As a followup to my RunKeeper vs. Nike+ comparison, I tried out RunKeeper. Despite not yet having an arm band for my iPhone, I downloaded RunKeeper Free, dropped my iPhone 3GS in my pocket, and headed out for my Week Four workout.
All in all, I have to say that I really like it. I downloaded, created an account (in about two seconds, straight from my within the app), and then hit the big green button to start my workout. That’s it. So easy.
As for performance, I ran a known loop in our neighborhood and the distance estimates were spot on. I also really liked having instant feedback on my pace, as I still don’t have a sense for how fast I’m going. I do have to admit, though, that it be a lot easier to look at a watch than to the face of my iPhone.
One of my favorite aspects of RunKeeper is that it auto-uploads your workout data via wireless or 3G as soon as you hit the stop button. There’s a little popup menu, so just give it permission with a quick tap, and the upload happens without further intervention. This is a huge advantage over the other run-tracking options out there, all of which seem to require manual intervention to access the data.
What I’ve learned so far is that I’m covering about 2.5 miles at an average pace of around 12.5-13.0 min/mile (including both the running and walking). I’m also burning an estimated 300 calories per workout, though I would imagine that the formula they use is somewhat generic, and calibrated for an “average” weight since they don’t ask for that information.
The maps of your running route are great, and will only become more useful as my range increases. And the tables graphs… RunKeeper stores a wealth of data graphs are great for a data geek like me. You get things like average pace broken down on a per-minute basis, and graphed against elevation, average pace on a per-mile basis, and so on. The only real limitation is that it can’t track your heart rate. However, if you have a Polar heart rate monitor, you can import your data after your workout.
Anyway, I’m very happy with RunKeeper so far. In other news, I ordered the Marware SportShell Convertible the other day. It’s arrived, and it looks quite nice, though I haven’t tested it out yet.
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