A is for beautiful: app happy

My post the other day about my new phone got me to thinking about the apps I've been using a lot lately and I thought I'd share a little about them. I don't have time to write about them all today so I'll just start with these.

RunKeeper:

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I've used this app for over a year now and it's got to be my most-used app. It tracks my mileage on runs and walks since I don't have a Garmin. I used to have a Garmin on my wishlist but now there's no way I'd spend the money on one. I feel like my phone and the RunKeeper app are just as accurate if not more so than a Garmin. I will say, however, that your phone does make a difference in the accuracy of the results but as I said before I run with a friend regularly who uses a Garmin and our results at the end of the run are virtually identical.

RunKeeper tells me my mileage, my pace, my splits, and my route mapped out. I can change it from average pace overall to pace/most recent mile. It tracks all of my activity and I can view it on their website as well as link it to Earndit.com which rewards you for activity points. I don't have to wait for it to pick up a signal 95% of the time and I love the audible cues every five minutes. Of course, you can turn those off if they bother you. I also love that I can manually log activity done without the app like when I run on the treadmill for instance.

The android version is free. I haven't checked out the "elite" version yet but I don't see the need for it as I'm very pleased with the free version.

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Push-Ups

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I use Push-ups every other day. The first time you use it the app asks you to do as many pus-ups as you can before reaching exhaustion. From this number it determines your fitness level and then asks how many continuous push-ups you'd like to be able to do. You specify girl-style or boy-style push-ups and then every time you run the app it asks you to do five sets of push-ups. Each set is a different number or reps. I have no upper body strength so I made it my goal to be able to do 50 continuous girl push-ups and figured I'd work my way up from there. I believe the app started with me doing something like five sets (7, 7, 8, 8, 7) and you click "done" after each sets and it gives you a rest break (usually something like a minute). At the end of each session it asks you to evaluate whether or not the session was easy, hard, or just right and that determines your starting place for the next workout.

I love it. I can already tell I've made huge progress and I'm pretty close to being able to move on to the next goal. I highly recommend this app and it's free for Android.

Tabata Pro:

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This is a H.I.I.T. app that I use at least once a week. It's basically a timer that buzzes for 8 sets of exercises (usually 4 exercises that you then repeat). It counts down to start and then times 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest. I typically use this app incorrectly and mostly use it to time 60, 90, or 120 second planks but I also use it for lunges, burpees, jump-squats, mountain climbers, etc.

This is a pretty good timer and you can adjust it to fit your needs. I've used it a lot since I downloaded it and I'd recommend it if you're into H.I.I.T. As usual, it's free for Android.

LoseIt:

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I've been using this app for a couple of months now and it's been the best nutrition tracking app I've ever used (and unfortunately, I've use plenty). You enter your foods each day and it tracks your calorie consumption. You can also log entries on their website if your phone isn't handy.

I like that it saves frequently entered items and I like that you can copy previous meals over and over again either in part or in whole (like my coffee for breakfast, but today I had scrambled eggs instead of yogurt/berries/granola). I like that it charts my weight loss progress in a graph format. I especially like that it tells me what date I'll reach my weight goal (adjusting daily) and also that I can change the rate at which I'd like to lose (for example, losing 1 pound a week or losing 1.5 pounds a week changes the date I should reach goal). Another great plus for me is that it keeps a weekly over/under tally for you so that you can see the big picture for the week instead of just daily. This is helpful for those Saturday long runs when I want to eat a horse afterward.

This app also has a whole section for nutrient tracking, but I don't use that area since I don't think it's free. I am pretty confident anyway that I eat a well-rounded diet and try to follow the food pyramid every day so I don't feel like it's necessary for me this go-round (although I'll readily admit that in the past I would have really needed that part). I also don't use the friend section, but it's good to know that there's online support and accountability available.

Do I need to even say it again? It's free for Android.

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Workout Trainer:

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This is the newest fitness app I've added. First, you're prompted to put in your gender, birth date, and preferred workout intensity. Then you're asked to check a few check boxes regarding your goals (i.e. weight loss, core strength, tone muscle, increase flexibility, etc) and then you specify a workout duration. After that your given a list of suggested workouts. It gives you a pretty good picture and description of what you're supposed to do for each move which is helpful in that you don't have to look up all those moves on YouTube (like I always have to for some of those Pinterest workouts).

The part I don't like about this app is that while the app itself is free, some of the workouts are not. Some are more detailed plans with a 12 week schedule built in and all that and they appear to usually cost around $9.99. Some are just a single workout with ten or twelve exercises in them and you can preview the moves before you start. I've done a couple of the free ones and I liked the variety. I especially like that you can view the intensity level before you begin and then get a really good workout. I was burnin' after the last 20 minute one I did.

Free for Android.