Best apps for health and fitness

With the cold winter nights drawing in, it can be easy to replace exercise for a comfy night on the sofa watching TV.  If you’re struggling for motivation or just don’t understand how to improve your health, fear not, you don’t need to invest in a Personal Trainer to live a healthier lifestyle.  Here’s a list of our best apps for health and fitness, which can help you stay on track throughout the quest for a healthier you.

Nike Training Club- iPhone, Android (Free)

Leading sports brand Nike are instrumental behind the first of our best apps. Featuring athlete workouts from international female sport stars, there’s a wide range of workouts to cater for all abilities.  Each workout provides video demos of exercises to compare techniques. You can even sync the workout to your favourite music to power through those pushups!

**Sports Tracker–**iPhone, Android (Free)

For the exercise enthusiast who loves the fresh air of the great outdoors, the Sports Tracker from Sports Tracking Technologies allows fantastic data analysis which would satisfy the boffin in all of us.  This app uses GPS technology to provide greater opportunities to analyse your training route.  You can store training data of distance exercised, average training speed, altitude and visual maps of your journey, such variety of features easily lands Sport Tracker in our Best Apps list.  See a breath taking view? If taking a casual stroll, you can even take photos during your route and share with friends on social media sites such as Facebook.

Calorie Counter & Diet Tracker – iPhone, Android (Free)

Can’t decide which chocolate bar helps you stay guilt free? Wondering how much you can treat yourself at the staff Christmas party?  From a nutritional perspective we find this perfect for our best apps shortlist.  Designed by Myfitnesspal.com this app contains an archive of over 1 million foods and snacks. By recording your diet, this app not only provides information on calories, but a breakdown of the fat, protein and carbohydrate you are consuming.  Facebook integration allows you to monitor weight loss against your friends; great for ensuring you stay on track with your desired goals.

**Instant Heart Rate – iPhone, Android ** (Free)

The ability to monitor resting heart rate is a great indicator for assessing your health status.  Resting your index finger against the camera lens of your smart phone allows a pulse reading to be taken in seconds.  A paid upgrade allows you to store readings to an archive, allowing you to track changes as you improve fitness.  For simplicity and ease of use this has to be one of the best apps on the marketplace.

Summary

In summary, the above apps are great for helping you achieve the most out of your exercise.  Whether your motivation stems from exercising to music or encouragement from friends, these features are integrated across these best apps we recommend.  With an array of feedback at your fingertips you’ll soon be dreaming for that early morning run to steal you from between the sheets!