Part I: Top 5 Mobile Fitness Apps

With the boost in mobile phone usage and technology over the past decade, there is an endless supply of health and fitness information conveniently in your pocket. Mobile fitness apps make it easier to be aware of your daily activity, help you reach your health goals, and keep your daily workouts challenging and exciting. Here is a breakdown of the five best free health and fitness apps for smartphones.

5 Best Free Fitness Apps

1.       My Fitness Pal: This app is available for iPhone and Android with iOS 3.0 or later. It tracks calorie intake and expenditure with the largest food database of any app. It records the major nutrients you consume, remembers your favorite foods and recipes, and includes a recipe calculator and free barcode scanner. It has over 350 cardio and strength exercises to log, plus the ability to customize exercises for your personal workouts. The app also allows you to connect with friends and share your routines and achievements.

2.       Lose It!: This app is available for iPhone and Android with iOS 3.0 or later. It is also synched with loseit.com. This calorie and exercise tracker lets you create a plan, set goals, and log food and exercise through a searchable database. It remembers food, meals, and recipes previously logged for easy entry. Progress is tracked by day and week, including nutrient intake. Users can connect with friends through a friend list and follow each others’ activity. According to loseit.com, more than 85% of active users have lost weight, with an average loss of more than 12 pounds.

3.       iMapMyFITNESS: Available for iPhone with iOS 4.0 or later. This fitness app tracks all outdoor workouts and allows you to enter your indoor workouts. It records pace, distance, calories, elevation, nutrition, and maps your route. You can connect with friends, receive voice updates on progress, and post workouts to Facebook and Twitter. It is synched with its online database MapMyFitness.com, so your entries are also easily accessed from the Internet. Stemming from this app, iMapMyRUN and iMapMyRIDE are also available for specific tracking of your preferred outdoor workout (running or cycling).

 

4.       Nike Training Club: Available for iPhone with iOS 4.0 or later. This app includes 85 full-body workouts and short drills for building lean muscle, toning, and strengthening, plus gives access to celebrity workouts as user progresses. All exercises have step-by-step instructions and videos. You can set goals and fitness level for each workout to choose a routine that fits your personal criteria. It tracks the details of the workout and has the ability to share progress with friends. It also includes audio guidance and allows you to set your own playlist while exercising.

                                    

5.       RunKeeper: Available for iPhone and Android with iOS 4.0 or later. RunKeeper is the free version of the paid app Nike+ GPS and uses GPS technology to track fitness activity. It records your distance, time, pace, calories, and your path on the GPS map. The app is synched to the RunKeeper website (www.runkeeper.com), so you can view your workout history and see cumulative totals of vital stats. You can also share your progress on Facebook and Twitter through the website. The app includes audio that tells you if you’re behind your target pace, and it coaches you through interval training. You can also set an iPod playlist to start automatically when you begin your activity.

These five apps are FREE and easy ways to help you reach your health goals. Look for Part II on this topic, featuring the best paid fitness apps available, coming soon!

Composed by Emily Sis, University of Kansas Exercise Science Intern at LMH Therapy Services

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