Today’s Top Five Fitness Apps for Smartphones

Getting fit is easier to do with the help of two crucial elements: a strategy and accountability. Smartphone apps make it easy to both create a specific plan of attack and to find accountability – whether it’s accountability to an online community or simply to yourself.

We’ve searched the Twittersphere high and low to find these five apps that can truly get results.

Hot5

This video-based app features pages and pages of five-minute workout videos that look sleek and modern, open and display quickly and effortlessly – and feature exercises suitable for a variety of age and fitness levels. The best part – Hot5 is free to download and use.

GymPact

How’s this for being held accountable? GymPact asks you to consider how much money you’d be willing to risk if you don’t reach a self-specified fitness goal. If you fail to reach your goal, your credit card gets charged. Reach your goal and no worries!

My Fitness Pal

This app makes tracking you daily caloric and nutritional intake easy. Enter and search for foods in the app’s database, scan barcodes of products you purchase and find the nutritional information of meals at your favorite restaurants. This free app connects to a larger community of users and invites open communication for inspiration, motivation and accountability.

Run Keeper

Track your runs, walks or bike rides using the GPS system in your smartphone. RunKeeper allows you to view detailed reports in an easy-to-use layout and tracks your progress over time. This free app can also offer up real-time coaching by providing audible updates on your pace, time, distance and more.

Zombies, Run! 2

Let’s face it, even those among who genuinely enjoy working out can sometimes fall into a rut and get a little bored by the experience. That’s exactly where this fun and irreverent app comes in. This app integrates games and stories into your workout as you run to complete missions, save fellow humans or escape from hordes of the undead. It’s a clever way to make your next run a little more colorful.