After a discussion with the team regarding weight loss and working out, I noted that a number of the staff here at Ausdroid have seen some great results when it comes to their personal fitness. So I asked my fellow writers to help put together their success stories as well as a list of Android apps that helped them in their battle of the bulge.
Daniel :
I started working out in September of 2009, I had been doing shift work, which encourages a sedentary lifestyle, my body weight hit 143Kg and I decided enough was enough, 18 months later I hit my goal weight of 82Kg and have managed to maintain it to this day. I did consult with a Dietician and also with Personal Trainers at the Gym.
Daniel’s Tips…
- Plan to incorporate exercise into your daily routine, I normally go during my lunch break as otherwise I normally just sit at my desk
- Persevere, part of getting in shape is to lessen the recovery time between sessions
- Go easy at first and remember to consult with professionals like Personal Trainers
Apps that helped…
- My Tracks : My Tracks is an app from the Google team, that tracks you whilst working out via GPS, it then logs the information and allows you to upload it to a Google map. One of the features I like about it is that whilst you are walking/jogging/cycling etc it will advise you how far you have travelled and at what average speed. I`ve now compiled a Google map with all the places I`ve been jogging. The My Tracks app is free
- Hiit Interval Training Timer : When I first started jogging I had trouble doing it for longer than a couple of minutes, so I used an interval timer, I set it to 1/3, so i`d walk for a minute then jog for 3, I haven`t used it in a while as I just jog but it can be used to time intervals between sets of exerices, circuits etc. There is a free ad supported version and an ad free version which costs $2.74.
- Pocket Casts : When I first got into exercise I found the best thing to take my mind off it was listening to podcasts(Like the brilliant Ausdroid podcast). Pocket Casts is brilliant it has an excellent layout and updates all your podcasts automatically. Unfortunately no free version but it`s $2.70 well spent IMHO.
Irwin :
It was also September 2009 that I decided it was time to get into (a less round) shape. When I started I weighed 129Kg. My approach was to completely cut out takeaway food & to work out 5 days a week (workdays). I started out easy, walking 3KM on the treadmill in about an hour. Within the first 2 weeks I lost 7Kg, so that was enough to keep me motivated. As I worked out and the walking became easier, I’d walk faster and/or longer. It only took me about 9 months to lose 40Kg & build up the fitness enough to be able to run 5KM in 28 minutes on the treadmill. I have now incorporated some weights training & have still remained at a steady weight of 90-95Kg.
Irwin’s Tips…
- My personal advice is to make sure that whatever you choose to do, it should feel comfortable to you. If you find yourself dragging your feet to do it, then you’ll most likely falter.
- Make exercising a routine. We all have to work to pay the bills, so making exercise an extension of that same routine feels more natural.
- Set a goal weight and a target date. It’s important to work towards a deadline, this helps to keep focus & push yourself when you feel you might miss your target.
- Lastly, commit. Just keep at it, because if you take days off it just makes it harder to get back into it.
Apps that helped…
- I use MyTracks to keep an eye on how far my walks are, which is good for planning a one hour walk to a nice cafe on a sunny day.
- I use Mortplayer for my music while I am at the gym. The best thing about it, is being able to drop a folder of music onto the SD card and it’ll play it without having to set up a playlist or ID tags for the MP3’s. Mortplayer Music(beta) is free but there is a Donation option which you can buy for $2.72 to support the Developer.
Matt :
Apps that helped…
I’m very competitive so I like to be able to track my performance and improve on it. Runkeeper is perfect because it lets me track my run via GPS and also notifies me at time or distance intervals. At the end of my run I can review my pace in a bar graph and share the results back to Facebook or Twitter.
Phil :
Apps that helped…
I use Runkeeper when I jog, as an app it`s a no brainer -Hit go when you start, hit stop wehn you finish. It keeps your run times – distances and avg speeds, it tells you if you’ve done really well on a specific run, beaten PB’s etc.
Geoff :
Apps that helped…
For when i`m running outside I use Podrunner Workout Music. Podrunner is a free app which delivers essentially a podcast from DJ Steve Boyett which is desinged to offer fixed Beats per Minute music in hour long hits, it also offers an Intervals version that gives varied Beats per minute music to help improve conditioning.
Scott :
Apps that helped…
- VidaOne Lifestyle Pro, I used their program on windows mobile and they have since made this for android. Has GPS, Diet and Food intake tracking, records Strength and Cardio workouts and a whole heap of options. VidaOne costs $5.82, there is a free ‘Lite’ Version available
- Diabetes Nutrition LifeStyle : I also use diabetes nutrition lifestyle by nutridroid.Com this is good when trying to follow a low glycaemic diet. This app costs $4.82 and unfortunately no free version is available.
- Poweramp 2.0 : For working out, I recommend all heavy metal ;). PowerAmp Music Player has a free trial version or the Full version unlocker which costs $4.60 and unlocks the trial version so note you do need the trial version installed.
Pleae note Scott is an ex Bodybuilder and knows alot about what he is doing with his body and diets such as the low glycaemic diet should only be followed in consultation with a health care professional.
All recommendations and opinions expressed by the team are subject to their personal experiences. Finding what works for you is important, so make sure to consult health professionals if you need a more tailored approach.
What other apps are out there that you utilise to help you in your fitness routines?
love the post image.. andy on roids!!
I use the Adidas miCoach app to track my runs. Great app which syncs to website where you can look at splits, maps, and compare runs against each other.
I keep my phone (Wildfire) in a small rear pocket in my shorts, which is my main criticism of phone manufacturers – why can’t they make a full featured phone in a compact format?
Nice article Dan, one of the things I miss about shift work is that nice break.
Ahh, the man who introduced me to the Gym, You got me into this, lol
Cannot believe you guys did not mention NOOM (formally known as cardio trainer pro). It incorporates all aspects of diet and training. Have a look for yourself if you like. https://market.android.com/details?id=com.wsl.noom&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS53c2wubm9vbSJd
I also made a post on this on reddit with a whole bunch of other apps and reviews that really helped me.
http://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/iv3c7/google_is_shutting_down_google_labs/c26x55b
NOOM looks pretty good, I`ve been tracking my diet manually for so long I pretty much know what i`m doing now so I like to just track my jogs and having just had another personal training session to prepare for next years City to Surf i`ll be using HIIT again to up my intervals, but if this had been around when i`d started I probably would have used it as well.
I like endomondo too, it tracks all my bike rides and give loads of useful info.
I actually use https://market.android.com/details?id=com.myfitnesspal.android – main use is to help manage the diet (which is always important!).
Best thing about it? Barcode scanner recognises everything I’ve put to it so far – including homebrand stuff from woolies/coles. 😉
So you can add the food, any exercise, etc, etc – keeps track of it all, track weight/measurements and is probably what keeps me going: just seeing the progress and stuff really motivates. 😛
For tracking body weight, my favourite app is Libra: https://market.android.com/details?id=net.cachapa.libra
It makes it very easy to enter your weight each day and charts your progress using a trend line to smooth out day-to-day variations, as suggested in John Walker’s “Hacker’s Diet” (http://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/). The developer is also helpful and responsive.
good life style post. =)
do you guys just put the phone in your pockets or use a phone strap?
I use a jogging pouch, the Nexus One used to fit into an iPhone pouch but the Nexus S is a little too large so I ordered another one of dealextreme(be careful the first one I got was garbage) which is actually designed for the Galaxy S II but fits the Nexus S quite well, i`m not sure what i`m going to do when my Galaxy Nexus arrives!!!
I don’t like carrying anything when I run, not even keys let alone an expensive phone. I tried walking with my tracks once but the wonderful GPS in my SGS drew a zigzag path that made it look as if I was staggering like a drunkard. Maybe it needs some kind of head mount 🙂
I used to have the Nexus S in a pocket but I finally found an armband actually made for the device* so I’ve been using that for the last few runs and am pretty happy with it. * I bought a couple of bands off ebay which the Nexus just didn’t fit into (they were just iPhone bands being sold as “Nexus S armbands” sigh). I eventually found the “iGadgitz Black Water Resistant Neoprene Sports Gym Jogging Armband for Google Nexus S” which actually is made for the Nexus S (it has external button markings and the headphone hole in the correct… Read more »
Awesome, i`ve just contacted these guys to see if they will be offering a Galaxy Nexus Arm Band, the one i`m using for my Nexus S isn`t the best but it works
My app of choice is sports track live: http://www.sportstracklive.com
I’ve released an app only a few days ago that at least I think is good for working out 😉
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.kieranfleming.runningbeats.android
Unlike the other apps out there, this one is focused on playing music that matches your running speed.
I’ve used the couch25k app / program to get up from zero to a 30-minute / 5k run. It’s pretty good, but in the longer runs near the end would crash fairly reliably on my Nexus S so I’d have to guess the remaining time. The c25k program is really good for non-runners getting started. A lot of my friends have also done it. Since that app started playing up I’ve switched to Runkeeper since it’ll give me timing notifications and also record a track of the run (for vague interest). It also plays well with the Android sound system… Read more »
I use endomondo to track my run and cycling workouts. It is fantastic and constantly receives updates. It also has a good online community as it is available cross platforms.
It also allows you to use bluetooth based heart rate monitors.
It’s a great app
Endomondo is my app of choice!