Exercising with an iPod has evolved into more than just exercising to music. Your iPod can be used to track your running miles, estimate your calories burned and be used as a pocket personal trainer. When your personal motivation for working out wanes, turning to your iPod or iPhone may be an easy solution to help return your passion and intensity for fitness.
Music
Uploading your favorite music to your iPod for use while exercising can enhance your workout. The American Council on Exercise, or ACE for short, in September 2010 studied the effects of music on exercise performance. ACE determined that when you listen to music, you have a natural desire to get up and move instead of sitting down. When you get up to move, upbeat music encourages higher performance levels as your body tries to move to the beat of the music. You may find that your endurance also improves. ACE identified music's ability to mask exercise discomfort.
Personal
Certain models of iPod, such as the iPod Touch, have the function of being able to perform many tasks. You can tell your device which tasks to perform by uploading applications to it. For example, you can use fitness applications such as abdominal and leg workouts. All you have to do is turn on the application and follow the workout in the comfort of your own home. You can also choose yoga, cardiovascular or strength training workout applications to play on your device.
Tracking
Working out with certain iPod applications allows you to track your fitness progress. You can set your iPhone or iPod Touch to track your heart rate, calories burned, miles covered and weight lost. Many of these applications are free. You simply download the program to your computer and upload it to your device. Within a few minutes, you can transform your iPod into a fitness tracking device.
Cautions
If you are preparing for a competition event, use caution when training wearing your iPod headphones. Many races do not allow competitors to wear headphones during the event. If you have an iPod that does not require headphones, training with the music coming out of the device in your pocket may be the better choice. When using your iPod outdoors, keep the volume turned low or wear only one ear bud so that you can hear traffic and other sounds.
References
- "ACE Certified News": Exploring the Effects of Music on Exercise Intensity; Carl Foster, PhD., John Pocari, PhD., Mark Anders; Sept. 2010
- "Fitness Magazine": The Fitness Tracker IPhone App; December 2009
- App Store Apps: Top 50 Free Health and Fitness Apps
- Charlottesville Track Club: Leave the Headphones at Home
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