When it comes to knowing and using the latest apps in the fitness, we figured the best place to start is with our 40 Under 40 class of 2015. After all, these people are go-getters on the job, so it stands to reason that they will be organized about their fitness as well. We asked our under-40s to share their favorite apps that help them stay fit, and here’s what we discovered.
Marjorie Adams of FOURLANE uses the Running for Weight Loss application from Redrock Apps. “This application does interval training for running. It can start out with beginner, intermediate or advanced and basically gives you a timer for when to run, walk, or sprint. It also has a paid version that will change the tempo of your music based on your expected pace.”
Roy Keely of Xcentric turns to MyFitnessPal and his Fitbit app to help him stay in shape. “MyFitnessPal has the best food catalogue and recipe builder of all the apps out there. Counting calories and understanding how much you burn is the only way to predict weight gain/loss. It takes discipline to log everything, but the app makes it easy if you are willing to put in the 60 seconds of effort 3-5 times a day you eat/snack.
Added bonus: The app integrates with Fitbit so you can compare calories burned with intake.” Note that MyFitnessPal tracks calories by brand and even by restaurant. “The Fitbit app’s power comes from the wearable technology that accompanies it. Truly understand the health of your heart, how many calories you are burning. The ability to create measurable goals that you can accomplish makes this technology a winner. The calorie tracking side is much easier done in MyFitnessPal so I suggest integrating Fitbit with that app to get the best all around picture of calories that go in/out.”
Danetha Doe of Danetha Doe Consulting says RunKeeper is her fitness app of choice. “I love it because it allows me to track different types of fitness activities (such as running or biking). The app also allows you to customize workouts and set speed/distance goals.”
“My favorite fitness app for 2016 is the Jawbone iOS app that syncs with my fitness tracker,” said Kacee Johnson of Blue Ocean Principles. “The app not only tracks all steps, sleep and fitness goals but it also is a calorie and water tracker. The app sends notifications of tips based on my trends, gives detailed reports and graphs on progress as well as weekly summary emails.”
“For fitness app the one I like to use is Lose It!” said Amanda Han of Keystone CPA. “It helps to track calorie intake to control weight. Although it is not specifically designed to track exercise records, I do find it helpful in busy season because being aware of calorie count helps me to make healthier eating choices. So having a healthy salad instead of burgers and fries for lunch provides me with more energy in tax time.”
Sometimes employers come to the rescue! Kim Austin of Intuit recommends Virgin Pulse. “Intuit does provide incentives for employees to use our corporate Virgin Pulse fitness app (they pay us for hitting certain fitness milestones & goals). The app syncs to most fitness devices (like a Fitbit), but I simply use the Virgin Pulse MAX to track steps, active minutes (running), sleep, and can track numerous other ‘Healthy Habits’ (such as how much water I’m drinking, what workouts I have done, or even what mood I’m in for the day) on the app. I’ve never been too worried about tracking steps or things, because I’m typically pretty active as it is, but the past few years has sometimes been eye opening to see that after a day sitting at a desk, you have barely taken a thousand steps. It’s good to have those things revealed (and motivate you to go get that workout in, even when you don’t feel like it).”
Adam Burnett of Wolters Kluwer is an avid runner, so he recommends two running apps. “Strava does a great job of blending fitness tracking with social media. I use it to track my runs and my overall training, but more importantly to follow many friends and co-workers around the country and use their activity to motivate me to get out the door on the days I don’t really want to. RunGo is a mapping tool that lets you plan your runs/rides ahead of time and then gives you turn-by-turn instructions on the route you decided. I travel a lot so I’ll plan my routes while sitting in the airport then use RunGo to run the route I’d planned. Before I had it, I would start off on the intended path but I would inevitably make a wrong turn and cut my run short or worse, get lost!”
Brian Friedman of Wolters Kluwer recommends Peloton and 7 Minute Workout. “For those who enjoy spinning, the Peloton app lets you participate in live spin classes from their NYC studio or watch thousands on demand. Just as the name states, the 7 Minute Workout app enables the busy professional to squeeze in an intense 7-minute workout quickly and easily.”
Brett Austin Cooper of TaroWorks doesn’t use fitness apps per se, but Spotify always accompanies his workouts. “I wouldn’t survive without Spotify fueling my morning workouts/getting me through afternoon lulls. Specifically, thanks to Fetty Wap for getting me moving this morning!”
Cathy Iconis of Iconis Group recommends three fitness apps. Dietbet – “This App lets me bet on losing weight. I am currently in a competition with several of my neighbors to lose 4% of my body weight in a month. Whoever meets that goal gets a payout. It is a great motivation to lose weight.” Fitbit – “I have both a Fitbit Flex and the Fitbit scale (Aria). I like how the App gives me a view of my progress over time. And, what a lot of people don’t know is that you don’t even need a Fitbit. You can download the App for free and use your phone to track your movements.” Weight Watchers – “I was a member in the past and am back on the wagon. It helps me track my eating activities and it now syncs with my Fitbit so it tracks my exercise as well. I can also quickly search foods on the go to make better choices.”
Elizabeth Pittelkow of Arrowstream says that Endomondo is her favorite fitness app. “I like that the app adjusts the calorie calculation for each sport. One of the most useful features of this app is the workout history it provides.”
Kerri Gibson, Wolters Kluwer, says that her favorite fitness app is the social fitness app Strava, “because it is versatile for many types of activities including running, cycling, and skiing and tracks for separate or combined results. However, because I travel a lot my favorite feature is the ability to find suggested routes and courses in a place I may not be familiar with because I definitely prefer the outdoors to the hotel gym.”
Samantha Mansfield of CPA.com said, “I LOVE the fitness app with the Apple Watch! It improves the measurements as you wear the watch, shows the progress through the day, and gives you a chance to modify your goals. Didn’t know if I would really care of it and I love it!”
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Tags: Firm Management, Technology
