Apps That Lock Your Phone Until You Do Something
By Fred Smith, maker of Drill Sergeant / Updated / 7 min read
Yes, there are apps that keep Instagram, TikTok and other apps locked until you do something first. The task differs per app: push-ups (Pushscroll, PushUp Time, Drill Sergeant), steps (StepBloc), prayer (FivePrayer, FaithLocked), a short pause (one sec, ScreenZen) or a report of real work (Drill Sergeant). They block the apps through Screen Time on iPhone or Accessibility on Android, and unlock them once the task is done.
A plain time limit asks you to stop. These apps ask you to do something before you start, which turns out to work much better. Below are the kinds of tasks on offer, the apps behind each one, and how to pick the right one for you.
The tasks, and the apps that use them
| Task to unlock | Apps | Phones | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Push-ups or other exercise | Pushscroll[2], PushUp Time[3], Drill Sergeant | iPhone and Android | A real cost per scroll, plus a fitness habit |
| Steps | StepBloc[4] | iPhone | People who walk a lot anyway |
| Prayer | FivePrayer[5], FaithLocked[6] | FivePrayer on both; FaithLocked on iPhone | Keeping prayer times without the phone pulling you away |
| A pause or a breath | one sec[7], ScreenZen[8] | iPhone and Android | A gentle speed bump; ScreenZen is free |
| A report of real work | Drill Sergeant | Android; iPhone launching | Making the unlock depend on progress toward your own goals |
How these apps lock things
On iPhone, every one of them uses Apple's Screen Time. You pick the apps from Apple's list, and the app can shield them until the task is done. iPhone apps can't lock the whole phone, only the apps you choose.
On Android, most use the Accessibility permission to notice when a blocked app opens and put their own screen in front of it. Some go further: Lock Me Out can block chosen apps, allow only chosen apps, or leave nothing but the lock screen[9].
Which task works best?
Any pause helps more than you'd think. In a six-week study of 280 people, a short pause before social apps cut how often they opened them by 57%. The biggest effect came from having a clear option to back out[1].
A task that's useful in itself is better still. A breath costs you three seconds; ten push-ups cost you half a minute and leave you a little stronger. A prayer keeps a commitment you already made.
A task you can't fake keeps it honest. Push-ups counted by the camera and steps counted by the phone are hard to cheat. Self-reported tasks need a check: in Drill Sergeant, work reports are capped at an hour of scrolling a day, and big claims are always checked with push-ups.
The task is the point. The scroll is just the reward you will probably skip.
How Drill Sergeant does it
Open a blocked app and Captain Jack is waiting with three choices: do 10 push-ups for 10 minutes, report the work you've done (10 minutes for every hour, up to an hour a day), or get back to work. When the time is up, the apps lock again. He also turns your goals into up to three objectives a day, so the work you report is work that matters to you.
More detail: how push-up app blockers work, whether any blocker is impossible to turn off, and what the research says stops doomscrolling.
Questions people ask
Is there an app that locks your phone until you do push-ups?
Yes. Pushscroll, PushUp Time and Drill Sergeant all block apps like Instagram and TikTok until you do push-ups in front of the camera. Drill Sergeant asks for 10 push-ups for 10 minutes, or lets you report real work instead.
Can an app lock my whole phone until I do a task?
On iPhone, no: apps can only block the apps you choose, through Apple's Screen Time. On Android, some blockers can lock everything except the apps you allow; Lock Me Out, for example, can block all but chosen apps or leave only the lock screen.
Is there an app that locks your phone until you pray?
Yes. FivePrayer (iPhone and Android) locks the phone at prayer times until you confirm you have prayed, and FaithLocked (iPhone) blocks apps until you pray. Several smaller iPhone apps do the same through Screen Time.
Which unlock task works best?
One that is useful in itself and hard to fake. A pause works surprisingly well: in a 280-person study, a short pause before social apps cut openings by 57% over six weeks. Push-ups add real effort and a health benefit. A report of real work turns the unlock into progress on your goals.
Sources
- Grüning, Riedel & Lorenz-Spreen (2023). Directing smartphone use through the self-nudge app one sec. PNAS 120(8).
- Pushscroll: Exercise To Scroll, US App Store listing.
- PushUp Time: App Blocker, US App Store listing.
- StepBloc: Screen Time Blocker, US App Store listing.
- FivePrayer, developer site.
- FaithLocked: Pray to Unlock, App Store listing.
- one sec, US App Store listing.
- ScreenZen, US App Store listing.
- Lock Me Out - App/Site Blocker, Google Play listing.