10 fitness apps that will reshape your workout

I’ve been hearing quite a bit of entrepreneurial buzz from L.A. recently. The city known for its Hollywood productions and its chiseled, beach bodies is making waves with new technology startups.

Watch It Now Entertainment, founded in 2004, is positioning itself to capitalize on the $30 billion a year fitness industry with a full service production house that pumps out hundreds of celebrity workout videos a year. While the site’s design isn’t much to look at, its client roster is: Brooke Burke, Sting and Trudie Styler, Tara Stiles, Deepak Chopra, Brooklyn Decker, George St Pierre and Carmen Electra are just a few.

In an email cross-fire, we caught up with WIN’s Founder and President Darren Capik, who says he always finds time for a workout so that his body remains healthy and invigorated. Six days a week, he’s either cycling, spinning or doing CrossFit. “Varying my routine helps to strengthen my body. Redundancy does not encourage change, it makes the body accustomed to the same movements and does not challenge itself to progress and develop,” he says. “I like to incorporate exercises I’m not good at because I know that it’s something I need to do.”

Combining social media strength and new technology Capik felt fit enough to share his 10 favorite fitness apps. Here they are for your testing, mixing and reshaping pleasure:

SixPack App

This app, which boasts over 2 million downloads, contains basic exercises that are simple and rudimentary making it the perfect place for weight training newbies or those who want to understand or refine movements. Six-Pack App for iPhone ($.99)

Authentic Yoga

This is a great source for fundamental moves for people interested in yoga. The downloadable routines (both available in video and stills) are easy to follow. Tara Stiles (pictured below), is one of my all-time favorite yoga instructors (I love her classes on iTunes), and she provides audio bites that help the user through each exercise. World renowned mind-body pioneer Deepak Chopra is also featured on this app. Authentic Yoga for iPhone ($2.99)

Lose It!

While not the most elegantly designed app, Lose It! claims it has helped users shed over 8 million pounds. “This is by far my favorite calorie counter because it’s straightforward and effortless,” says WIN’s Capik. “It makes calorie counting fun without feeling like a chore. Counting calories is an important habit for people trying to lose weight to keep track and to be held accountable for the food being consumed.” Lose It! on Android and iPhone (free)

Nike Training Club

With 85 custom workouts, Nike Training Club is a personal trainer in your pocket. The app is even gamified, letting you unlock extra workouts from celebrities like Lea Michele, professional athletes like Shawn Johnson, and Rihanna’s personal trainer, Ary Nuñez (pictured below). “This is indisputably the coolest personal training app out there. The production value is so high, polished, and cool. Anyone who wants to lose weight, get toned and stay in shape can use this app and be successful if used regularly,” says Capik. Nike Training Club for iPhone (free)

RunKeeper

One of the world’s most popular running apps, RunKeeper, opened up its API last year to 3rd parties like Foursquare, Withings and FitBits to build what it calls “The Health Graph” which is much like Facebook’s massive “Social Graph”. Now, RunKeeper is a full-on fitness platform with over 45 integration partners, with hundreds of others in development. The Health Graph allows these 3rd parties to build applications on top of a massive amount of correlated health data from its 6 million plus users. And all of this new data plugs nicely into RunKeeper’s recently revamped FitnessReports. RunKeeper Apps (free)

Pocket Trainer

This is a high-quality customized workout system that works with your daily schedule. PT has over 300 exercises with videos and written descriptions. The app also features movement speed, timed rest periods and you can refer to work out history to view your progress. “I love that it can provide a great workout for someone on vacation with only 20 minutes to spare,” comments Capik. Pocket Trainer ($12.99)

Nutrition Tips

This app gives you hundreds of useful and digestible nutrition tips and nutritional health facts. It’s an easy reference for healthy food ideas and straightforward daily recommendations. Nutrition Tips for iPhone (Free)

Whole Foods

Whether you shop at Whole Foods or not, this is a fantastic resource for wholesome recipes. “My favorite aspect to this app is the shopping list feature. You can find a healthy recipe in its massive database and then it creates a shopping list. It’s great and convenient,” says Capik. Whole Foods for iPhone (Free)

Roundtimer

This utilitarian tool can be incorporated into any weightlifting workout. The app is a timer that allows you to customize the length of your rounds/circuits, warning bell and resting period and will continue to play in the background with other apps. Roundtimer for iPhone ($.99)

FitnessBuilder

“This is the ultimate resource for workout routines for men and women regardless of fitness level,” says Capik. “It’s tailored for everyone, including expert personal trainers, which is a feature difficult to come across in the app world.” FitnessBuilder for iPhone (free)

Which fitness apps do you rely on? Let us know in the comments!

Also read: In 2011: How Technology Shaped Health and Fitness

image credit: stryjek via shutterstock