The apps and methods in this article make it easier than ever to track your workouts and exercise routines. However, you will also need to track other data on your fitness journey. For example, diet matters more than exercise if you’re trying to lose weight, so you must log your calorie intake. If you exercise outdoors, you might also want to log weather conditions and how they affected the workout. Log data as much as possible, and over time, you’ll find clear patterns to help you meet your fitness goals.

Strong​ (iOS, Android) 7.5/10

Progress charts visualize your strength gains over time, making it easy to spot plateaus or identify when you need a deload week. The exercise-centric design means you always see your complete history for a movement. When you’re about to squat, you see every squat session you’ve logged, not just the ones from your current program.

Best for Garmin Users

If you just want to log sets and see if you’re getting stronger, don’t overcomplicate it with an app designed for professional athletes. Look for apps that prominently display your one-rep max (1RM) and make it easy to calculate percentages for percentage-based programs like 5/3/1 or conjugate training. If your primary goal is getting stronger on the big three lifts (squat, bench, deadlift), you need an app that makes tracking progressive overload dead simple. Setgraph and Strong both excel here, letting you quickly see your previous numbers and aim to beat them. This works well for people who don’t want to think about program design.

Body Measurements and Tracker

• Fitness22 Running Distance Tracker is exactly what the name implies.
• Apple Watch integration is common among iOS workout apps, with varying levels of functionality.
• Most lifters don’t need AI coaching if they already follow a program, making mid-tier subscriptions the sweet spot for value.
• Which app you choose should support your immediate goals and be easy enough to use that logging becomes a habit.
• Strong’s Watch app lets you log sets and start rest timers without pulling out your phone.
• Wrap up your workout week with Stronger’s unique fitness challenges – from lifting the weight of a T-Rex to a crocodile.

Finish a set, start the timer, and get a notification when it’s time for your next set. You can even log your next set directly from the notification without opening the app. Strong built its reputation on being the digital replacement for Starting Strength and StrongLifts 5×5 programs.

Nike Training Club

Plus, the app has a friendly interface and a vibrant community of users that are always willing to help. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced lifter, GymWorkout is the best gym tracker app to help you stay on top of your game. After testing dozens of options and analyzing user experiences across iOS and Android, we’ve ranked the best workout tracker apps that balance powerful features with ease of use. Whether you’re into weight lifting, strength training, or general fitness, these workout tracking apps will help you track your progress and reach your goals faster. Setgraph stands apart from other workout tracker apps by prioritizing speed above all else – both for logging sets and accessing your past performance data.

J&J Official 7 Minute Workout

We also prioritized effectiveness, favoring thoughtfully programmed workouts and motivating instructors who provide clear guidance and encourage users to stick with their routines. A seamless, intuitive interface was another key factor, making it easy to navigate classes, track progress, and stay engaged. You can use it for various exercise styles, including bodybuilding, cardio, running, and whatever else, really.

Instead of relying on memory or notebooks, a fitness log app records sets, reps, weights, and more all from your smartphone. With so many options available today, it’s easier than ever to find an exercise log app tailored to your routine. Beginners may see fast changes, but progress slows as you become more advanced. It can take several months or years to see significant changes in muscle size and strength. Weightlifting is just one aspect of a healthy fitness routine, and a well-balanced diet and cardio exercise are also important.

The Benefits of Using a Fitness App Versus a Gym Membership

The Nutrisense app works with continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) to provide insights into blood sugar management and help you optimize your health. Using a CGM for fitness training allow you to make informed decisions about lifestyle choices like your fitness regime by providing real-time data on blood sugar levels. Logging your workouts shouldn’t be hard, and should be smarter than using a pencil and a notebook. See your previous weights, use automatic rest timers, RPE, plate calculators and more.

Start with a free option to establish the habit of logging workouts. Hevy or FitNotes provide everything you need without financial commitment. After a few months of consistent tracking, you’ll understand which features matter to you and whether premium apps justify their cost. You can log running, cycling, or rowing with duration and distance. However, dedicated cardio apps like Strava or Runkeeper provide better features for endurance training.

JEFIT: Massive Exercise Library

You can analyze it in spreadsheets, migrate to different apps, or keep it archived indefinitely. Apps without export functionality essentially hold your data hostage. The Hevy Pro subscription, which unlocks unlimited routine storage, advanced charts, and more, costs $3.99/month, $23.99/year, or a one-time lifetime purchase. Strong offers a functional free version with unlimited workouts.

A 2025 Lifehacker article suggests free apps are sufficient for basic tracking, while paid versions enhance motivation and planning. A single tap initiates your workout, and as you exercise, log weight or reps for strength training, and minutes or distance for cardio. Plus, the beautiful calendar view stores all your workouts for easy navigation, making it one of the best gym workout tracker apps. BurnFit is an excellent workout planner and is unimeal legit analyzer designed to help users achieve their fitness goals. With its user-friendly features and customizable programs, BurnFit empowers individuals to get stronger, build muscle, and enhance athleticism.

Hevy Coach

This means your strength training workouts contribute to your daily activity goals. For bodybuilders who want to focus purely on training performance without the extra features, Setgraph’s streamlined approach might actually be preferable. The best app to log workout for beginners needs to balance simplicity with guidance. The rest timer integration keeps you honest about recovery between sets.

Best workout app there is

To create a routine, go to the workout tab and tap ‘New routine.’ Then add all the exercises you desire, organize them, then add the number of sets, weight, duration, and reps. An app that focuses on fitness plans and tracking to help you reach your goals, Sworkit makes for a lovely workout companion. The app features a massive range of exercises and workouts, and you can customize workouts to find something that suits you best. The paid version adds trainer support and is relatively affordable. Hevy combines workout logging with social features, letting you follow friends, share workouts, and compete on leaderboards. If you’re motivated by community and friendly competition, this approach works well.

My husband, who’s an avid cyclist, mentioned that Strava also connects directly with bike computers and indoor road bike trainers like Zwift. Because I don’t bike enough to have that fancy schmancy equipment, I didn’t test either of these features—though I can see why they would be a huge plus for cyclists. Strong has helped millions of people in over 100 countriescomplete over 15 million workouts. Strong has helped millions of people in over 100 countries complete over 30 million workouts. Nike Training Club (also known as NTC) initially made its workout app free during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has remained entirely free since. Our support team in Sweden will answer your questions most often on the same day, especially Monday through Friday.

Load it up to follow your progress or compete with previous accomplishments as you continue along your fitness journey. One might ultimately call the Venu 3S a perfect everyday smartwatch in that it covers ample ground and looks downright sleek in the process. Its battery life of up to 14 days makes the Samsung Galaxy seem wimpy by comparison, while the slew of health functions puts it on par with Fitbit. There’s also support for a full spectrum of platforms and functions, such as music subscriptions, smartphone connectivity (for calls), Garmin Pay, and more.

Health

In short, it’s everything that Garmin should have included in their strength training feature, but didn’t. I can see my strength training history on a calendar (without any runs or other workouts cluttering it up), view my most recent workouts, and see charts of my progress on each lift. Viewing a strength workout after the fact has never been super easy in the Garmin app.

Custom Programmed Workouts for Garmin Watches

On the first day, I completed an AMRAP (as many reps as possible) workout to set benchmarks. At the end of the program, Garmin prompts users to repeat this workout to take stock of their progress. Remember to stay dedicated and gradually challenge yourself with more difficult exercises. With the support of Garmin technology and the right approach to your workout tracking, you have the tools to reach new levels of strength and achieve the results you desire. Start tracking your strength training on Garmin today and embark on a journey towards a stronger, healthier you.

Download my custom strength training workouts.

With its slim bezel, large AMOLED display, and built-in LED flashlight, the Garmin Fenix 8 offers the best in wearability and legibility alike. This one is built to last in all kinds of ways, complete with a battery life of up to 29 days and the ability to plunge underwater to up to 100 metres. Pair it via Bluetooth with your Android or iOS smartphone and you can use the integrated mic and speaker for on-wrist calling. Comparatively, Garmin Connect feels much less intuitive, both in terms of creating custom strength workouts and engaging with the community. The process is more time-consuming, and there’s not much in the way of gym-specific feedback or community-driven features.

How to Connect Your Apps in Peloton App Settings

Beginners do well when beginning with stabilization training and progressing over time from there. Others may find it more appropriate to incorporate other phases of training, depending on their experience, fitness level and training goals. The Vivoactive 6 is one of Garmin’s more lifestyle-oriented models, offering a balance between everyday smartwatch functionality and robust fitness tracking.

ONVY — AI Health Coach

Garmin devices can track various strength exercises, including weightlifting, to help you monitor your progress. The app counts the reps and shows you animated images and heart rates. The Workout Time + sync data with the Garmin Connect app in real-time so you can see the performance after workouts.

• For me, the main ones are a lack of in-built GPS (so you’ll need to bring your phone with you on outdoor workouts) and limited workout modes (half the amount of the Garmin Forerunner 55).
• When you’re running, this means the watch can detect when you’re going up a hill and recognise that you’ll be putting in a harder effort while doing so.
• LiftTrack’s underlying features, like the ability to sync a workout to your calendar, are features Garmin has had all along.
• It makes it one of the longest-lasting watches in Garmin’s lineup, while providing a significant advantage over other mainstream smartwatches.
• Someone who takes strength classes and yoga on Peloton during the week but tracks a Saturday morning trail run through Garmin Connect had no path to preserve their streak.
• What’s perhaps most impressive about this watch, aside from the design and suite of features, is the battery life.

Strength Training Integration with Hevy App & Improved Workout Tracking Experience

Also, this isn’t just a personal opinion—this topic has been brought up frequently on Reddit and other fitness communities, often with frustration over Garmin’s current strength features and lack of third-party support. For people outside the Garmin ecosystem, you might look at Whoop, which has incorporated learning from its acquisition of PUSH, a velocity-based strength company. The Clip Out is an independent Peloton news site with reporting, analysis, and community is mad muscles good insights. We deliver breaking updates, feature reporting, and expert context on the stories driving the community and the industry. Our weekly podcast offers deeper conversation and perspective, and you can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, TuneIn, and YouTube Music.

Audemars Piguet x Swatch Ditches the Wrist With Colourful Bioceramic Pocket Watches

Built-in full-color maps, turn-by-turn directions, dynamic round-trip routing, ClimbPro, and Up Ahead make the watch just as useful on unfamiliar trails as it is for neighborhood miles. Many of us just want a sturdy smartwatch that tracks with accuracy, fits comfortably, and doesn’t cost a small fortune, and the Forerunner 165 is that smartwatch. High functionality at a reasonable price is the name of its game and an AMOLED touchscreen display is part of the deal. If value is what you seek, then your journey for the best Garmin smartwatch stops here. Based on that history, LiftTrack can then update your next workout, recommending that you go a little heavier if you were able to lift more than expected last week.

What Each Connected App Brings to Your Streak

Add exercises, set weights and reps, and organize your routine exactly how you want it. Build custom workouts in seconds, sync to your Garmin watch, and track your progress. While you can add a created workout to your Garmin Connect calendar, I fail to see its utility. This scheduling lacks specific times and does not synchronize with my Google Calendar.

Built for real training

Peloton’s guide to syncing with Garmin Connect walks through the setup process in detail, including how to grant the Write to Garmin Connect permission for two-way data flow. When you connect a supported app or device through Peloton app settings under Connected Apps and Devices, activities from those platforms can automatically import into your Peloton profile. Once imported, those activities count toward your Peloton streak, as well as your goals and challenges. That meant anyone who completed a run tracked through Garmin Connect, a walk logged through Apple Health, or any activity recorded outside the Peloton app had to accept that day as a streak-breaker. If you are new to strength training and want to get started using your Garmin device, it’s important to begin with a safe and effective program.

Kristine has competed in every distance triathlon from sprint and Olympic to half and full Ironman races, even earning a spot to race in the 2012 Age Group National Championship Olympic Triathlon. Stephen Warwick is TechRadar’s Fitness & Wearables writer with nearly a decade of experience covering technology, including five years as the News Editor of iMore. He’s a keen fitness enthusiast and is never far from the local gym, Apple Watch at the ready, to record his latest workout. Stephen has experience writing about every facet of technology including products, services, hardware, and software. He’s covered breaking news and developing stories regarding supply chains, patents and litigation, competition, politics and lobbying, the environment, and more.

Setting your favourite dock apps

A former Apple Watch App of the Year winner, Gentler Streak is an app for workouts, well-being, and sleep with a focus harna reviews on a softer, lighter approach to health and wellness. It’s designed to make regular exercise sustainable, with no guilt-edged streaks. It features sleep analysis, menstrual cycle tracking, activity, and more, with over 140 activities to choose from.

How we test the best running apps

Check out our Apple Watch Challenge Apps Guide for the top apps that make fitness social and fun. Basically, if you’re staring enviously at Garmin’s training readiness scores, this is a way to get something similar on Apple’s smartwatch. Hopefully, this article gave you a better idea of how to make the most of your Apple Watch for running and maybe even made you a little curious about considering a running watch in the future. It’s a break from scrolling on your phone and constantly being pinged.

Nike Run Club (NRC)

However, to track all running details, you’d better use your iPhone to display routes, distance, pace, heart rate, active calories etc. Maybe some people dislike the fact that you need to bring your iPhone with you for Bluetooth connection, if you to listen to music while running. In return though, you’ll get a very slick, feature-rich app to cover all of your runs and can turn the Apple Watch into more of a race-ready smartwatch. Strava is one of the most popular fitness apps on the iPhone, and it works really well on the Apple Watch too.

Whether you’re stopping at a traffic light, snapping a photo of some wildflowers, or need a potty stop, it’s easy to get distracted and forget to tap that resume button. If your pacing ever starts to feel off or the distance doesn’t seem right, you can always go into your settings and select Reset Fitness Calibration Data to start fresh. One of the best features is that there’s no monthly or yearly charge to use Garmin Connect.

Not as good as their website for tracking, but I like it

Regardless of the distance you’re training for, we have the right plan for you. Train for any race, from a 5k to an ultramarathon, or simply try out our maintenance or get fit plans until you figure out your next goal. There is also a leaderboard called segment leaderboard listing the best runs on popular stretches of road in the app.

Nike Run Club — Get Started Plan (4 weeks)

Perfect for runners looking to get started, with easy-to-follow plans to get you running 5km in nine weeks. If you’re looking for an Apple Watch app to start your running journey, Watch to 5K is a great app to ease you into things. It’s an app designed to provide an easy-to-follow plan that will help you run your first 5km run in nine weeks.

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With the companion Apple Watch app you can see your stats at a glance, including how many calories you’ve consumed, nutrient breakdown, and the calories you’ve earned through activity. One of our writers tried using MyFitnessPal to record everything he ate for a week. Structured is an all-in-one day planner that combines a calendar, to-do list, and habit tracker into a single timeline. You can manage tasks, store thoughts, create notes, and break down projects into sub-tasks. On the Apple Watch, you’ll get a day plan, task management, and even a look at your Inbox of tasks and reminders. Of course, all this also syncs to your Mac, iPhone, and iPad as well.

None to Run — None to Run Beginner Plan (12 weeks)

Third, strength and mobility work is built right into the plan — C25K doesn’t include any. The trouble is that there is more to a running app than what happens on your wrist during a workout. At least as important are the stats you get afterward to analyze your progress. One of the first apps to introduce support for running without taking your iPhone in watchOS 2, Runtastic sadly lost its early lead — along with that feature.

Map My Run GPS Running Tracker

While the developer claims it’s a feature that they “don’t lock you in to a provider,” I personally want an app that is going to be tightly integrated with a service. It’s a great app, and some hardcore runners may prefer it, but it’s hard to recommend it over RunKeeper. If you have an iPhone 5s or newer, it can track your runs using the iPhone’s motion co-processor.

• If you decided to use a phone to track your distance and pace, you will want an app like the Nike Run app or MapMyRun.
• Download Runtopia in the Google Play store or on iOS to start earning rewards for your miles.
• These are iPhone apps that work with most Apple Watch series, including the Apple Watch SE.
• You can set a hydration goal for the day when you first set up the app.
• Structured is an all-in-one day planner that combines a calendar, to-do list, and habit tracker into a single timeline.
• Take the seemingly endless library of songs with you on your run to enjoy just about any music you could ever want on any Apple device.

Our personalized training plans for Apple Watch

People are bound to have different gadgets, so it’s important to know if the runner app suits everyone. You can look at each app to determine if it’s right for your Apple Watch and long-term goals. If you want to stream radio or music over the Internet directly from the watch then don’t plan on anything longer than 90mins battery life. If you want to have a certain playlist start as soon as you do, then set a Workout playlist. As long as nothing else is playing at the time, this playlist will start automatically when you begin running.

Runkeeper developed by FitnessKeeper is another running app for the Apple Watch. This running app for Apple Watch records a wide array of workouts including running, walking, biking, hiking, and more. The running Apple Watch app also lets you set goals regarding what you want to achieve, whether it’s losing a little bit of weight, run further, burn some calories, and more. While I am not the runner who loves a coach in my ear or needs the planned workouts, I did super enjoy those Headspace sessions which help you figure out a lot of the mental side of running. Meanwhile, he LOVES that the app tells him when to speed up, when to slow down and everything in between.