Your Smartphone Can Be a Valuable Exercise Tool

More and more people are getting smart phones, whether they be iPhones, BlackBerries or Android-based phones, and several companies are using these phones' built in GPS capabilities to help make them technologically-based personal trainers in a sense. According to an article in the New York Times entitled, "A Personal Trainer for a Smartphone" they talk about some of these.

Adidas has a program called miCoach that uses a smartphone's GPS sensor to keep track of a person's speed and endurance while running, and also has a built-in voice to guide the runner through a specific workout routine as they run. The program can also be tweaked to help track various types of sports, and has a web-based interface to help keep track of one's progress. The NYT seemed to really like this program.

Nike also has a program called Nike Boom that is a little more limited, according to the NYT. While it enlists the voice of "elite athletes" to help coach you through a routine, it doesn't support as many different types of workouts as the Adidas program. Whichever program you decide to use, thankfully we now have one more tool in our aresnal of getting thin and in shape.