New Phone Means New Fitness Apps!

I purchased the HTC One last Thursday when I made the change from ATT&T to T-Mobile to save $60 on our monthly bill. Since then I have gone install crazy trying to find the most useful applications to monitor and reward my fitness activity since my Wannabe Hubby shot down my own reward program citing that the plan was too expensive for this year. This is not a slam - it is just a fact. Buying a house bankrupts you, just saying ;) All that being said the following are the apps I have found I enjoy used and easy to use.

Fitbit - It is no secret that I love Fitbit's website and tracking device. While you cannot sync to your Android phone (boo iPhone!) It does tell you how many steps taken, floors climbed, miles traveled, calories burned, hours of sleep, food plan, and water consumption since your last sync in relation to your goal. Allowing to plan accordingly throughout the day. You can log activity that cannot be measured with the wireless tracking device, you can log food, you can add weight tracking information, you can log water, if you have friends on the site it shoes you the ranking, and you can log sleep. So all in all pretty dang functional and the ever present practice about being mindful of your health. You can view my profile and add me as a friend HERE.

Nike+ Running - It's no secret I love their site and use my iPod Nano in conjunction with the site. While I don't use the Android Application to log my runs - since I have my iPod - but I do use it for the widget that shows how many miles total I've run and how many days since my last run. A nice way to motivate myself. Additionally it compares your most recent with your last run to see how much shorter/longer you ran and the time difference. If you have a goal setup it will also show your percentage to goal.You can also set up a run reminder in case you just can't muster the motivation on your own. The profile page shows all your stats that are available on the site but it is nice to carry those stats out for motivation or bragging rights ;) You can also view your entire activity history. I have not added any friends on Nike+ but it shows you comparative stats with your friends as well. You can view my profile and add me as a friend HERE or search for Rookie_Runner.

Nike Training Club - Okay so I log my walking and my running, but how do I log all my other training efforts or plan them? Using this! There are tons of workouts to choose from and you can select your activity level and time or focus group making this an easy addition to any cardio workout. You can log in with your Nike+ Account if you have one to add Nikefuel to your account for more than just running. You can save workouts you really like so they are easy to find again for the next time and it will also track your progress. You can view my profile and add me as a friend HERE or search for Rookie_Runner.

Nexercise - I love being rewarded for fitness. I use the Nike Apps to monitor my runs and workouts and then I manually log them to earn rewards - you don't earn as much for manually logging them but I don't want to run with my phone since it's not as practical as my iPod Nano. I could theoretically have the app running in the background while using Nike Training Club - if that works I will re-post with the update. As a note - you have to log the activity within two days it will not let you post further back. You earn trophies which can boost your motivation and again serve as bragging rights if you've enabled the social aspect but adding friends. You can earn rewards 1 of 2 ways. Through mPoints which you get by logging exercise, by viewing advertisements, taking short surveys, fulfilling basic achievements, or sometimes completely at random for logging in. You can spend these mPoints on sweepstakes, gift cards, or charitable donations. You can also earn rewards through Pocketchange which you earn by logging in and logging activity that can be used towards gift cards - these are a little harder to earn but the rewards are better since ad viewing doesn't come into play at all. You can add me by posting a status to Twitter asking for friends and commenting below with your Twitter name so I can accept the invitation.

Fitocracy - I love making fitness a game.  You can select quests to complete to earn more points from them and "level up" There is no rewards system in this game so unless your highly competitive you have to bring your own motivation but it is definitely self-satisfying to bump levels. You can add me by searching for me as Rookie_Runner.

Charity Miles - This app just makes you feel horrifically guilty if you skip a day of walking, running, or cycling. You earn 10 cents per mile for biking and walking and runners are 25 cents per mile You can select from a number of charities. I tend to always donate to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society due to a close relative who has Stage 4 Lymphoma. I would also consider the following charities in the future - Stand Up To Cancer, The Nature Conservatory & ASPCA. I love their motto - Because changing the world is a team sport. You cannot add friends with this application.

LA Fitness Mobile - I use this app because this is where I have my gym membership and it lets me know the class schedule and if any classes get cancelled to save me the trip .This is a just a useful tool. It can also set reminders to your phone to attend a class thereby holding you accountable to attend. You cannot add friends with this application.

Fitsby - Compete with friends by how many times you check into the gym .This is a lot like GymPact in that you can make a wager where the winning party earn the pot and the loser pays into it if they cannot keep up the bargain. However, you have the option to enter free competitions - not as motivating but again like a game so this might be enough motivation for some people.

Active - This application doesn't monitor or reward fitness in any way but you can view feeds of local activties (categorized by interests you select) that are close to you. They also feature articles about the topics you selected. This is great because you can filter out activities you don't have an interest in and you can save articles you enjoy to peruse again later. You cannot add friends.

DietPoint - Also not a fitness application but what you eat plays into how healthy you are. I like this application because it comes up a week long plan for what to eat and after answering a few questions tells you how much weight you can expect to lose over a period of time. You're limited in which plans you choose if you want to keep it free but they are a number of free options that are just fine. Also if you go pro it will auto make a grocery list for you but honestly unless you're supremely lazy there's no reason you can't slip through the days to determine how much and of what to buy. You cannot add friends.

Lose It - Food diary that allows you to select a weight loss goal. This is a nice application because you ca pair it to Fitbit and there is more uploaded food information on Lose It so you're not constantly creating foods if you don't always buy name brand or you eat out a lot. You can search for me by me email address but please PLEASE do not spam  me. You can comment below if you would like to add me.