating physical activity.

Objective:

The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between the use of commercial physical activity apps and engagement in physical activity. The social components of commercial physical activity apps (app-specific communities and existing social media platforms) were also explored. This involved isolating the specific features (e.g., sharing, providing/ receiving encouragement, comparisons and competitions) of app-specific communities and existing social media platforms that were most valuable in facilitating physical activity.

Methods:

A cross-sectional online survey was conducted. Participants were 1432 adults (Mage = 34.1 years) who completed measures assessing physical activity, the use of commercial physical activity apps and engagement with app-specific communities and existing social media platforms.

Results:

Overall, 53.1% of the sample reported engaging with a commercial physical activity app. The most commonly used apps were Fitbit (22.5%), Strava (17.1%) and Garmin (13.4%). The use of physical activity apps was significantly associated with physical activity. Notably, the use of app-specific communities and existing social media platforms facilitated significantly greater engagement in physical activity. The strongest predictors of physical activity pertained to the use of app-specific communities, in particular receiving encouragement from family, and engagement in competitions with public app-specific communities.

Conclusions:

The findings indicate that app-specific communities and existing social media platforms are components of apps that are fundamental in facilitating physical activity. They further suggest that commercial physical activity apps afford high population level reach, and hold great potential to promote engagement in physical activity, an important public health consideration.