Should You Use Exercise.com to Get Fit?

The Internet is full of health and fitness apps. And the best ones to use are those that work best for you. After all, everyone is unique. With that being said, I would like to point out some of the benefits of Exercise.com.

As well as some of the drawbacks.

Although the website has a lot of potential, it's a shell of its former self. But if you're a geek about collecting data, it might be something worth considering.

What is Exercise.com?

Formerly WeightTraining.com, this website collects some of the most common exercises you can do and puts them into a database. After signing up with a free account, you can browse this database and look for specifics based on muscle groups, equipment, and other filters.

This database often includes videos from professionals regarding how to perform the exercises correctly. Although many of these videos are more than six years old, they're still valid.

Seriously, it's not like the technique for jumping jacks is going to change.

Each exercise you perform and record earns you a certain amount of points. Then, those points are used to determine your overall "ranking" on the website against other users. The more points you earn, the closer you are to being "#1."

You can record your workouts using the website itself or through the free App available for Android and iOS.

What Can You Expect from This App?

As cliché as it may sound, I'm starting 2021 in a weight loss competition with my 21-year-old son. As I'm pushing 44 myself, he constantly refers to me as "old man" and has high aspirations.

Using Exercise.com in its limited capacity is going to help me prove to the boy that I'm not as old as he thinks I am. However, it's not the grand platform that I joined 6 years ago.

Recording Your Workouts

One of the app's most prominent features is being able to record your workouts. You can keep track of every exercise, the number of points you earn, and when you logged the activity.

This lets you keep track of progress and plan for improvements later on. Plus, the smartphone app will let you know when you met or surpassed a personal record.

I usually look at past workout point values and come up with ways to improve the next routine.

Setting Personal Records to Beat

I'm a big fan of collecting data. In fact, beating personal records is one of my favorite methods for keeping motivated to exercise.

Because in reality, your only real competition for health and fitness is yourself. And being able to track self-improvement in this regard can give you a boost in confidence.

At any point, I can go back and see what record I set for each exercise and the date it was created. Plus, it will show how you stack against others on the website with a number ranking.

Unfortunately, there was a recent purge of the database. Probably to remove inactive users. Anyway, all of my records were erased and I have to set new ones. Which is a bit disappointing considering I had a few from back in 2014 that I wanted to shatter.

Uploading Progress Photos

Going back and looking at your earliest progress photos can feel a bit cringy. But, it can also help you stay motivated. Especially if you've made some profound improvements over time.

The pics are date-stamped, and you can edit or delete any that you upload.

As I tend to focus more on appearance rather than what the scale says, keeping track of pics like this lets me see the changes I've made. Unfortunately, my earliest pic is at 275 pounds. I wish I would have found this app when I started at more than 300. I would love to see the differences today.

Pitting Yourself Against the Site Average

While Exercise.com removed its direct challenges after rebranding itself, you can still sort of compete against the site average. Since data is recorded each time someone performs a specific exercise, you can see where you stand against others on the website.

For instance, I can look up "push-ups" and see that over the past month, the average performance is 14 reps per set. Or, I can strive to beat the "best reps" of 50.

Since I strive on competition, this is a good way to motivate me to be better than average.

The App Itself is Fairly Easy to Manage

Learning to use the app from your phone isn't overly challenging. It is a bit touchy in some regards, but there isn't a steep learning curve.

You can start the workout by looking up specific exercises and then use the tappable elements to record time, reps, weight, or other factors.

The app is pretty basic when compared to others. There are no flashy graphics, sound effects, or fancy fonts. However, you do have access to the same videos for each exercise as you do from the desktop version.

A Lack of Social Interaction

One of the biggest reasons I joined WeightTraining.com in the first place was because of the social element. Before, you could challenge others on the site in various activities while engaging in chat.

After rebranding to Exercise.com and revamping the layout of the site, this aspect was removed. In fact, it's far more difficult to engage socially with others on the site in comparison.

For me, this is almost a deal-breaker. And I am currently looking for an alternative that has more of the social features. Because interacting with others can often be inspiring and helpful, especially for those who already have trouble maintaining a regular workout routine.

Don't get me wrong; you can still interact with others on the site to a degree. But it's not nearly as interactive as it was in the past. In fact, I'm finding it difficult to even send a message to anyone using the site.

Since the move from its former domain and layout, I've seen far fewer people online and interacting with the platform in general. I'm not sure if Exercise.com is planning on doing more with the site later on, but I find it truly disappointing when compared to what the site was before.

Lots of Benefits Behind the Paywall

Like most other free apps on the Internet, Exercise.com has a lot of perks locked behind the premium paywall. You can do things like:

• Set up custom workout plans
• Join "Pro" workout plans
• View your performance data in a report
• Find and engage personal trainers

However, I don't know if I would pay for upgrading as the site seems nearly abandoned. The groups I've joined have no one in them, people seem to be missing from my feed, and updating the database happens on a UK clock instead of per user.

In other words, it feels more like the developers haven't finished the site as it's missing data in various regards. 

Exercise.com Isn't Bad, But it Needs Work

Today, I use Exercise.com as merely a way to keep track of my workouts, set personal records, and pit my abilities against the site average. In reality, I could do something similar with just a spreadsheet in Google Docs.

And although I was a fan of what the platform was back in 2014, I am actively looking for something better.

It's not an overall terrible site. But it's definitely not what it used to be. Which is a bit disappointing, actually. Hopefully, the developers will continue to work on improvements before I bail completely.