These days you will find thousands of exercise Apps available on Google Play, iStore, and even fitness trainer’s websites. There are so many to choose from, that it can be an overwhelming choice.
I follow many fitness trainers on Instagram and in my opinion, this is where many people will see a fitness trainer who posts numerous videos of exercises and then sell their services along with it. As a consumer, it can look wonderful and the price might be something that you can afford as well. You subscribe, you follow what they offer within the subscription and you see results. Wonderful! But is this kind of random choice for everyone? What things do you need to take into consideration, when you choose an exercise App or fitness trainer subscription? I’m here to shed some light on the subject today.
Exercise Apps
These kinds of Apps can range anything from a third party you do not know at all, where they give you exercises for every body part. These days big companies like Samsung have their health App and Huawei as well. These Apps offer things like random fitness programs and videos on their App, which you can select and then do. They are great if you are someone who does not have any medical conditions, mobility issues, or previous injuries. These Apps do not consider these mentioned things.
When I access one of these big-name Apps, I see something like “200 squat challenge.” When I select it, it brings you to YouTube with hashtags like fat loss, fat burn, and home workout. You then see the video starts and the person says that they are going to do this challenge with you and squats in various variations.
Pros with this kind of workout or video: you have someone that does the exercise with you. If the person who illustrates the exercise has sound exercise knowledge, they will be able to illustrate the exercises correctly but if they don’t you will follow someone’s bad form and can cause injuries.
Cons with this kind of workout video: this type of challenge causes burnout to the muscles and causes injuries. A few years back, me and my trainer back then, did a pushup challenge. We had to do 100 every night for 30 days. What happened? Injuries. When you do too much and you do not have rest days in between, your muscles do not get sufficient time to recover. Especially if you do not have a sound diet either. Very few people know this and follow challenges like these. For some, it works out good and they do not see any problems or injuries. Great for you but this is the ideal thing to put your body through. There are many exercises that you can implement to challenge the body and not cause burnout. Make it fun! Why do a boring squat or lunge challenge, when you can cycle one day, weight train the next, walk the other day, etc.
Personal trainer Apps
This is where the thing can get tricky. You get fitness trainers out there with no qualifications who have Apps or subscription services. Then you get those who have obtained a formal qualification and have sound knowledge of exercise science and how to program a workout for a client.
Fitness trainers have Apps where you subscribe monthly to their service either through Google Play or you pay with your bank card. You get access to the exercise videos they have uploaded to the subscription bases App and you love what they offer. They release new and fresh content every month and you do not get bored. These kinds of Apps are great for people who are relatively healthy, mobile, with few to no injuries, and young. They do not take into consideration that a big part of the world’s population has some sort of limited movement ability, injuries, had previous operations, and have some sort of illness.
Personal trainer apps are different. These Apps are where you have a personal trainer in the background, tending to your personal needs. They have obtained your medical history, had a consultation with you, understand your lifestyle and formulate a program, especially for your current lifestyle. I have an App like this. This is where the client has their profile and on this profile, I have uploaded their exercise program, which helps them towards their goal. Each of my clients who uses this App have a workout that compliments their lifestyle takes into consideration injuries, time constraints, and mobility issues. Each exercise program consists of video illustrations of each exercise they must do, the number of reps and sets that are required. Also rest times. The programs are also designed to help with progress for their set goal but also strength, fitness, and mobility. With this App where you have me in the background, your trainer, I am there to see how many times you have logged on and did the program. I can motivate you, check in with you, and make changes to your program as time goes by. It’s a more personal and worthwhile experience. It also offers you the comfort that you can contact your trainer if you are unsure of anything and when you need support. With big fitness trainer Apps, this is impossible due to the large number of people who have subscribed.
When you look at everything, it all boils down to what you can afford but I ask you to consider the extra bit of money and rather get a trainer-based app, where the trainer is in the background. Ready to help you whenever you need it.
If you are interested in working with me to reach your goals and want to consider using the App, contact me via this page or visit my Facebook page and contact me there.