Best Gym App for Apple Watch
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This story has been updated. You can read the latest version on the link below:
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SmartGym
http://smartgymapp.com
App Store Link:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smartgym/id922744883?ls=1&mt=8
Problem
We have amazing gyms around the world, but many have the same problem: a piece of paper they give us with all our routines and exercises. Some gyms give us the option to print ours everyday (terrible for the environment), others have our routines printed once and then put it inside a plastic bag so it doesn’t get torn out. And others leave it up to us to figure out how we will access them.
But the majority of places that at least try to help us with something, is still using a piece of paper, which is a terrible experience. You need to keep holding it the entire time while working out. Sometimes you lose it, rip it, torn it apart. It sucks!
The problem here is that the solution to this problem (smartphone’s apps), is not the best solution. Most of them try to pack every feature they can, making the entire experience terrible for the user. Or they put a huge Ad eating a good chunk of the device’s screen.
But to be honest, I don’t think that smartphones in general are the best solution to this problem. Think about it. They don’t track our heart rate or calories burn, they constantly distract us, we always need to find a place to put it, if you are a man you probably have pockets, but if you are a woman you need to find a way around it. Some put inside their waist, which might damage the phone, others use an armband, which is extremely uncomfortable, specially when using Plus sized iPhones.
The good news is that Apple has already solved this problem. To me, the Apple Watch is the ultimate Gym device. It’s extremely focused, always strapped to our wrist, comfortable to use and it also keeps track of our heart rate, calories and distance. That’s the reason why I created SmartGym and why I really focused on the Watch experience.
Goal
My goal with SmartGym was to focus on some specific tasks and implement them better than any other app in the market.
When working out at the gym, we need to get all the info we want as fast as we can, without much work and without getting distracted by warnings, popups, and things that get into the way between us and the info we want.
My goal was to make everything extremely easy to use, simple, intuitive, fast, enjoyable and gorgeous.
So I focused in some key componentes that I think are the most important when working out: Routines, History, Measures and an Apple Watch app. That’s it.
What is SmartGym then?
First things first. Let’s talk about what SmartGym is NOT. SmartGym is not a substitute for a personal trainer nor it is a Swiss Army knife. It doesn’t try to do everything, or tell you what to do. It won’t workout in your place and keep you fit, while you drink Milk Shakes and eat french fries. Or make you lose 50 pounds with a tap of a button.
SmartGym is a tool, a beautiful, and easy to use tool, to help you with your workouts. Simple and straight to the point. And after using it for a while, you will see that’s the beauty of it.
SmartGym was created to help everyone that goes to the gym. Those that use a piece of paper or the notes app to keep track of their data. Or even use some ugly, hard to use, ad supported apps.
Keep track of your body data
With SmartGym, you can start a Workout session that will keep track of your heart rates, distance and calories burned. All these informations will count towards your activity rings and will be saved into the Health app, so you can access any time.
It’s really simple to start a workout session. You can tap Start Workout or use Siri (more on this below). Once you’re done, just tap the End button to stop the session. SmartGym will show you the summary of your session, show you your Activity Rings and will give you the option to save or discard it.
Health and Activity apps integration
SmartGym is fully integrated with Apple’s Health App. All your workouts and body data are automatically synced as soon as you do them. All your measurements are also synced.
Activity Rings
Yes!! SmartGym supports and count towards your Activity Rings! We love those rings. We think they are a great motivator system, specially after Apple added the socials features in watchOS 3. So rest assured, every sweat you drop while using SmartGym will help you beat your friends!
It doesn't require your iPhone to be near
Another great feature about SmartGym's Apple Watch app, is that it doesn't require the iPhone to be near. After you've synced all your routines with the Watch, you are good to go.
All your heart rates, calories burned and distance will be automatically synced with your iPhone the next time both devices are near each other. Or if your Gym has Wi-Fi, then the Watch will be constantly syncing with your phone.
Your SmartGym progress will also be synced. So every exercise marked as done or any new History entry will be automatically synced.
Routines
You can create and add all your routines to SmartGym. It comes with over 240 pre-installed exercises with simple but gorgeous animations and allows you to add as many more as you want. So if you do some exercise that is not already inside SmartGym’s data base, you can simply add it and even add some images to it (SmartGym even search the web for you to give you nice pictures to add).
You can add notes, days the routine should be performed, goals, stretches, resting timers for each exercise and much more.
A cool thing about Routines is that you can send yours to a friend that doesn’t know how to create one. Or, if you are the friend who doesn’t know how to create a routine, you can get one from those who do. :)
After you setup your routines on the iPhone, it will automatically sync with your Apple Watch. After that, you're good to go. No need to even take your phone to the gym with you. You can leave it on the bag and go workout with just your Apple Watch.
Resting Timer and Sets' Counter
With SmartGym you can add custom resting timers to each exercise. When the timer is done, a notification sound and a haptic feedback will be played to alert you that your rest is over and it's time for the next set.
One of the most common problem while working out is getting lost on which set we are currently at. To help with this, SmartGym’s timers are completely integrated with a sets’ counter. This means that every time the timer ends, the counter gets incremented by one, showing you that you’ve just completed it. This way, we can get lost on our thoughts, while never forgetting which set we were.
Siri
One of the best things about an Apple Watch app is how fast you can do things. With a few seconds, and a tap or two you get all the information you need.
But it can be a lot better. What if we could do what we want, without even tapping the device? That’s where Siri kicks in.
Without even opening the app, you can for example say: “Hey Siri, Start Today’s Workout on SmartGym”. And with your voice SmartGym will automatically launch, start the workout session and find the appropriate routine of the day (because it knows which day is today and which routine you should be doing), and put right in front of you. All without even touching the device.
You could also specify the name of the routine, i.e: “Hey Siri, Start Routine A3 on SmartGym” or “Hey Siri, Start my Cardio Workout on SmartGym” and SmartGym will get the right routine for you.
History and Measures
Although having your history and your measures are not really that important on your wrist, it’s really handy to have those information right on the Watch. Specially since it doesn’t get into the way of other most important features.
Get it on the App Store!
If you like SmartGym, you can get it now on the App Store: htts://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smartgym/id922744883?ls=1&mt=8
