Serious Athletes Use TrainingPeaks.com–Now Available for Android!

Written Android App Review

Anyone who is serious about fitness or is involved in any kind of athletic activity should check out TrainingPeaks.com. Of course, if fit this description, it is highly likely you are already familiar with this website. TrianingPeaks is the “Ultimate Training and Nutrition Software” but until just recently, was only available on the internet and on the iOS. Android users rejoice! Because TrainingPeaks has just launched a Beta Android app! Check out our Android app review to see if TrainingPeaks.com lives up to the task.

TrainingPeaks.com

Features

First of all, you will need to go register at trainingpeaks.com so that you at least have a free membership. If you are already signed up, great! Next, you will need to select a training or meal plan. There are free training/meal plans available – simply type in “Free” in the search box and voila! I will say that usually the paid versions are better, but you get what you pay for, right? Once you have selected a plan, you are ready to start using the Android app.

• Calendar: The calendar will display any workouts or meals you have planned for each day. In addition, anything you log (food, exercise, weight, etc.) will appear here as well.
• Add Workout: This is where you log your workouts. It will ask how long you planned to work out (for instance, your plan might suggest 30 minutes, but you actually exercised 45 minutes) versus how long you actually worked out, as well as some other data. Record as much as possible!
• Add Meal: If you are tracking your food, this will allow you to log both your eating habits as well as your workouts all in one app. Again, record as much about what you eat as possible!
• Add Metric: This includes such things as weight, sleep quality, hour slept, and overall feeling (mood). Keeping a log of such things will help you get a clear picture of what is happening with your body. For instance, you might notice that when you don’t get enough sleep, your mood is not the greatest and your workouts are shorter. Or perhaps you slept too long and so felt too groggy and irritable to work out. Basically, this data is here simply to help you see the big picture.
• Find Food: This feature allows you to look up common foods, mark them as favorites or add them to your meal log. You can also view nutritional information, which might even deter you from eating something which is not so good for you.
• Scan Barcode: This is by far the most useful feature if you are logging what you eat. I absolutely love it! It requires downloading the barcode scanner if you don’t already have it (most users will). Then simply scan the barcode of what you’re eating (assuming it has one) and voila! Instant data! Personally, I make a lot of my own food, but this would allow me to quickly enter things such as yogurts, cheeses, pasta, etc..

While I understand this app is still in Beta, I feel there are more improvements and features they could add. Their iOS apps already include many of the features I would want to see – just take a look at their GPS Fitness Tracking Android apps. I would love to see these incorporated into the Android app, or at bare minimum, be made for the Android platform. I therefore give TrainingPeaks four stars for Features. It’s a good start, but there is much more they could do to improve.

Design

Right now, I feel the TrainingPeaks Beta is somewhat “blah”. Their iOS apps have a sleeker and cleaner look to them. The Android app focuses around two central colors – blue and white (and black text of course). There is little dimension to the graphics and sometimes I feel things should be spaced apart a little more or perhaps broken up better. I’m hoping the lack luster graphics are due to the app being in Beta. I guess only time will tell, so for now I am giving them three stars for design.

Value

If you are an avid walker, runner, cyclist, simmer, or other such athlete, TrainingPeaks in and of itself is invaluable. However, the website can be a pain to remember sometimes – especially if you live a hectic life as I do. Being able to view the day’s workout and log it straight from your phone makes using these training programs much more convenient. Again, though, until the graphics and features are beefed up, I cannot issue a five star rating. Therefore, I award four stars for value until the app is no longer Beta. However, this app is certainly worth getting as it is right now if you are already using TrainingPeaks. Otherwise, you might just keep an eye on it and wait for the non-beta to be released.

Android Apps Review Details: TrainingPeaks Beta Android App is free. This app requires Android 2.1 and up. You may download TrainingPeaks Beta from the Android Market.

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