Losing weight and exercising, or some variation of those words, are pretty common New Year’s resolutions. This year, Mommyland wants to help you get started and keep going.

This year I’m going to challenge you…and myself to complete a few fitness challenges.

For January we’re going to try out the 30 Day Squat Challenge to get our booties in shape.

Squats are an easy to do and can be done just about anywhere. Ginger Zee of Good Morning America is known for doing squats while she brushes her teeth.

I’ve created the easy to follow calendar below to help you through the challenge. Just click on it for a printable version you can hang on your fridge (or anywhere else you may hang things). By the end of the month you’ll be cranking out 250 squats!

I will also post the challenge on the My Life In Mommyland Facebook page every morning at 6am eastern so you’ll know where we are in the challenge.

Proper form is essential to make sure that you see the benefits of the exercise, and more importantly to make sure you don’t injure yourself. Below is a diagram on what you need to do. If you’re not familiar with squats, please visit Professor YouTube and watch a few videos.

You don’t have to bite it all off at once either. To start maybe try ten squats each commercial break of your favorite show or something similar. As long as you end each day completing the given number of squats you can call it a win.

We’ll start today! Before the end of the day do 50 squats. Come on, you can do it! Don’t forget, check the Mommyland Facebook page to follow along with the challenge.

I use my iPhone for more than just texting and checking social media, my phone is also a powerful tool to help me achieve my health goals. While I have a folder full of health and fitness apps on my phone, I have a few that are my favorites that I use the most.

Here are my top three favorite health and fitness apps. PLUS a bonus.

Fitbit

I’ve been a loyal Fitbit user since 2011 and I’ve been singing it’s praises since the very beginning. When I put on my first Fitbit there wasn’t even an app for that, you had to visit your computer to check out your data or enter a meal.

The app has a gorgeous interface that puts all the important stuff right where you need it. You even have the ability to move things around so you can see what’s more important to you.

Not only do I wear my Fitbit to track my steps, I also track my water intake, food consumption and weight. With the app I can easily add food or water with just a few taps.

The food database is pretty expansive and I rarely need to enter things myself. When I do, I need to go to my computer but 9 out of 10 times I don’t need to create a new food. In one of the more recent updates to the app they added the ability to scan a barcode to enter your food. The barcodes aren’t always in the database but I have a feeling you’ll be able to start adding things very soon.

Also new to the app is the ability to track your exercise. This is for when you run, walk or hike and uses your phone’s GPS signal to track your workout. I’ve been using this feature on my rehab walks and I really like how it works. You have the ability to play your music right through the app so you don’t need to open your music library or Pandora before you start your workout.

My Aria scale also syncs to the Fitbit app so I have a complete picture each time I open it.

Nike+

This is an essential for every runner.

There is more than meets the eye with this app, not only is it a great tool for tracking your runs, but there is also a Coach section where you can train for different distances. Within each distance, 5K, 10K, Half Marathon or Full Marathon, there are three ability settings from beginner to advanced.

If competition gets you going the Nike+ app has a leaderboard to rank you amongst your running friends. I may or may not go the extra mile if I see I’m close to beating one of my friends. Hey, a little healthy competition never hurt anyone.

Don’t wear Nike running shoes? No problem, the app works off the GPS in your phone so no need to have the chip in your shoe.

WebMD

This app has a lot to offer, from recipes to a health improvement program, there’s a lot packed into this free app.

Healthy Target is the health improvement program and it offers a few simple things you can do each day to be more healthy.

Above you can see my week one daily goals. All I need to do is check each thing off that I accomplish each day. Everyday the app sends me a push notification to encourage me to either keep up the good work or get my act together.

Further down the page it shows my data which is pulled from my Fitbit data for sleep, steps, and weight. After all my data are articles that I might find interesting on my health journey.

The other thing I use the WebMD app for is the Health Tools where I can look into a drug my doctor has prescribed, research a condition or procedure, check out any symptoms I may be feeling or get important first aid information.

Like I said, there’s a lot packed into this free app.

Apple Health

I’m really excited to see what is to come with the new Apple Health. I like the idea of pulling data from multiple sources and having it available in one convenient location.

Right now the best part of the new Apple Health is the Medical ID. I know someone who collapsed and had a heart attack while refereeing a soccer game. They grabbed his iPhone to call his wife but it was password protected, they couldn’t get in and his family was delayed in being notified of his medical emergency.

The new Medical ID is accessible from the lock screen in case of an emergency.

Rumor on the street is that Fitbit will not be integrating and I really think that’s a missed opportunity on their part. If you wear other fitness trackers you may be in luck since many of the others have integrated.

To see what apps are currently Apple Health compatable you can find a listing under the featured tab in your App Store, they were kind enough to put them all in one place.

What are your favorite health and fitness app?