Smart Features on a Smartphone that Help Get You Fit

In today’s digital age, the most oft-heard refrain in the tech world is, “There’s an app for that.”  Well, there’s also a device for that.  Now there is a phone for the active lifestyle with apps to go with it. The Galaxy S 5 Sport is the smartphone for you if you are a guy or gal on the run; and using the app Sprint Fit Live, you can get instant access to favorite health and activity apps from the active wallpaper or the full screen experience to tailor workouts, music and healthy living content to fitness interests and routine.

One of my favorites is Nudge, which gives you a score, like a Klout for fitness, so you can compare your fitness level to peers. Another is MapMyFitness, which uses GPS to track all your fitness activities and records workout details, including duration, distance, pace, speed, elevation, calories burned and route traveled on an interactive map.

At a recent demo sponsored by Sprint, total cutie personal trainer Nathaniel Gosslein showed users how to use the technology to motivate themselves and stay on track with an exercise program. In conjunction with a delicious light lunch nosh provided by Tender Greens, Gosslein explained how he uses the phone and favorite apps for his own program and the clients he trains.

For many of us who juggle family, work and play and in between try to get in some exercise, these health trackers and lifestyle apps serve as a daily reminder to prioritize your program and to monitor your progress, so you can see how your regime is working or change it up if it is not.

As temptation is always present, these health platforms also act like an angel on your shoulder, whispering to do the right thing — put down that hot fudge sundae and pick up that dumbbell.

Since nobody has time for anything these days, it is helpful that these apps make it easy and quick to input your health info and note your status at a glance.  The Galaxy S 5 Sport is built for the busy body in more ways than one, such as a feature that allows users to measure heart rate buy touching the back of the phone using S Health.  Other apps like Activity Zone offer features, including a Barometer, Compass, Flashlight and Stopwatch, from a single screen, so you can hit the trails for a hike, bike or run day or night, time yourself, and not get lost or caught in the rain.

For true multi-taskers, you can get in your reps and keep working, with wireless Google Search, Gmail, and, Google Calendar, and use Quick Connect, which defaults to the best technology to share your content, send files, share your screen or control nearby devices. With Samsung Knox you can protect your sensitive files and not worry about the gym rat on the elliptical next to is stealing your data.

Aside from the heavy breathing in the middle of your cardio routine, the sound quality stays crisp thanks to HD Voice, which eliminates background noise, especially if on a call between two Sprint HD Voice-enabled devices on upgraded areas of the Sprint network.

If all these features are not awesome enough, the Galaxy S 5 comes in cool colors, Electric Blue and Cherry Red, and as the perfect gym mate, it can store and play plenty of high-energy tunes, and its textured body prevents slips and it is water resistant, so sweat away.