Exercise apps help maintain healthy lifestyle
- Oct. 12, 2012
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- udkne.ws/Q6LFdy
When junior Kelli Klecan goes for a run, she moves to her iPod music. But sometimes she hears more than her favorite tunes. She hears voices.
Klecan’s Nike+ on her iPod allows sensors in her Nike running shoes to track her speed, distance and time. The sensor syncs with her music and app, which gives her verbal updates through her headphones during her run.
“I love this aspect of it because when I’m running I get mile updates, halfway updates, or 400-yard updates,” Klecan said. “It’s nice to not always have to be checking my phone.”
Students use exercise apps, such as the Nike+ app, to record their running and count calories.
Klecan said Nike+ has made her more apt to run outside if she has a few spare minutes because she knows she’ll be able to easily record her times.
“My times have definitely improved since getting the app,” Klecan said. “If I start running consistently, I will see my times go down by the minutes.”
The Nike+ app and hundreds more like it can assist users with their workout routines, and help maintain a healthy diet. Many of the apps are also free.
Klecan also uses the health and nutrition app, Calorie Counter, which records everything users eat. The app automatically tells users how many calories they’ve eaten during the day. Klecan said Calorie Counter makes her think twice about what she is eating.
FitDay, an app similar to Calorie Counter, tracks both what users eat and what they burn. Jeremy Tarr, the content manager for FitDay, said journaling makes it easier to reach a weight-loss goal.
“It makes you more conscious of the choices you’re making,” Tarr said. “It makes it easier to eat better and to lose weight.”
