Experts’ Top Health Apps

Fitness, News and Advice
on February 28, 2011
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Overwhelmed by the number of diet- and fitness-related smartphone apps on the market? We asked experts what apps they use to maintain healthy lifestyles, and here’s what they had to say.

Dr. Jim Sears, star of TV’s The Doctors and co-author of The Healthiest Kid in the Neighborhood

His pick: Nutrition Menu, 99 cents, iTunes store

“I religiously rely on the Nutrition Menu, which tracks calories, exercise and water intake. I keep a personal daily food journal and can find virtually any menu item in just about any restaurant. The app even includes items found at the supermarket.”

Mark Lauren, certified military physical training specialist and author of You Are Your Own Gym: The Bible of Bodyweight Exercises.

His pick: Nike Training Club, free, iTunes store

“The app provides exercise photos, descriptions and videos with many short workouts and progress tracking. The workouts can be done with just a couple of light dumbbells. This is a great app if you're at home or stuck in a hotel with a dinky gym.”

Kris Carr, star of TLC’s Crazy Sexy Cancer and author of Crazy Sexy Diet

Her pick: VegWeb Vegan Recipe Finder, $2.99, iTunes store

“The only vegan app I use is VegWeb. I love looking up recipes while I'm at the grocery store so that I don't have to plan everything ahead of time. This also helps me keep things interesting in the kitchen rather than making the same dishes every week!”

Dr. Barry Sears, creator of The Zone Diet

His pick: iHeartRate, $2.99, iTunes store

“I originally developed the Zone Diet to prevent a premature death from heart disease like all the male members of my family. I use iHeartRate to track my heart rate with and without exercise — to ensure the same premature death from heart disease will not happen to me.”

Dr. Andrew Ordon, plastic and reconstructive surgeon and star of TV’s The Doctors

His pick: Ascendo Fitness for Blackberry, $32.95, www.ascendofitness.com

“My favorite health app is Ascendo Fitness because it’s easy to use, telling me how many calories are in the foods I’m eating and how many calories I’ve burned each day. That way, it’s much simpler to avoid foods that are high in calories and/or bad for me, since I don’t want to undo all my hard work in just a few bites.”

Andrea Metcalf, creator of the Keeping Fit DVD workout series

Her pick: 

Tempo Magic Pro, $4.99, iTunes store

“I love Tempo Magic Pro,which takes your playlist and helps you to make the music the speed you need for the workout. It will help you keep pace.”

(iPad user? Metcalf also recommends Fitness Class, a subscription-based streaming video app available at www.pumpone.com or in the iTunes store.)

Jeremy Safron, author of The Raw Truth: Recipes and Resources for the Living Foods Lifestyle 

His pick: iPlant, $1.99, iTunes store

“It’s a fantastic database of plants and herbs and their culinary and medicinal uses. I’ve used it more than once to identify plants in the wild, and it’s quite handy as an herbal reference guide. It’s also fun just to learn more about edible plants and their health benefits.”

What are your favorite apps? Share them in the comments section below or visit us on Facebook and post on our wall.