On the pages of Lifehacker, we constantly turn to the topic of a healthy lifestyle and physical activity. Running for weight loss is probably the most valuable hack of life that almost anyone can do. We told you about how to find time for classes and introduced you to the basic principles of training organization. And now it's time to move on to practical training, which special programs — virtual trainers will help us to complete. We begin a series of articles on this topic with one of the most powerful and famous — Adidas miCoach.
«Well, really, why do we need these mechanical stupid trainer programs? After all, you can do it just like that, waved your arms and legs, ran and that's it!» — many newbies think so. Athletes with experience are also very often distrustful of new technologies.
Nevertheless, it is worth trying both in action of a virtual trainer. For beginners, this can provide a basis for starting classes and an incentive for further growth. They will not have to scour the Internet in search of suitable exercises, make their own training plan, mark their successes on a piece of paper — the program will do all this for them.
Experienced athletes can also benefit from such activities. The program will offer them new exercises that will be able to work out the muscles in a completely different way than the usual classes. In addition, the automatic collection of a wide variety of statistics can greatly facilitate the analysis of training, which is necessary in any sport. I hope I was convinced, so…
To start using the miCoach virtual trainer, you need to go to the website and register. This process is not complicated, but rather lengthy, so we will not dwell on it separately. After creating an account, you need to go to the sectionThe plan , where we are waiting for just an abundance of various ready-made training plans. There are workouts for beginners, for those involved in various sports, for men and women, for weight loss and for strength development — in general, a choice for every taste. Last year we already did a general overview of this service in terms of running, so today we will pay more attention to strength training.
You have chosen a suitable plan, then you can configure it. At the same time, you can specify the start date of training, the days of the week for classes, and view an approximate sample of training.
After that, by pressing the buttonApply this plan adding this training plan to your calendar. As a result, we get a ready-made training grid with an already set set of exercises and the number of repetitions. It is worth noting that Adidas is a world-class brand and really professional coaches and athletes took part in the preparation of exercise complexes.
Any workout from the calendar can be opened and viewed, and each exercise is accompanied not only by a detailed description, but also by a video clip with the correct execution. This can be very useful for people just starting classes for the correct statement of movements.
Well, we made a plan, we got acquainted with the exercises. It's time to start training. And where is the coach himself?
Your phone with a special software client installed will act as a virtual trainer. Currently, Adidas miCoach has versions of the mobile application for Android, iPhone, BlackBerry and Nokia, that is, for almost the entire spectrum of smart phones.
The mobile app downloads the training plan you created from the website and helps you to carry it out. During running workouts, miCoach uses GPS data to measure your speed and endurance, as well as accompanies workouts with audio instructions in real time. Strength training is accompanied by a demonstration of the exercise and a countdown of repetitions. In total, the program has more than 400 different exercises for the development of strength and flexibility. All training results are synchronized with online, so you can access the site from any device and view them.
Adidas miCoach is one of the most advanced and functional virtual trainers today. A wide variety of training plans, support for a wide range of devices, complete free of charge, world-class brand support makes this service an excellent choice not only for beginning athletes, but also for practicing athletes.
Although it was not without drawbacks either. I would attribute to them the impossibility of creating your own set of exercises, not always working correctly with the GPS module, and the web interface on flash is slightly annoying. Therefore, we continue to search for the best virtual coach. The next contender in the next article of the series.
Go to the Adidas miCoach website →
