If you’re having trouble losing weight and sticking with an exercise routine, your cell phone may be your new best friend.

To automatically track your workouts, Intel along with some University of Washington researchers have created UbiFit, a cell phone application that’s supposed to help you change your behavior.

UbiFit shows motivational pictures on your cell phone’s screen that change the more you work out.

Over a 3-month study period, UbiFit users stayed with their exercise routines over the winter holidays when non-users gave up on exercising.

It’s a way to use mobile devices to lose weight and achieve your long-term fitness goals.

Currently, UbiFit uses an external sensor that clips to your waist. It can sense your movements with an accelerometer. (Although if you have a mobile phone like the iPhone or the Android G1 that has a built-in accelerometer, you won’t need the external sensor.)

The waist sensor can determine if you’re jogging, walking, or sitting. It then transmits signals to your cell phone. You can also enter information manually if the sensor doesn’t work correctly or if you forget to wear it.

At first, UbiFit shows an empty lawn. Then as you exercise during the week, flowers grow in different colors depending on the type of workout you choose.

When you meet your weekly goal, a butterfly appears.

UbiFit may be released publicly within the next year or so. And it could transform computing from a deskbound activity to a new way to exercise, lose weight, and meet your fitness goals.