There have been several apps developed in order to get people active. Some, such as GymPact, pay users for exercising each week. Others, such as the Nike Running app, solicit encouragement from users’ social network to push them during their workouts. But the most creative motivational tool I have seen in a fitness app has to be Zombies, Run! The application is part run tracker, part video game. With each run, the user hears updates from the application’s storyline. 
The user plays as a character known as Runner 5, a zombie apocalypse survivor and resident of community known as Abel Township. Each time the user sets out on a run, he or she completes one of the several missions that are programmed into the app. Throughout the run, the user hears updates from the story’s characters and tasks that must be completed. With each passing kilometer or mile, the user is notified that he or she has collected vital supplies for the township. The updates are delivered in between songs that are played from the user’s playlist. There is also an option to perform “Zombie Chase” interval training, where the app will periodically notifies the user that he or she has been spotted and needs to speed up to escape a zombie horde. If the user doesn’t run fast enough, he or she loses some of the items that had been collected. Once the run is completed, the game isn’t over. The user can use the supplies that were collected to beef up Abel’s defenses. Users can also log into ZombieLink to track their progress. The app has gotten a lot of positive reviews from bloggers and users alike. I downloaded it to my phone this morning and can’t wait to give it a try this weekend. Right now it is available at the App Store and Google Play at a 50% discount to celebrate the launch of Season 2, which contains even more missions. Check it out, and get running!
The user plays as a character known as Runner 5, a zombie apocalypse survivor and resident of community known as Abel Township. Each time the user sets out on a run, he or she completes one of the several missions that are programmed into the app. Throughout the run, the user hears updates from the story’s characters and tasks that must be completed. With each passing kilometer or mile, the user is notified that he or she has collected vital supplies for the township. The updates are delivered in between songs that are played from the user’s playlist. There is also an option to perform “Zombie Chase” interval training, where the app will periodically notifies the user that he or she has been spotted and needs to speed up to escape a zombie horde. If the user doesn’t run fast enough, he or she loses some of the items that had been collected. Once the run is completed, the game isn’t over. The user can use the supplies that were collected to beef up Abel’s defenses. Users can also log into ZombieLink to track their progress. The app has gotten a lot of positive reviews from bloggers and users alike. I downloaded it to my phone this morning and can’t wait to give it a try this weekend. Right now it is available at the App Store and Google Play at a 50% discount to celebrate the launch of Season 2, which contains even more missions. Check it out, and get running!
