Image via Complex Original
In the famous words of Will Smith himself: it's summer, summer, summertime. It's the season to hit the beach, look good, and be at your optimal health and shape—but don't fret, it's not too late if you're not. If you have a few pounds to lose, or a little more, or simply want to maintain your weight against the onslaught of summer BBQs, staying active is key. We've compiled the 10 best workout apps for the summer, because whether it's lifting or hitting five miles for the first time, keeping that body of yours moving will help you reach your goals. Now go join the summer madness.
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RunKeeper
Platform: iOS, Android; Free
RunKeeper is considered one of the best fitness apps on the market. Use the app to keep track of your running, walking, cycling, hiking, and biking on a detailed map; with info about your pace, distance, calories burned and time displayed on screen during your workout. RunKeeper will keep track of your personal records, so you always know your fastest mile. The app will also send you emails remind you to lace up those shoes.
Fitocracy
Platform: iOS, Android; Free
Fitocracy is a cool twist to workout apps. It's built upon connecting runners with other runners, using their energy and aspirations to fuel those within the community. Runners are encouraged to leave props and comments to each other to spur motivation, in a type of "running social network." There's a workout point system where runners can level up and complete missions to earn badges for each milestone they reach.
C25K
Platform: iOS; Android; Free
C25K (short for: Couch to 5K) is an app that trains you to out of the house with the goal of running 5K. During your run, the app will operate in the background, and will prompt you to change your pace to match your goals. For the musically inclined, you can create a specialized workout playlist within the app. Once you do reach the 5K goal, you can then increase it to the 10K-you're in it for the long haul, baby.
Obstacles XRT
Platform: iOS; $1.99
Obstacles XRT is a cool app that brings high-intensity exercises to your mobile device. By way of videos, the app will guide you through extreme cardio workouts that mimic running through tires, tree jumps, leaf squats and tall stairs, (to name a few). If things get easy, you can increase the skill level to pick up the pace.
Gorilla Workout
Platform: iOS, Android; $0.99
Gorilla Workout comes with more than 40 exercises and four different skill levels. If you're worried about having the dreaded "big body skinny legs syndrome," Gorilla's workouts focus on full body exercises, each coming with their own detailed description so you get the most from your workouts--and it's all equipment free.
Seconds Pro
Platform: iOS; Android; $4.99
If you already have a workout routine set, one of the most important things to make sure you get maximum effectiveness from your workout is keeping track of your intervals. With the Seconds Pro app, users get a large, color coded display that they can read from far away, which makes it easy to keep track of workouts. The app comes complete with music integration as well, and smooth sounds if you'd like to do yoga or meditate.
Nike+
Platform: iOS, Android; Free
The Nike+ app works really well in terms of keeping track of data. Your information, such as your route, times, and elevation are all logged into your profile on Nikeplus.com. When you start your run, you can sign into Facebook or Path and get real-time "cheers" sent to your headphones, which are set off by people "liking" or commenting on your status updates. The app comes with weather-tagging to let you know the forecast in your area, so you're not caught out in the rain. Unless you want to be.
Zombies, Run!
Platform: iOS, Android; $3.99
Zombies seem to be all the rage nowadays, and now they've made their way into workout apps. In Zombies, Run!, the screams of the undead will rip through your headphones while an audio story is played during your run; creating the illusion that, uh-oh, you're running from zombies. It's a pretty cool idea. Runners are given orders from the audio story that will urge you to increase the pace, all to make sure you get home alive.
Full Fitness
Platform: iOS; $1.99
Full Fitness ups the ante in comparison to other fitness app. It includes hundreds of exercises with videos and pictures. You'll have access to both equipment workouts and non-equipment workouts, which are categorized by: section (such as abs, arms, back), muscles (deltoids, biceps, etc.), or by equipment, (such as the medicine ball). For those looking to treat the inside of your body right, the app comes with a calorie tracker with over 90,000 food items.
FitnessBuilder
Platform: iOS, Android; Free
Fitness Builder is the encyclopedia of workout apps. With over 750 workouts for your personal fitness level, and 5,600 images and videos, this app has you covered-even coming with access to a live trainer, as well. The app is account based, so you'll have to sign-up for Plus (fitness beginner/ enthusiast), Pro (professional) or PT (therapy), but it comes with a free one month trial, so try it out and get that body into shape.
