Exercise is often a tiresome task. I’m that sort of person that puts off exercise; I need a motive that goes beyond getting fit. That’s the problem with many of the fitness apps available on mobile platforms. They just don’t provide us with any motivation to exercise. The apps simply consist of mindless and repetitive routines that fail to give us any enjoyment and instead encourage us to go find something better on the TV. I think that element of ‘wanting’ to exercise is very important – exercise should be exciting.

I recently came across a fitness app on the iOS app store. It’s called the ‘Superhero Workout’. The app uses your front facing camera to track your movements for the specific exercises in the app. These exercises range from doing star jumps to doing spider man push ups. You might be thinking that this is nothing new. Developers have been making exercising games for a while now. But what makes the Superhero Workout app different from its competitors is the story that accompanies the exercises. For each set of exercises, there is a live action story that carries you on from one routine to the next. The story is both witty and entertaining. Think of the stories as mini superhero missions where your exercises directly affect the fate of the world!

This all sounds a little a little gimmicky, but how does the Superhero Workout translate into work world use? I think it’s an excellent addition to the crowded market of fitness apps on mobile platforms. This is the first fitness app I have come across to adopt the front facing camera to track your exercises. Generally, the camera tracked reps of exercises well. The app recommends placing the camera at least 2 metres away from yourself, however this is not always possible. In these cases, where space is scarce, the app fails to track your movements successfully. I suppose this is due to a limitation in the front facing camera’s field of view. There is also a good range of exercises. It has you doing anything from tricep dips to star jumps for each mission but you can also select to do a complete workout like their 7 minute workout which is similar to the one scientifically proven to work the whole body effectively. Most importantly though, the app is perfect at engaging users in real work outs. The story is exciting and makes you want to exercise. It has been well thought out and is implemented in way that compliments the exercises you are doing.

There is a certain level of cheese which, if you’re remotely serious about your gym routines and workout session, will completely turn you off. But if you’re a gamer, for example, and you struggle to swap your Xbox for your running shoes, then the Superhero Workout app goes part way to solving that problem. You still have to want to exercise but if you don’t want to take it too seriously then this is the app you have been looking for! Remember, heroes aren’t born – they’re trained!

The app is available to download now on iOS, check it out at superheroworkoutgame.com.

As always, let us know what you think! Have you tried the Superhero Workout? Would the idea of a superhero story help encourage you to exercise? Leave your comments below!