It’s definitely easy to fall off the workout wagon when you’re on the road—in a strange city, it’s not as simple as popping down the street to your gym or hitting your favorite trail. And can we talk about hotel gyms for a minute? With one treadmill shared between 100 different rooms, they sometimes leave a lot to be desired. Plus, if you’re used to working with a personal trainer, it’s rough to go without that guidance—unless you have the help of a digital trainer, that is.
These travel-friendly apps help you put together road-ready workouts, locate trails in your area, and even sign up to drop in on classes in town—without the help of a local tour guide. That means there’s no reason to feel homesick for your local gym, and no excuse to miss a day in your training routine.
If jogging is your thing, you’ll love this app, which not only tracks and logs your distance, pace and time, it also saves routes and comments from local runners who have done the circuit before. You can read through route reviews to find the perfect trail for you—it even notes where there’s a nearby water fountain or restroom so all the amenities are fully covered. It’s great if you feel a little uncertain about getting out by yourself in an unfamiliar city, or just want to recreate your daily 3.5-mile loop.
The same concept as MapMyRun, except built for those who take a more rugged approach. Using this app, you can search for paths all over the US—as well as in most of Western Europe, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and even Singapore. Their Route Genius lets you limit hikes by mileage, and you can save routes you’re interested in, so you can do all the planning from the plane beforehand.
If an outdoor workout is out of the question, Sworkit has got you covered. The free version allows you to create one customized workout from over 20 different videos from professional trainers. The instructions cover strength training, stretching, cardio, pilates, and yoga, so you can knock off every box in your fitness checklist.
Similarly, DailyBurn offers access to hundreds of professional workout videos, available for a monthly subscription fee. That works well if you tend to get inspired by dance or aerobic classes, since the wide variety of available exercises covers everything from Bollywood to calypso. The only downside is the $14.95 monthly fee, but it’s well worth it if you travel a lot.
But videos only go so far—especially if you thrive on the social aspect of fitness classes. However, if your travels frequently bring you to large cities like New York, Los Angeles, London, or Chicago, you can use ClassPass to find a studio that fits your requirements. The app locates instructors in 39 different cities across the world, including the UK, Canada, and Australia. You can even book your classes directly through the app, making it a one-stop fitness approach. And ClassPass integrates with the Apple Health app to record your workout and track your vitals while you sweat.
Nothing beats the familiarity of one-on-one training—but you can’t exactly take your trainer with you on vacation. With Fitness Trainer, you can get the next best thing, though: a local sub who will come to your hotel so your workout won’t have to skip a beat. The site lets you search through hundreds of professional trainer profiles in 30 different cities. Once you locate a profile that fits your requirements, you can book directly online and chat one-on-one with your trainer to nail down the details of your workout—there’s no need for your training to go on vacation, just because you are.
Your diet can definitely take a nosedive when you’re away from home. Even if you aren’t used to counting calories, meals at restaurants, drinks, and road trip snacks add up after a while. While there are plenty of calorie tracking apps out there, there are none that come close to LoseIt’s searchable database of restaurant menus, which makes it easy to track the precise calories and nutrients in everything you eat—even if you don’t make it yourself. It’s so useful, you may not want to break the habit once you come home!
Also, be sure to check out Better Me workout app reviews!
Jesse Silkoff is an avid runner and tennis player. He currently resides in Austin, TX where he works as the President and Co-Founder of FitnessTrainer, the leading online marketplace to find a local personal trainer that can help you achieve your health and wellness goals.
1 comment
The problem with these apps is that they are bodyweight or assume you have certain equipment. KINETICOACH was built specifically with the traveler in mind and solves that problem by building custom professional workouts based on the equipment and time you have available. If your hotel gym has a broken treadmill, dumbbells, a pool and an elliptical, KINETICOACH will give you workouts specific to this equipment and coach you with over 140 professional movement demos and videos. It is the most comprehensive travel workout app on the planet – a personal trainer in your phone.
AppStore.com/KINETICOACH
Custom Workouts, Zero Excuses. Especially when traveling.
Give it a shot and let us know your thoughts.