It’s that time of year where we’re all grudgingly muttering about how we need to get fitter and lose those few pounds gained from the festive season. Fortunately, your iPhone and iPad can offer you a bunch of ways to feel extra motivated to get out there and get faster and stronger.
Here are 10 essential apps for working out to the best of your ability.
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1. Nike+ Training Club (Free) - Offering over 100 workouts to cater for various needs, Nike+ Training Club is a great starting point for those in need of some inspiration. A four-week program system lets you adapt it to your needs, whether you're aiming to get lean, strong or toned. Various statistics also keep you in the know.
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2. Strava Running and Cycling (Free) - Going outdoors is a great way to get active, and Strava makes it simple to track your mileage. Whether you're cycling, walking or running, Strava offers up distance, pace, speed, elevation and more, before making it easy to share and compete with your friends.
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3. GymBook (Free) - You can use your iPhone's notes app to track your reps and exercises, but where's the fun in that? GymBook makes it easy to define sets, weights and reps, before creating your own full workouts to consult at any time. It makes logging what you're doing so much speedier than doing it manually.
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4. Zombies, Run! (Free) - For those in need of some extra motivation while running, Zombies, Run! lives up to its name. Through an immersive storyline that gradually unfolds, you find yourself running from zombies and attempting to survive in a bleak near future. The app still offers all the key benefits too, tracking your distance, pace and more.
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5. FitnessBuilder (Free) - A form of virtual personal trainer, FitnessBuilder offers up over 400 workouts across 16 multi-week fitness plans. Subscribe and that number more than doubles. Catering for all manners of fitness levels and situations, it's sure to get you started on the path to strength.
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6. Runkeeper (Free) - One of the oldest but best running apps out there, RunKeeper will track your pace, distance, elevation and calorie burn, whether you're running, walking or cycling. With its integration with Apple Watch, Bluetooth heart rate monitors, and other fitness trackers, it'll always know what's going on during your workout.
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7. Strong (Free) - For those wanting an even simpler approach to inputting their workouts, Strong makes it easy to put together your own workout then slide through reps as you work through them. A warm up calculator will help you out when it comes to knowing how to start out, plus you can view your progress through its advanced statistics screen.
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8. Fitocracy (Free) - Love gaming and wish you could feel the level ups in life? Fitocracy works like that. The app has you enter all your workouts then it assigns them a points value, before giving you the chance to level up through the stages. You can earn badges, complete quests, and compete with your friends. It's a fun way to get motivated.
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9. 7 Minute Workout (Free) - Everyone has 7 minutes spare in their day, right? That's the thinking behind 7 Minute Workout, providing you with 12 high intensity bodyweight exercises that ensure you use those 7 minutes to their fullest. With video and text descriptions, you'll know exactly what's expected of you, with countdown timers keeping you occupied.
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10. Map My Fitness (Free) - The Swiss Army Knife of workout apps, Map My Fitness will record any GPS-based activity such as running or cycling, and it'll also allow you to log over 600 different types of workout. With connectivity support for over 400 devices, the app will always be able to keep an eye on what you're doing, providing you with accurate feedback.