Changing your fitness regimen or starting on a fitness journey can be scary, but not impossible. With so many free resources on the iPhone in your pocket, why bother looking elsewhere?

I’ve relied on my iPhone to help me plan my work, increase my productivity, and even move house, but something else that I’ve been doing consistently for over a year is using it to improve my overall level of fitness. Here’s how I did it.

Tracking Everything With Apple Fitness and Health

The most important part of my regimen is tracking what I consider important in my fitness journey, and this can look different for you, depending on your goals. I like to keep a check on my daily steps, protein intake, macros, and progressive overload at the gym. To track the essentials, like step count, sleep, and calories,Apple FitnessandHealthare the best tools available for iPhone users.

I sync Apple Health with any third-party fitness apps that allow it, and use it to log my mood as well. If you want to get specific about it, Health allows you to log body measurements, heart rate, nutrition, and sleep patterns. Health can be used to log medications, which is also useful to log daily supplements.

Apple Fitness keeps score of my daily step goal using the Move Ring, and I find that the calendar view (plus achievement badges and awards) helps me reach my goals effectively while keeping me motivated. You can commit to this app by signing up forFitness+($9.99/month), which gives you unlimited access to workout videos and custom workout plans. Fitness+ is a good option to look into if you’re planning on subscribing toApple One.

YouTube to Find Free Workout Videos

The free resource that kick-started my fitness journey several years ago, which I keep coming back to on days I can’t make it to the gym, is YouTube workout videos. There are millions of at-home workout follow-along videos and playlists that you can explore on YouTube.

Creating Workout Playlists on Spotify (or Apple Music)

I can’t power through an intense strength or cardio session at the gym without some good beats. The last thing I want is to pause constantly between sets to shuffle or change songs, which is why I come prepared with my workout playlists. You can create a workout playlist on any music streaming platform of your choice, but as an iPhone user, Apple Music could be a good option for seamless sync on Apple devices like your Apple Watch.

I’ve always leaned towards Spotify to help create my workout playlists, where I use features like Smart Shuffle tohelp me discover new songs. When I workout with a friend, I also useSpotify’s Jam to collaborateon our playlist for the session. Every month or so, I scroll through Spotify’s curated workout playlists to add new songs, and I’ve created a workout folder with multiple workout playlists depending on my workout for the day, such as yoga, lifting, and running.

Strong to Log My Workouts

My progress and consistency in the gym skyrocketed once I started logging my workout routine. There are many third-party iPhone apps you can use to log your workouts, depending on what kind of regimen you’re into, but my favorite isStrong. This exercise tracker comes with a simple interface that helps you quickly jump into logging your cardio and strength workouts. I record every exercise, reps, and sets, weight I use, and time the rest between sets using the app, which lets me get insights into my progressive overload over time.

Strong comes with animated videos for each exercise you log, which is perfect if you’re unsure about your form or how a machine at the gym works. You can track your body measurements, sync easily with your Apple Watch, and track progress through detailed charts. Strong also allows for tagging sets as warmup, drop sets, and failure sets, which I find to be very effective for intense workouts.

Interval Timer to Record Rep Intervals

On top of Strong, I useInterval Timer, a workout timer app, to record my rep time for each set and exercise. This app comes with multiple themes for your timers, and includes low or high intensity timers, which I find perfect for HIIT and tabata sessions. You can customize things like the set and countdown time, rest time, timer sound, number of sets, and pause during rest. The timer can be used for any physical activity, so it’s perfect for at-home and gym workouts.

Since I can run Interval Timer in the background and when my iPhone is locked, it’s also easy to just continue with my playlist while counting my set and rest time.

MyFitnessPal to Track My Nutrition

If tracking your calories or macros is an integral part of your fitness journey, then you might want to try a calorie tracker that you can access right from your iPhone. I useMyFitnessPalto keep an eye on my macros (I don’t count calories) to ensure I’m hitting my daily protein intake. While I tend to be a bit lazy when logging foods, using a tracker helps me stay more disciplined, and has helped me get back on track when I fall off my routine.

I save frequently repeated meals since I meal prep to save time, and use the app’s detailed insights and macro breakdown.

you’re able to also log steps, workouts, water, and scan barcodes for meals/items you buy for quick logging. I find MyFitnessPal to be one of the best food and calorie-tracking apps because of its large database of meals, which allows me to log foods from different cuisines, and particularly, meals unique to my culture.

Hiking Apps to Find New Trails

When summer rolls around, I like to get out a lot: be it for a morning walk, dinner with friends, or a hiking session on a new trail. In the past year or so, I’ve started using hiking apps likeAllTrailsto discover trails near where I live, which came in handy when I moved countries two years back. With this app, I attempt to explore local parks, hiking trails near lakes or rivers close to me, and longer running routes.

The app offers park guides and trails for other activities such as mountain biking and backpacking, which can be super helpful depending on your location. AllTrails comes with navigation help if you’re unfamiliar with your locality or trail, and records your hiking time and progress over time.

Bend for Rest Days

Recovery is key in my fitness regimen, and if you do any strength training, those recovery days can be crucial for your split. I try to maintain an active recovery routine, trying to get my steps in, while making sure to stick to a relaxing stretching routine too. I’ve tried YouTube videos for stretching, and just winging it while playing some Lo-fi music in the background, but what works best is a dedicated app for recovery.

Bendis a great flexibility app for beginners and advanced users alike. You can browse stretches by body areas and learn them, or try a stretching routine that varies by time. Bend comes with an AI feature that helps you describe your “perfect routine” and helps customize your stretching exercises. Bend’s library helps you save favorite routines and exercises. What I love about Bend is how simple yet effective the app is to use, as well as the easy-to-follow stretching routines. You can even create your custom routines from scratch.

Mindbody to Discover Fitness and Wellness Classes

Going to the gym or working out at home is great, but sometimes, I can get bored with doing the same routine. In those times, I like to check out fitness and wellness classes or workshops near me that I can attend instead. You can try out apps or websites like ClassPass, which gives you access to top-rated fitness classes and wellness studios near you. I’ve usedMindbody, a similar app, to try fitness classes like spinning, Pilates, and HIIT in studios near me.

Trying Out a Fitness Community

A final, optional yet highly motivating step that helped me change how I navigate my fitness journey is to join a fitness community. Many fitness apps, including prominent ones such asNike Run Club, come with a “Community” tab where fellow users share their workout experiences. While I don’t directly participate in discussion threads on fitness apps, accessing such communities can be a big motivator if you ever feel like you’re falling off your progress track.

I’ve found that just scrolling through posts of others who are at the same fitness level as I am, finishing the same intense workouts I’m trying out has been extremely reassuring. Community can be super encouraging, especially if you’re a beginner, and want to ask questions about the app, exercises, or your form.

I also try to participate in online fitness discussion threads, such as on Reddit or YouTube, where you may find tips and tricks for exercise, nutrition, and mobility.

Developing a fitness regimen that you can consistently follow can be tough, especially if you’re starting out on your fitness journey. However, the right tools can make all the difference, and you don’t need to wander too far to find the apps that work best for you.