24 February, 2020
Hotel gyms are often cramped, not sufficiently air-conditioned and frankly a bit crap, often leading us to hit the minibar as opposed to the yoga mat. Thankfully, there's a host of apps that can keep you trim while travelling - just download and go.
A readily available, digital 1Rebel without the price tag. NeoU is packed with workout concepts to suit every type of gym-goer; from bodyweight strength-conditioning sequences and intense boot camps to dance classes with Steve Aioki (he supplies the grooves, a personal trainer the moves). Sessions range from a quick-fire five minutes to a punishing 90-minute burn.
From £11.59 per month.
Soothing your mind, body and soul while travelling always sounds like a great idea but when it comes to putting poses in practice, a 30-minute meditation usually turns into an extended nap. Ideal for those who get bored easily, Down Dog is a personalised yoga practice that mixes up the sequences each time you log in. The free version is filled with enough varied flows that you won't need to upgrade to the premium model.
Free.
Aaptiv is your very own hype man and personal trainer. The fitness world's first audio-based app guides you through each workout - set to a killer soundtrack - meaning there's no squinting at the screen and you can keep up with the pace. It's available worldwide, covers in-room workouts or if you're lucky enough to be somewhere warm, outside.
Monthly subscription from £11.60.
Freeletics uses revolutionary AI coaching to curate individual exercise programmes that are dictated by your goals and input - after each session you're asked to provide feedback that's used to adjust your next workout. While the free version is more than adequate for mobile training, we recommend unlocking The Coach programme. Here you'll find female-focused training journeys, video plans from professionals (like "Football Fitness" from the German national team) and mindset coaching to help you train smarter. Sceptical that pocket personal training works? The app's racked up 40 million users worldwide and is ranked #1 on all major platforms.
Free, in-app add ons from £9.27 per month.
Plenty of apps will track your running, showing you your distance and route, but Polar Beat is paired with a heart-rate monitor to give you far more insight into your workout. Suited to those who seriously want to up their fitness game, your heart rate is streamed straight to your phone and displayed in "zones". The "zones" highlight when you were working at your optimum, burning fat and increasing your fitness. If you don't fancy travelling with the tech, you can still follow the pre-mapped routes that have been created using the data from your previous runs and designed to boost your performance.
The app is free, purchase the heart rate monitor here.
The time-old classic that doesn't really need an introduction, ClassPass credits give you access to thousands of studios across the world - kind of like a passport but for boutique gyms. You can use credits the same way you would back home: try that punishing treadmill class in New York, book into that infrared sweat session in Los Angeles or give a Muay Thai class in Bangkok a go. Or, if your skin is feeling a little lacklustre, you can use your credits to book a facial in multiple beauty salons. It's an on-the-go life hack we've become a little too au fait with.
From £15 per month.
