Publications
It’s not easy staying fit in an age when most people are too busy to go to a gym. Let’s face it, when can you truly fit in gym time when you already have a full-time job, a family and a horde of emotionally needy friends? At the end of the day, you still need to figure out what to cook for dinner. But thanks to the genius of smartphones, you can simply download an app that will hopefully encourage you not only to exercise but will also aid you in your quest for over-all fitness and health.
This free app claims to be the best iPhone app on the market for fitness freaks and novices alike. It boasts over 450 exercises with photos to help you in case you’re not sure you’re doing it right. It helps you select muscle-specific exercises and the right cardio workout depending on your fitness level. The one downside is that many of the workout programmes require fitness equipment, which may not be readily available to you outside of a gym.
iTreadmill
The iPhone app, iTreadmill, is certainly one of the best in tracking all your walking, jogging and running exercises. Note, however, that it will not work if you’re on an actual treadmill. The app has a sensor and a stride calibrator that can accurately assess your running speed, distance and the amount of steps taken. The app includes a built-in kilojoule counter.
Jefit
The Jefit bodybuilding website has two mobile applications, one for the iPhone and the other for Android smartphones. The free applications only contain 75% of all the content that’s available for pay. But there is a plethora of content available, from adjustable timers to fitness logs and a detailed exercise database. The fitness database has over 500 different exercises and downloadable exercise diagrams. It can also be connected to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
How many sit ups can you do? 10, 20 or maybe 50? The 200 sit-ups Blackberry app gives you a six-week training programme to help you improve your core strength. According to the apps description, after the six- week programme you’ll be able to do over 200 of these abs-strengthening exercises in no more than 30 minutes each week. It contains a sit-up counter and a log book with graphs to assess your improvements.
Of all the fitness apps you’ll ever find for an Android, you may have the most fun with this one. This is a cardio/running fitness app that requires you to use the phone’s GPS and camera. You need to use the phone’s GPS to track and find virtual “ghosts” and use the camera to take a snapshot. Here’s where the fitness part comes in: you have a limited amount of time not only to find the ghost, but also take its picture. This is a great app that combines fitness and gaming, which will probably get your couch potato kids off the couch and spending some time outside.
(Kyle Boshoff, Health24, November 2011)
(References: jefit.com, market.andriod.com, appworld.blackberry.com, itunes.apple.com)
