Enhance Your Workout With Your Phone
When you’re looking to get back into a regular fitness and health routine, the start-up expenses can seem daunting. Pedometers, weights, diet cookbooks and hiring a personal trainer all add up to a big monetary obstacle on your journey to becoming fit. But you can skip all of that with just a few finger swipes of your smart phone. Below is our list of the top seven apps to help women easily reach their fitness goals.
 Livestrong
Sticking to a caloric intake goal is a healthy way to lose pounds and this app makes it so easy to stay on track. Hundreds of foods are already programmed in, so you can quickly add orange chicken from Panda Express or Mom's pot roast to your list. Livestrong also has an extensive list of exercises you can add (including some funny ones like shopping for Christmas presents) to decrease your total calories and make way for a skinnier you.
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 Nike Women Training Club
Get lean, toned, strong and focused with this comprehensive app from fitness giant Nike. Choose from four workout categories to get the results you're looking for. You can also monitor your progress and receive awards when you pass your goals. We love that Nike WTC features strong women, like Rihanna's personal trainer Ary Nunez, who know how to target your most troublesome areas.
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 Isometrics
Are you a victim of the 9 to 5 energy drainer? Isometrics allows you to incorporate mini workouts into your day without leaving your office chair, so you'll feel less lethargic come sunset. Using static muscle holds, isometric exercise allows you to complete low-impact exercises virtually anywhere.
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 Runkeeper
Grab an armband because this app has immediate and long-term benefits for runners everywhere. Right away the app helps you by regularly informing you of the current time, how far you've traveled and your average pace. The app also tracks the calories you've burned and the route you're taking by GPS. Over time, the app can alert you to trends in your runs and analyze all the essential data so you can show off how much you've improved to your friends and family. It also allows you to join together with friends to create a Runkeeper Street Team for training support and encouragement. The interface may be yawn-inducing, but you'll be too busy pounding the pavement to notice.
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 Get Running (Couch to 5k)
Looking for an app that will ease you back into a healthy lifestyle? If you're scared that you'll start off too strong and then quickly burn out, this app is for you. Get Running promises that if you follow their 9-week workout program, you'll be able to run for at least 30 minutes without stopping. The app gives audio cues as to when you should speed up or slow down and how long you should go. The best part is if you have a treadmill, you don't even have to give up watching your favorite TV shows!
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 Beer gut fitness
When living on a diet, many women forget to take into account how calorie-laden their alcoholic beverages are. The BeerGut Fitness app is the perfect thing to hold you responsible for your boozy missteps. Input the type and duration of exercise performed and it will reward you with the exact amount of spirited libations you can celebrate with. Or, enter in the amount of alcohol you have consumed and it will remind you just how hard you'll be hitting the gym later.
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 Women's Health Workouts
Women’s Health magazine offers up a variety of health-related apps including the Women's Health Workouts. Bring your phone to the gym with you and let the app be your personal trainer. You can choose between workout routines or individual exercises and you can even purchase additional workouts if you're feeling bored. As for their other apps, we hope they address issues with them soon. We would love to download the Smoothie Selector or Cook This, Not That! apps, but reports of usability issues have steered us in the opposite direction.
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fitness tips healthy living phone apps technology weight loss
