dukbtr

RunKeeper is the perfect Android app for anyone trying to stay fit and would like to track their routines. Let's get this out of the way first, RunKeeper is not just for runners. There are many activities to choose from, some of which are walking, biking, hiking, and various skiing. There are even selections for wheelchair and swimming, although I'm not to sure about the whole phone in the water thing.

You need to have an account at runkeeper.com for this app to work. It syncs all the activities you do up to the web to be view on your personal dashboard. There is no PRO version available on Android, although when looking at the missing features, you are not missing anything. Taken from the Apps website is a summary of the features (modified to get rid of the other smart phone's wording):





Activity Tracking
RunKeeper uses the GPS technology found on your phone to track your fitness activity, giving you comparable results to an expensive GPS watch at a fraction of the cost.


Personal Dashboard
Store all historical activities on runkeeper.com, where you can keep track of totals and monitor your progress.


Maps Integration
See the exact path you traveled on a map, both on the device and on our website.


Activity Sharing
Share your activities with friends via email, or by posting them to your favorite social sites, including Facebook and Twitter.

RunKeeper is simple to use. When you start the app, you just select what activity you plan on doing and push the start button. Plain and simple. You will then see the progress screen on your phone.



Along the top is a gray box with crossing rectangles. This lets you select the orientation of the app. You will also see Total elapsed time and if GPS is working. The two boxes on the right show the average MPH and the estimated calories burned.

In the middle you see a sort of graph representation of your progress. It is a good quick and easy way to see you speed. The blue bar is the one currently being updated and you can see underneath it your current pace (minutes/mile).

You also have a STOP and PAUSE button. Once you STOP the current activity you have the option to save, discard, or cancel. When you save the activity is when it gets upload to the RunKeeper website. You will also see a little button that takes you to the map. There you can see the route that you have taken.

When RunKeeper is stopped, along the top are two other tabs, Activity and Settings. Settings being self explanatory. The activity tab shows a summary of the past activities that the app has tracked. Clicking one reveals the entire log for that activity.

When you log into RunKeeper on the web, you can see all the activities in a bit more detail such as elevation and cross reference the points on the graph with where you were on the map. On the site is where you can also share your activities by Twitter, Facebook, or email. You can also upload to Google Earth.



There is also a section underneath the map to upload a heart rate if you own one of the approved Polar heart rate monitors.

So as you can see this Android App has all you need to track your workout activities, whatever they may be. Give RunKeeper a try, you won't be disappointed.

I have used it to track my walking/jogging sessions and with RunKeeper I know if I'm falling behind this session or if I can push it a little faster/further than last time.

sophia99

I think this is an awesome application. Because it does not only give a pleasant day but it also guides you to have a pleasant fitness. This will surely hit the consumers' attitudes in choosing the right way of exercise.

Last edited by sophia99; June 15th, 2010 at 04:19 AM.

dokjap091

is the distance/speed/pace accurate?

funpig

Reasonably accurate, totally dependent upon quality of satellite lock. I use GPS Status to get a good satellite fix before I run RunKeeper. I run the same 2 km route everyday and it usually gives the same distance +/-15 meters. On a bad satellite lock, the traced path zig zags and I can be off by about 100 - 200 meters.

I like the audio cues to let me know my pace, time and distance. And the recent update will automatically pause when I stop (which is great because I run with a dog and he poops; it saves me from fumbling with the phone in the rain). It is a simple relatively lightweight program which does what I need it to do. Some of the other apps are more sophisticated and complicated.