MapMyRide (free or from £4.49 for a subscription; iOS and Android)
“I still try to keep fit, even though it gets harder every year,” says Shelley Kerr. She uses this app to keep track of miles cycled and calories burned. The app also has suggestions for tens of millions of cycle routes in a whole host of cities (most of them in the US, but there are some in other countries, including the UK).
Strava (free or from £4.49 for a subscription; iOS and Android)
The app uses GPS to track your runs or rides and compare (ok, compete) with a whole community of fellow athletes. Seeing your friend – or more often, a complete stranger who has become your arch nemesis – beat you by mere seconds is enough to motivate you to push yourself faster and further.
Workout Trainer (free, or from £7.99 for a subscription; iOS and Android)
Whether you’re a gym bunny or prefer the privacy of your living room to exercise, this app can guide you through work-outs of all sorts, from gentle to difficult. With video and audio instruction, it covers exercise from yoga to weightlifting. There’s also a social element to the app, with 15m users to offer you encouragement and/or competition.
The Walk (£2.29; iOS and Android)
There are lots of apps to make your daily walk or run less dull (try RockMyRun, which selects music tracks to match your running tempo, or Zombies, Run! if being tasked with fleeing the undead provides more motivation). The Walk provides a gentler activity, though no less thrilling – it involves a terrorist plot and walking unlocks the immersive story, told over 51 episodes.
Whether you’re driven by the winning or just enjoy the taking part, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A is the perfect personal trainer. Slim and trim – weighing in at 470g – it doesn’t just give you access to the latest fitness apps, its 5MP camera can capture every moment of glory, from marathon finish lines to school sports’ days.
