Keeping yourself fit is one of the important tasks of your life. It not only boosts healthy living but gives an energetic experience throughout the day. Most people adopt various means of keeping themselves fit. Some hit the gym; some do sports while some adopt cycling.
Cycling is one of the great ways to keep yourself fit especially when it comes to outdoor fitness activities. But for some fitness enthusiasts, tracking their fitness growth is crucial and when one’s a cyclist, getting your hands on some cycling apps is a must. We’re here to bring an insight into the best cycling apps to get your hands on. So, put the pedal on the metal, and let’s get started:
Strava – Best For Tracking Cycling Activity
Whether you’re a pro cyclist or someone who has just started, Strava is a great choice. It not only offers activity tracking but gives monthly challenges that you can complete and earn rewards. You can also compete with your friends, access a database of famous cycling trails in the US, or even upload your favorite trail.
Make sure you have a stable internet connection to sync your data on the go. Since you’re outdoors, you’ll need a competitive internet service to capture your information, and Spectrum Internet is perfect for it. It also gives Wi-Fi hotspots in areas covered while ensuring seamless connectivity that is what you need for cycling.
CycleStreets – Best For Route Planning
When cycling, you should be aware of the trail you’re riding. It gives you better control of the route without getting lost or facing an unexpected turn, resulting in an injury. Keeping that in mind, CycleStreets is the best option for your needs.
It’s an absolutely amazing cycling app perfect for route planning. What’s amazing about it is that it gives multiple route options based on your requests. For instance, you can pick a quieter route or one with traffic depending on your needs, and the app will provide various trails to opt for.
It also tracks distance, speed, and other cycling factors during the route. Moreover, you also get live map access that enables you to receive directions during cycling, preventing you from getting lost in the wilderness.
Map My Ride – Best For Route Sharing
Want to ride with your buddies but they’re late as usual? No worries because with Map My Ride, you can go on riding and your buddies will catch up to you. From already existing trials to personalized routes, you can store and share maps with your friends easily.
You can also compete in challenges with your peers and engage in prize-winning moments that will be navigated by the app. Moreover, the app provides audio feedback to the user during cycling.
Not everyone is a fan of stopping and checking how many calories they’ve burned. This app makes it easier with its audio feedback, giving insights into stats such as distance covered, calories burned, etc. after intervals.
Cyclemeter – Best For Scheduling Rides
Want motivation for cycling from your past cycling adventures? Cyclemeter is the choice you should be making. Cyclemeter’s GPS includes a calendar that helps schedule rides as well as keep track of the rides you’ve made previously.
You can get insights into stats of all rides to track your performance such as how much distance you covered on a particular date. You can see if that distance has been covered again or not, motivating you to put in more effort for reaching a new goal.
Let’s not forget that this app brings amazing stats such as pie charts, etc. to summarize how you’ve been performing during your cycling tours. You can check and see your improvements and get an idea easily.
Rain Alarm – Best For Weather Forecasts
What’s worse than having a mood for cycling and it rains? Your cycling app not giving a heads-up prior to your scheduled ride. Well, say goodbye to that now that you know of Rain Alarm. This app is perfect for cyclists that want seamless cycling experiences without any weather troubles.
With accurate weather forecasts, you’re able to schedule your ride and even choose a suitable route. For instance, if it’s raining, you can check for routes that are suited for cycling even in this weather.
The app notifies with live weather updates and you can use satellite view on the map to check routes in detail. In case you’re riding and the app notifies you of bad weather ahead, you can simply alter your route right away.
FillThatHole – Best For Reporting Route Repairs
Can’t wait for cycling on your favorite route? But seems like last week’s rain has damaged the trial with potholes or other surface problems. Not to worry because FillThatHole is here to rescue you from all road nuisance.
Covering road damages, this application informs authorities of what nuisances cyclists are facing on various routes. Ultimately, the authorities repair the trails, giving cyclists a safe riding experience.
Although it’s navigated by Cycling UK, a leading cycling charity in the UK, you can check and see if it works in your area or not. If not, you can track the area that has been affected and report to your municipal authorities that will get it fixed.
Safety Measures for Cyclists
No matter if you’re a pro or an amateur cyclist, safety measures must be kept handy to ensure you ride without bringing harm to yourself or other cyclists. Here are some important safety measures you must adopt:
- Wearing a cycling grade safety helmet
- Wearing well-reflective clothing especially going out on a trail during the night
- Observing weather and traffic updates on cycling apps
- Maintaining and safety inspecting your bike before going out
- Observing traffic rules and riding in cycling lanes
- Ride on well-paved/made trails unless you’re an off-road experienced cyclists
- Using indicators while turning. Signaling by hands in case indicators aren’t present
Closing Thoughts
We’ve just covered a bunch of the best cycling apps that any cyclist should keep handy. So, if you’re a cyclist yourself and want to keep your experience surreal while tracking data for fitness goals, make sure you get your hands on these apps right away. Let us if you have other cycling apps that provide great utility during cycling, in the comments.