Post-apocalyptic Fitness: Running from Zombies

Removing the Monotony from Exercise

Exercising can be monotonous but, working behind a desk all day, it's something I need to do. If I have something that engages my mind, it makes exercise an enjoyable experience for me.  This is why I typically listen to something that I find interesting, usually talk radio, podcasts, or an audio book. I bought a new app for my iPhone over the holidays that makes going for a walk or run a more immersive experience. That app is Zombies, Run!

A Game and an Unfolding Story

Zombie's, Run! is an app that brings gamification to running or walking, and makes it truly a fun experience. It's as much a story as it is a game. In fact, it's a very compelling story that you take part in. Here is the gist of it.

1. You live in world where a disease of some sort has broken out and turned people to zombies. Those who get bit by zombies are doomed to become zombie's yourself.
2. You are Runner 5. Your helicopter was shot down near Able Township, a small fortified town where the citizens are protected by walls that keep zombies out.
3. Because the township needs supplies, runners are sent out to retrieve those supplies, occasionally encountering the zombies that roam the surrounding wilderness. Running is a way of survival.
4. Runners also have other missions, such as drawing zombie's away or saving someone stranded in the wilderness.

Premium Weight Loss Using Your iPhone

I've written before on several occasions about Lose It! for the iPhone, a great tool for weight loss and one of the best free apps in the App Store. You can get a lot of help in meeting your fitness goals by using this app's free features but it has some premium features that are quite compelling if you need a little extra motivation in getting fit.

Challenges

These are a great motivational tool. Here is where Lost It! gets both social and competitive. You can compete with yourself, with others (the public or just certain friends), and even as groups toward some goal. For example, a challenge might be between teams of four on which team can lose the largest percentage weight. You can join existing challenges that others have created or create your own. The challenges can be public or private and you can invite your friends to join with you for added accountability and competition.

You can do all of this from within the app but I found it easier to find challenges on the Lose It! web site.

Apps to Start the New Year Right

It's that time of the year when people have decided to keep a set of resolutions or goals. If you are one of those who set goals for 2013, there are apps for your iPhone and iPad that can help. Here are some that I've written about before that I think are among the best:

Keeping Score on Your iPhone

Around the holidays, you probably take vacation and spend plenty of time with family. Chances are good that you sometimes play card games or board games during this time. Whether you play UNO, Spades, Rook, or some versions of dominoes, you'll need to keep score. Typically, with pen and paper in hand, you tally the score and add up each hand or round in your head.  There's a better way.

Using Score Pad, a free app for your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad, you can keep score without doing all the math. I used this recently when I played a game of UNO with the family. You can score up to 7 players and simply touch to add a new score (for a hand in a card game or a round in another type of game). What is really helpful is that you can include simple addition within a score for a single round. Let me explain with an example:

Let's say Bob goes out first in a given hand of the card game he is playing. Bob gets points for the remaining cards in each of the other players hands. Suzy has 12 points worth of cards, Joe has 11 points, and Sally has 7 points. If you are keeping score, instead of adding those up and entering "30" for Bob's score, you can simply enter "12+11+7" as Bob's score. Bob's score will then show as "30" on the score pad.

There are other scoring apps out there but I like this one because it's simple and it's free. Some people will prefer pen and paper but I'd like to keep my mind on the strategy of the game, not adding up scores in my head.

(iPhone or iPad) + Apple TV = Cozy Fireplace

There's nothing like a listening to Christmas music by a fireplace full of burning logs. But what if you don't have a fireplace? I stumbled across an app for the iPhone or iPad that, if you have an Apple TV, turns your big screen TV into a nice roaring fire.

A Very Cozy Fireplace HD turns your HD TV into a high-definition fireplace with a roaring and crackling fire. For $0.99 (at the time I write this), you get an app for your iPhone or iPad that, when you launch it, plays a video of logs burning in a fireplace. To play it on your Apple TV, just choose the AirPlay option from the app. The video is very short but seemlessly loops to give the appearance of an a continuously burning fire. The video is very high quality and looks excellent on a big screen TV. The picture at the top of this post doesn't quite do it justice.

Why Upgrade to an iPhone 5?

If you own an iPhone 4 (or an older model than that), chances are good that you may be eligible for an upgrade to the iPhone 5.  (Check with your carrier.)  There are a number of people that I know that are eligible to upgrade that haven't yet. In some cases, they haven't yet decided. I've had my iPhone 5 for almost a month now and there are a number of reasons I'm glad that I upgraded. If you are eligible to up

How I Got the iPhone 5 Without Waiting Four Weeks

The iPhone 5 has been very popular since it first came out. If you didn't preorder one, it is difficult to get one without waiting the three to four weeks Apple says on its web site that it will take before it ships. If you are really lucky you might find one in an Apple Store or one of the carrier stores. However, they've been trickling in and disappearing pretty quick.

I was able to upgrade from my iPhone 4 to an iPhone 5 recently once I learned a trick. Part of this trick came from information an Apple Store employee told me. Part of the trick, I learned by trial and error. I'm going to share this particular trick with you and it might work for you also, though there are no guarantees.