A little comparison today on a couple of health/fitness sites/apps...
First, for tracking food and exercise, it's myfitnesspal.com vs livestrong.com.
I've used
livestrong.com for tracking my food intake and exercise for about three years--here and there (whenever I did track my food and exercise during those three years). I liked it fine. I mean, there's nothing exciting or glamorous about tracking one's food intake or exercise but, for what it is,
livestrong.com was fine.
This time around, I've decided to give
myfitnesspal.com a go and I really do like it so much better. It seems more user friendly than
livestrong.com and I like the way it shows you what you've done. I also like how easy it is to find your friends on there and leave them messages- it's so nice to know we're not alone.
The only thing I like better about
livestrong.com is that their data base is far better than the one on
myfitnesspal.com. Regardless, I'm sticking with the latter.
Both sites offer apps for your phone which is great. I still like the
myfitnesspal app better- it's free and user friendly--and that's that.
Next, the running trainer apps situation. These things are driving me nuts.
The first one I tried out was the Personal Running Trainer. I looked at the ones for 1 mile and 5k. It was ok although the guy talked my ear off before it was time to start the warm up. Seriously, I don't want to hear all that crap, let's just get started. You can use your own playlist on this one- which is ok but all my playlists are on my dead ZUNE and I haven't quite gotten all this worked out on my phone or my iPod. So, I use Pandora for running. Anyway, when it's time to switch from walking to running or running to walking, I do like that the numbers and buttons are large enough to see without my glasses--HUGE plus. This app also keeps your schedule for you. BUT, if you want DAY 2, you must PAY for this FREE app. It's only like $2.00 but that's not the point. It's advertised as a free app but, to get past DAY 1, you must pay for it. Seriously guys, let's be honest up front for a change. Also, the dude just talks too much throughout- when it's time to change AND the voice volume is so low you might miss him telling you to stop or start something.
The second app I tried was Learn to Run. There are two problems with this one that make it not the one for me- even though it really is free. 1. You can't hear the sound for stopping/starting your running or walking and 2. When you walk, the music doesn't play-and it has to be your own playlist. The music also doesn't play when your session is complete nor does the app let you know (ok, so that's really 3 problems). You just have to figure that out. No thanks.
I'm on my third app now and, after just the first day, I think this is the one I will stick with. It's the C25k app. This app lets you listen to your own playlists OR Pandora and it's user friendly. Really, the only thing I don't like about this app is that the volume on the signal to switch from walking to running is so low it's difficult to hear. This seems to be a problem with all three of the apps. Actually, if you read the user comments on the running trainer apps, it seems they all have this problem. Regardless, this one has nearly all I want in a running trainer app so I'm sticking with it.
Of course, they all offer a 'Pro' version which runs only about $1.99 but, so far, I see no need to upgrade. And the Learn to Run and C25k apps don't try to trick you into upgrading like the Personal Running Trainer does.
It just boils down to personal preference so give them a try and use the one that works best for you!
Anyone tried a different site/app that works well?
