Various Contrivances

There’s a bewildering array of fitness apps out there. Here’s an attempt to document what I’m currently using.

I have some criteria when considering a fitness app:

1. Available on the Apple Watch, ideally as a first class app, rather than just presenting data from the phone
2. Suitable for multisport. I’ll consider a highly specialized app, though prefer one that covers at least running, cycling, and swimming
3. Consolidated and local data. I prefer one location for all of the data and certainly not locked into a web service

With these in mind, my current portfolio of fitness apps is:

• Apple Health stores all of my data. Not really an app, rather this is the foundational data store that integrates across all sources
• The Apple Workout app records my workouts. Although there are some better, specialized apps, pressing the Action Button on my Ultra and starting a workout is so convenient that I’m sticking with Workout. The onscreen stats on the watch are more than sufficient for my needs
• HealthFit is for viewing workout data and general fitness trends. I prefer HealthFit’s details to Apple Health’s. As the screenshots below demonstrate, HealthFit provides useful overviews of everything I’ve done recently. I also use HealthFit to selectively send completed workouts to Strava

• Strava is for my local community. Seeing what my friends are up to and cheering them on is part of staying motivated for the training. Strava does have a good set of statistics and summaries. Overall, though, I prefer HealthFit’s design and privacy
• Recover sends me targeted mobility and recovery sessions, based on my recent activity. This is the only reason I’m currently paying for a Strava subscription. However, Strava is rather expensive if this is all I’m paying for and Recover breaks principles 1 and 3. So, I don’t think this one will last much longer
• Training Peaks is exclusively for getting workouts from my coach. There’s way more potential with this app. I’m just not using any of it
• Training Today keeps track of my readiness to train. I’ve written about it before and still consult it regularly
• Zwift Companion is well named. I use it to join Zwift events and as a second screen while Zwifting.

That’s currently it for the portfolio. Being able to consolidate all of my data into Apple Health really frees me up to try new apps without worrying about data lock in. Despite this freedom, I’m comfortable with the current set and don’t plan to switch things up anytime soon.