A new study led by researchers at University College London (UCL) and Loughborough University has found that some users of popular fitness and calorie-tracking apps may feel shame, frustration, and disappointment while using them.
These emotional reactions can lower motivation and harm overall health and well-being, which is the opposite of what these apps are designed to do. The findings were published in the British Journal of Health Psychology.
The researchers studied nearly 59,000 posts on Twitter related to five popular fitness apps. Using artificial intelligence (AI), they filtered out almost 14,000 posts that had negative emotions or complaints. The AI then grouped these into themes to help researchers understand why users were having bad experiences.
Many people expressed feeling ashamed when logging foods they saw as unhealthy or when they failed to meet daily goals.
Others were annoyed by constant notifications reminding them to log meals or stay under certain limits. Some felt disappointed by slow progress toward app-generated goals. These feelings sometimes led users to give up altogether.
Lead author Dr. Paulina Bondaronek from UCL’s Institute of Health Informatics explained that very few studies have looked at how these apps might negatively affect people. She said that social media gives researchers a valuable way to understand these effects and that AI tools make it easier to analyze large amounts of data quickly.
Dr. Bondaronek added that people often blame or shame themselves when using these apps, which may do more harm than good.
Instead of focusing only on numbers like weight or calories, she suggested that fitness apps should focus on overall well-being and personal enjoyment of healthy activities. She also said that most apps rely on people acting alone, missing the benefits of social support.
The study also found that the tools used in fitness apps, such as self-monitoring and goal-setting, are helpful in behavior change—but they can be overused. When users constantly measure and track every part of their health, it can turn into a source of stress instead of support.
One issue that came up often was the complexity of tracking calories. Users said the apps weren’t personalized enough. For example, one person mentioned they couldn’t log breastfeeding as an activity, even though it uses up a lot of energy.
Another user reported being told by the app to eat a negative number of calories, which is both unhealthy and dangerous. These examples show how the app’s goals may be unrealistic and not based on official public health advice.
Other users were upset by technical problems like losing data or losing progress toward daily goals. Some said the stress of trying to stay within calorie limits made them avoid entering their meals or give up on the app entirely. One person even joked about returning to unhealthy eating habits after failing to meet the app’s targets.
Some posts showed that users felt pressured to exercise after going over their calorie limits. One person said they felt “miserably stuffed” and planned to go to the gym—not because they wanted to, but because the app made them feel guilty. Another user ran their fastest half marathon but was upset that the app didn’t record it.
Co-author Dr. Lucy Porter emphasized that while behavior change tools are useful, it’s important to make sure they don’t have side effects. If people feel worse about themselves, they are less likely to stick with healthy habits. The key is to understand how common these feelings are and what can be done to improve the app experience.
Trisevgeni Papakonstantinou, another researcher from UCL, added that AI allows researchers to study large amounts of real-world data from social media. This method gives important insights into how technology affects people in everyday life.
In conclusion, while fitness and calorie-tracking apps can help people stay healthy, they may also create stress and shame for some users. The researchers suggest that app developers should focus more on mental well-being and flexible goals, and include more support and personalization to help people stay motivated in a healthy way.
If you care about mental health, please read studies about cannabis use disorder linked to increased risk of mental diseases and some mental health drugs can cause rapid weight gain.
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The study is published in the British Journal of Health Psychology.
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