This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
App Options for Fitness-Minded People
Because the apps that come preinstalled on your Apple Watch work seamlessly with the Health app (or in the case of the Activity app, with the iPhone edition of the app as well), using either or both of these apps is convenient.
That said, if you want to participate in a specific fitness-oriented or workout activity, the Apple Watch and iPhone App Stores offer a vast and ever-growing selection of viable alternatives to using the Activity and/or Workout apps, and/or the watch’s Heart Rate monitor feature.
You’ll learn more about specialized apps for specific workout and fitness-related activities in future chapters, as well as from the expert interviews that are scattered throughout the book.
Chat with an Expert: Learn About the Optional Fitnet App from Its Creator
Fitnet is a mobile fitness application for the iPhone (see Figure 5.33) and Apple Watch from Fitnet Corporation (www.fit.net) that delivers video-based exercise introduction and workout routines in five-minute increments. It also provides a variety of different intensities, based on the user’s needs. The app’s workouts combine yoga, strength, and cardio workouts that are tailored to the user’s fitness level.
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FIGURE 5.33 The Fitnet app, shown here on the iPhone, features video-based workouts for users to follow.
Bob Summers, the app’s creator, is a fitness enthusiast, as well as an entrepreneur with a computer engineering degree from Virginia Tech and an MBA from MIT.
Summers said he designed Fitnet for himself, but made it so that it would appeal to any iPhone user who wants to move more and/or supplement an existing exercise plan.
“Thanks to the technologies being built into the latest iPhones and now the Apple Watch, including higher speed processors, easier to read displays, more sensors, and network connectivity, it is becoming easier to achieve accurate assessment delivery and monitoring, which are key elements in fitness tools,” said Summers.
Although the Activity app monitors and reports a user’s daily activity, the Fitnet app goes a step further. “For example, if you determine you want or need 30 more minutes of exercise, and want to know how to efficiently get it, that’s where the Fitnet app comes in,” added Summers. “Convenience is critical to someone keeping up with a fitness goal. Convenience reduces excuses. Apple Watch is a convenience tool that brings fitness applications that would otherwise be running on iPhones closer to the individual.”
Of course, wearing an Apple Watch or installing Fitnet onto your iPhone won’t cause you to achieve your fitness goals by themselves. “There is still hard work to do, which must become a personal and long-term commitment. My best advice is just to get started. Install the Fitnet app, for example, and exercise for just 10 minutes today. Then do it again tomorrow. Get yourself into a daily routine. Before you know it, a habit will be formed, and a fitness routine will be established.”
The Fitnet app helps users focus on the current day’s goals, and then looks ahead to the upcoming week. One of the features that sets Fitnet apart from other fitness apps is that in addition to including a virtual trainer, the app can also connect users to real-life human trainers, who will help keep the users on track and accountable (see Figure 5.34).
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FIGURE 5.34 For a flat monthly fee, the Fitnet app allows you to communicate with a professional and accredited fitness trainer.
“It’s this accountability that helps people achieve success in achieving their fitness goals. We help users find the right fitness plan, and then offer hundreds of varied fitness routines in the app,” stated Summers.
Fitnet is a free download. It includes more than 200 five-minute video-based workouts for users to follow and participate in. Various menus, like the one shown in Figure 5.35, offer details about each workout offering. You can purchase additional weekly fitness challenges (via in-app purchases) for $0.99, and users can subscribe to have access to their own personal trainer for $19.00 per month.
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FIGURE 5.35 Based on your fitness goals, choose which workouts you want to experience from a menu like this one.
Aside from the iPhone, no special equipment is needed to participate in the app’s workouts, although Summers does recommend having an Apple TV, so users can watch the iPhone app’s videos on a television instead of the iPhone’s screen via AirPlay. “The Fitnet app offers deep integration with the Health app, as well as Apple TV and the Apple Watch,” he added.
Although Summers initially created the Fitnet app for himself, one of the app’s first success stories came from a stay-at-home mother in Texas, who lost 12 pounds in eight weeks using the app. Since then, Summers stated he has heard hundreds of similar success stories.
He explained, “Whether someone uses Fitnet or not, when you adopt a new fitness routine, to help yourself get started and then stay motivated, I recommend working with a personal trainer, plus getting yourself a fitness buddy. In addition to a personal trainer subscription option, Fitnet offers a social interaction element, so you can have a virtual fitness buddy, as opposed to someone being right next to you during each workout.”
Fitnet is just one of many general fitness-related apps available for the iPhone and Apple Watch. You can find this popular app in the App Store.