There are more fitness apps than ever. Set measurable goals and track your progress to succeed in 2018.
Gym Gyaan
The personal trainer app is overrated. Nobody wants to watch an instructional video at the gym. But record keepers like Pumping Weight, JetFit, Strong or GymBuddy make sure you don't "plateau" by doing the same reps with the same weight day after day.
Social Climbers
Strava, MapMyRun, Endomondo and Nike Training Club let you track your distance and performance and compete with other users. The hardcore Strava is probably the most robust social network, while MapMyRun may well have the most local users. But the much-needed "Tinder for training partners" has yet to emerge.
Calorie Counters
The popular MyFitnessPal plays well with others and offers tonnes of crowd-sourced nutrition data (think "Mom's aloo gobhi"). Make-in-India HealthifyMe is a comparable alternative that adds access to nutritionists and instructors.
Measure Me
After you spend Rs 10,000 on a fitness band that goes kaput a few days after the warranty expires, your passion cools. Never fear: Instant Heart Rate can take your pulse with your phone's camera, while the iCare Health Monitor claims to measure heart rate, vision and hearing without any added gadgets.
TRAINING TIPS
GET IN SYNC
After acquiring a fistful of top-rated apps and the fitness band developed by HTC, UnderArmour has doubled down on becoming the integration leader by making its apps play well with apps and wearables made by competitors.
Get in sync by linking your Fitbit Charge 2 or UnderArmour band to MyFitnessPal, and you can automatically log exercise and measure calories in vs. calories out, for example. The main benefits of a wearable over an app like MapMyRun: Fitbit and other bands can automatically record your activity as "exercise" every time you walk or run continuously for 10 minutes, they provide a more accurate complete calorie count for all your activity throughout the day, and those with heartrate monitors measure whether you're building aerobic endurance or burning fat. Otherwise, you can log workouts manually with MapMyRun, for instance, and it will automatically update your calorie count in MyFitnessPal (so you can eat more!).