Fitness review -- FitStar app

Hot on the heels of the Superhero Workout review, here's a review of FitStar!

I've been using FitStar for more than half a year now, on and off. I put it on the back burner when I started running more as I needed the energy to spare, but it's really one of my favorite fitness apps of all time.

FitStar is almost like having your own personal trainer in your house, apart from the yelling and the slight embarrassment as you try to eke out your last pushup. As with Superhero Workout, all exercises are bodyweight-based circuits and the only equipment you may need is a chair and a pull-up bar at higher levels.

First of all, the cost. The app itself is free, and comes with 2 sessions a week as well as unlimited free Freestyle sessions a week. Only some Freestyle sessions are free, though they're enough to get you started and give you a taste of the full app. It's up to you how you spread out the 2 sessions, as the app will lock you out when you complete the second one in a week. You unlock the entire app by paying a subscription fee of $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year, which gets you all of the Freestyle sessions as well as unlimited workouts a week.

Just some of the Freestyle sessions available

There are a total of 4 programs for you to choose from as a paid subscriber. The free app comes with Get Moving (easy 2 sessions a week), and the rest are Get Strong, Daily Dose (conditioning), and Get Lean. Each are of varying lengths and have a different ratio of cardio to strength moves.

As you work out in your chosen program, the app will begin tailoring itself to you. You'll begin with a Fitness Test, which includes a couple of basic, easy to do moves. Although each separate move isn't customizable, when you finish a move, the app will ask you how many you completed and how hard it was for you to complete. Too easy, and the app will give you more time/reps for the move or bump you up to a harder move; too hard, and the app will ease off on that move. Unfortunately, you can't get rid of or substitute a move if it's impossible to do (no equipment, no space, bad joints, can't figure out how to do it); all you can do is skip it or do something else while the timer counts down.

Tap on a move for a video showing you correct form

Post-move rating screen

Note: Freestyle sessions do not progress/regress with you; they are there to provide some variety/targeted training. I believe the ratings you give during Freestyle sessions will carry over to your normal sessions, though.

The app works out with you by showing you a video of someone doing the move, with Tony Gonzales as your coach. The videos are great for teaching form and pace -- strength exercises are not meant to be done in a flash! You can opt to turn voice coaching off, but I like to be reminded of my form sometimes, as well as how to modify the exercise to be harder or easier. In the latest version, they've added audio ticks to help you count the reps in case you're not able to see the screen during certain moves. You can also play music during your session and can choose either the tracks included with the app, your own playlist, or silence.

Tony showing you noobs how to "Air Jump Rope"

They have also added a challenge mode so that you can challenge yourself or your friends to burn more calories, do more sessions, or complete more minutes in a month. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten it to work for me, so I can't really say anything about it. It's already a challenge for me to keep my "progress bar" full!

My sorry progress bar... (that red thing around my picture)

Challenge modes

In a nutshell:
This is probably THE best app for beginners wanting to work out at home or for people who don't have time or money to go to a gym. While $5 a month seems hefty for an app, it's really nothing compared to a gym membership. Form, rate, and coaching are all included even in the free version, which includes plenty for a beginner. One thing I do wish they would include is pre/post-workout stretches, but those are easy enough to find online. The paid membership also comes with email coaching regarding nutrition, which I don't personally follow, given that I'm on a ketogenic diet, but has some decent advice about sports nutrition.

PS. They're also coming out with a FitStar Yoga soon. For those of us who hate sticking our butts out during Downward Dog at the gym, rejoice!

If you'd like to try out FitStar Premium at no cost, just download the app and use my referral code Q3HCUE. You'll get a free week to try out all the sessions you like! When I started they didn't have a referral program, so I just took the plunge and subscribed, and I haven't looked back.

FitStar homepage

Questions? Comments? Hit me up below!

Have a couple bucks to spare? Help fuel my fitness obsession! All the money goes back into content for you!

After a long hiatus... the Superhero Workout!

Hello my lovelies,

After a long hiatus when life caught up to me (and it is still catching up with me), I bring you all a new post -- a review of the Superhero Workout! It's a brand spanking new (out this afternoon in the US) app from the UK company Six to Start, who brought us such lovely games such as Zombies, Run! (see previous post) and The Walk (review coming soon!).

Summary:

Superhero Workout is an innovative iPhone/iPad/iPod fitness game/app (fitgapp?) that works by tracking your movements with the iP camera. It costs $4.99 in the iTunes store.

When you first start the game, you'll see a couple of introductory screens such as the ones seen above. Once you scroll through them you are taken to the main screen:

There are three modes available: Story, Pre-made Workouts, and Battle (Endless) Workout. The Story mode plays story clips while you work out and are tailored to each move, which will be familiar to the players of Zombies, Run! In the story, you're the pilot of a suit called Aegis-One, and you're on a mission to save the galaxy and humanity with your killer planks and squats. I mean, missiles and mental fortitude, of course. Fans of ZR! and The Walk will also recognize some familiar voices from those preview Six to Start games.

The pre-made workouts are designed for when you don't have enough time for a story mode, or want to target certain areas of the body. There is no story or talking during these workouts.

I didn't try the endless workout, but it's basically a "build your own" in case you have a certain type of workout you already do, or just want to have some fun/don't want to do burpees.

Workouts generally last anywhere from 7 minutes to about half an hour. Each move is around 30 seconds or 10-12 reps, depending on the move. I'm guessing that moves that are harder to track with the camera are done by time (as many as you can). All exercises are bodyweight only, so no weights are required -- at most it requires things you can find around the house, like a chair or a wall ;)

Review:
First of all, I would actually not recommend this app to absolute beginners. Since this is the very first day and nearly the first hour of release, I'm sure more features will be added later that may bring this closer to a "newbie" app. To get to the Why:

-1. The workouts are INTENSE. You're given about 10 seconds of rest between each move, and the moves can range from an easy shadowbox session to pushups to burpees. I'm in slightly below average physical shape and I could barely get through the first story episode (and only with a lot of cheating...)

1. There are no pointers to how you should be doing these exercises, neither in the tutorial nor in the pre-made workouts. Since a lot of these moves require perfect form, it's crucial that beginners know how to do them correctly so that they don't hurt themselves.

2. A lot of the moves are not suited for beginners, especially those who are overweight, have joint problems, or are physically challenged. The app does not have a mode to modify these exercises, such as knee push-ups instead of regular push-ups or "cheater" burpees (only a squat jump, or plank instead of push up) instead of regular burpees.

3. Some of the wireframes are a little deceiving, especially for the uppercuts. Sometimes the wireframe will only show one arm doing the motion instead of both.

Motion tracking:
The motion tracking in this game is actually not that bad. It's no Kinect, for sure, but for a $5 app you could do much worse. It will accidentally count nearly any sort of motion instead of the full move, but then, someone just waving their arm in front of the camera is only cheating themselves. I wouldn't 100% count on the motion tracking for an accurate rep count, but it can act as a good meter for how well you're doing.

Tips:
1. You'll notice that the game never directly asks you for your weight. This can be done on the Settings screen, to adjust for calories.

2. Beginners who want to use this app anyway should look up how to do some of the moves on YouTube. It's essential for them to learn perfect form before starting bodyweight/strength programs, and not doing moves correctly can cause injury.

3. The app requires about 2 meters of space from you to the screen, and then the moves require about a yoga mat's length of space. Some routines require a chair/box and a wall. I would suggest finding a surface about coffee table height and just leaving the device there, as it can be really annoying having to move the iPad around.

4. The app does require for your device to be mostly upright, so an iPad would work better than an iPhone, unless if you have one of those cute iPhone stands lying around.

What I'm hoping to see in future iterations:
1. A built-in music player for the pre-made workout and endless workout sessions. I personally don't really care about music when I do bodyweight routines, but I know a lot of people would appreciate it.

2. A moves list that teaches you how to do each move. Almost every other fitness app worth using has this, so I'm sure it's in the works.

3. Graphics that look a little more interactive during story mode couldn't hurt.

4. An "easy" mode/modified move mode for people who are just starting out.

In essence:
It's a fun, gamified way to get more exercise into your day, if you've fallen out of the habit or want to get into the habit. Right now, it's pretty bare-bones, but knowing Six to Start they'll find a way to improve it above and beyond other fitness apps out there. The voice acting is excellent, the modes are great, and it's a really intense workout. Couple of tweaks needed for newbies, but other than that, it's an amazing start.

Superhero Workout is available for Apple users to download now on the iTunes store, and is coming soon for Android.

Superhero Workout homepage
Six to Start homepage

Have something to share? Questions about the app? Feel free to comment on this post!