All this marathon training means I have tried out A LOT of fitness apps. If there is an app out there that wants to help you prep for a marathon or get fit, I’ve tried it. (Well, I’ve tried a lot.) From my experience, there is an app out there for every person and every level of fitness, it’s just a matter of finding one that works well for you and your goals. Here are some of the apps I’ve tried, my thoughts, and who I would say are ideal users.

9 Best Fitness Apps for All Fitness Levels:

#1:: Aaptiv - for all levels and all fitness types.

Hand down, this is my favorite app! I seriously can’t say enough about its awesomeness. Aaptiv offers workouts for three levels of fitness - beginner, intermediate, and advanced. It also offers dozens of different types of workouts. I’m talking treadmill runs, outdoor runs, spin classes, elliptical workouts, stairmaster challenges, rowing, boxing, jump rope, yoga, walking, meditation, strength training, etc… See! It has it all. Right now I mix up my workouts using this app. Starting in the middle of July I will begin the 12-week marathon training plan with the hopes of running my best and fastest marathon ever.

Plus, this app has an AMAZING Facebook group that is filled with inspiration and positivity. The company is super responsive to posts, and the trainers are active in the community too. It’s a really great group - probably one of my favorites.

The only thing I think could turn some people off, is that while all the workouts are guided vocally by a trainer and everything is explained really well, there is no visual to look at to make sure you are doing a movement correct. For running and spin, that isn’t such a big deal. For strength and yoga that can be a little tricky. (go ahead, try it out for a month free.)

#2:: Fitplan - for those looking to build muscle and have knowledge of gym equipment.

This app allows you to pick a specific plan and then each day it tells you exactly what exercises and moves to do. You keep track of your reps and the weights used directly on the app so you can compare your numbers from week to week and see progress. Fitplan focuses on strength training and muscle growth. It has very little cardio. So, to me, it is a great app to use in addition to your usual cardio plan. If you follow the plans exactly you will see some serious definition and increased strength. My arms never looked so good!

If you have no knowledge of the various machines and your weight limits, this can be a challenging app to just jump into. I would recommend familiarizing yourself with the machines and weights before jumping into one of these training plans. The app also provides basic video and audio explanation of what you are supposed to do, in case you are unsure of a particular type of movement.

#3:: Gixo - for those who need a coach but don’t want to pay an arm and a leg for one.

This fitness app is a lot like a portable gym. There are scheduled classes at various times throughout the day. You sign-up to take a class, as you would at the gym, and then at the appointed time you tune in and use your camera to give the trainer a view of what you are doing. The trainer can then correct and offer encouragement on the spot to make sure you are doing things correctly. For those just starting who need the assist, this is a great app. Not interested in having the trainer see what you are doing? You can opt out of using the camera component.

For me, I found it tricky to commit to the specific times that the classes met and couldn’t make it to many of the classes I wanted to attend. But I have a funky schedule with weird free times. The app does have some general classes you can take at any time, but that means no active trainer to guide you through the process.

#4:: MapMyRun - for runners of all levels who want to track their workout.

I have used this app for more than 10 years! Using GPS it tracks your time and your distance to give you an idea of the breakdown of your run. You can also use it to track walks, bike rides, and pretty much anything that involves time and distance. You can set it up to announce every mile your time, distance and split pace, which helps you work on those negative splits.

You can also self-enter workouts into the system in order to have one place to keep track of everything you do in a given week/month. I’ll often put in a treadmill run or a spin class, to just keep myself aware of what I’ve done.

The only trouble with this app is that if the GPS isn’t working well, the app is basically useless. Lately, I’ve had a couple runs that the GPS didn’t kick in so it could tell me how long I was running but the distance was so off, that the time was pointless.

#5:: Spring - for those who need a little musical assist.

If you are anything like me, running is difficult when you can hear your own breathing. I need music to distract me from all of that. And I need good, upbeat music to do that. Spring allows you to select the type of music you want to hear, and then it measures your speed i order to create a playlist that will allow you to continue at that pace, based on the beats per minute. It’s pretty ingenious, especially if you are looking to run a really steady couple miles.

My only complaint about the app is that the songs all sound a little foggy. (if that makes sense) The sound just isn’t that clear/ I’m not sure if that is because they occasionally speed up or slow down a song, or add a back beat to keep the pace consistent, but it can be distracting at times.

#6:: Strava - for runners of all levels who want to track their workout.

I’m new to Strava, but from what I can tell, it functions the same as MapMyRun. I downloaded it one day when MapMyRun wasn’t working right. The two can pretty much be used interchangeably. Strava automatically tells you what your pace and distance is every half mile, which is a nice feature to track pace in the midst of a mile so there are no surprises when you get to the end of the mile. The design is cleaner as well - if that matters to you.

#7:: Full Fitness - for those looking to target specific muscles or add variety to your workout

This app is super simple. It lists a number of muscle groups - arms, back, legs, etc… - and then gives you illustrations of workouts you can do to target those muscle areas. Using it to do an entire workout can mean a lot of time checking and scrolling through your phone. But I like to use it to get a reminder for different styles of exercises I can do, especially if I get bored with the same motions I usually do.

Keep in mind, it is just illustrations, no video or audio to guide you through. There are written instructions to clarify the pictures, and you can log your exercise movements to keep track of your progress.

#8:: Charity Miles - for those looking to get healthy and give back

This app will track your runs and walks so that your mileage will translate to a donation to the charity of your choice. Basically the app pairs you and your preferred charity with a corporate sponsor so that every mile you track will lead to a donation. You’ll then earn 10 cents a mile for biking and 25 cents a mile for walking and running. As part of the app and the donation process you watch an ad for the corporate sponsor before the tracking begins. They are always short, which is nice in my books! Personally, I use this to give to the Wounded Warrior Project. And yes, I also use an app, like MapMyRun, that is specifically made to track distances to keep track.

#9:: Sworkit - for those who need guidance on equipment-less strength workouts

I love this app for my cross training days. Sworkit provides workout and fitness plans for every level and fitness goal. For instance I’m doing the intermediate level ‘Stronger’ workout plan which is a collection of 18 different workouts to be done over the course of a couple weeks in order to build muscle strength. All of the workout require no equipment and they have me sweating during the workout and good-sore the day after. You can also pick whether you want to do 15, 20, or 30 minutes of a workout, which is optimal for those time crunched.

The way it works is you do each prescribed motion/movement for 30 seconds, with a 5 second break in between. On occasion you’ll get a 30 second break in order to shake out your arms and legs and catch your breath if needed. Each day or workout (sometimes I do two in one day) combines a series of different moves in order to work various muscles in the day’s targeted area - legs, glutes, shoulder, back.

Do you use a fitness app? What do you use and why do you love it? I’m always looking for more recommendations.