Tracking your workouts is one of the best ways to evaluate your progress, see tangible results, and stick with an exercise regimen. That’s one reason apps like MyFitnessPal and MapMyRun are so popular — they make it easy to chart everything from your calorie intake to your runs and rides.
Historically, it’s been more difficult to chart strength workouts, especially those involving multiple exercises. But now, with MyFitnessPal’s Workout Routines feature, you can track your most intricate workouts, and even take trainer-led classes in the comfort of your home.
WHAT IS WORKOUT ROUTINES?
Workout Routines was created to help everyone — from novice to elite athletes — better track their unique workouts, including sport-specific exercises and programs covering multiple disciplines.
“We wanted to make things less generic and more tailored to exactly what you’re doing,” says Scott Laing, senior director of product at MyFitnessPal. “Workout Routines gives you the tools to track your custom workouts. It also gives you guidance on what you can do, including videos that show you how to do the exercises properly. It’s very similar to what you’d get in a fitness class.”
Currently, the exercise database features more than 1,000 exercises, from low-impact bodyweight moves to Olympic lifts.
HOW TO USE IT
To get started, simply open MyFitnessPal, hit the blue plus sign at the bottom of the screen, and click “Exercise.” Now, you’ll see Workout Routines as an option next to Cardio and Strength.
You can get as creative as you want, and build workout routines with all your favorite exercises and variations, while also including details like sets, reps and time. Each routine you create is saved into My Routines, where you can see stats like calories burned and the total volume of weight lifted. You can also go into My Routines to quickly pull up any of your past workouts, should you want to complete them again.
If you’d rather follow an instructor’s lead, there are already 90-plus pre-built workouts you can filter by style, duration and ability. Examples include full-body burn, dumbbell HIIT circuits, core and even modified chair workouts that build foundational strength. There’s something for everyone, and more workouts are being added each week, so check back often.
THE BENEFITS
If you’re going to exercise, you might as well do it right. Under Armour’s team of pro trainers works with Olympians and elite athletes, so you can trust it to guide the app’s workout content. Each time you complete a workout, you’ll be following a lot of the same regimens these athletes are doing — from warmup to cooldown — and you’ll do it all with proper techniques to help you get the most out of every move.
Workout Routines is also a social feature. You can easily share your custom workouts with friends and receive their favorite workouts in return. This gives you more options for varying your routines, so you can have fun and keep boredom at bay while receiving positive feedback that helps you stay active and reach your goals.
Check out “Workout Routines” in the MyFitnessPal app to discover and log a variety of workouts, or build your own routine with exercises that fit your goals.