Map My Run is a simple tracker and running app which analyzes the distance & pace of your run at its most basic level. You simply download, register, put on your running shoes, hit the start button, and you’re off and running. You can pause your session if you need to take a break or need to halt in the middle of a run, and then finish it with a simple hold press. The distance, length, & speed of your run will be displayed on the screen at this moment.
If that’s all you require, there’s no need to search any farther. However, Map My Run has a lot to offer. Though the title suggests that it is solely for running, you can use it as a workout diary and track everything from swimming to yoga. You can measure your progress toward your objectives and your performance over time, as well as the built-in training regimens, making this one of the top running apps for novices. It’s one of the most straightforward to combine with other gadgets and apps, such as smartwatches and MyFitnessPal.
What you will see here?
Map My Run: Free vs Paid
While it works well with a simple tracker, Map My Run does have a lot more information to offer, all of which is presented in a clear, simple number or graph format. However, the Premium edition ($5.99/£4.49 per month or $29.99/£26.49 per year) offers a significant quantity of data and additional capabilities, such as heart rate, power, and cadence analysis. Premium also includes the training plans and the Live Tracking function, which allows you to share your true address with a friend or relative for safety reasons. You can, however, sign up for a two-week free trial to put everything to the test and see if it’s right for you.
If you’re running with headphones on, the app will give you audio announcements of split timings for every km or mile (In the options, you can select your preferred alternative.) After that, you’ll be able to view everything clearly, including your average pace, cadence, elevation during your run, and weather conditions. Most of these indicators may be put to the life, ‘in run’ page so that you can see it right away if you want — or you can keep it simple and do your analysis later. You could also brag about the run on social networks at this time.
Map My Run may also serve as just a virtual coach, creating a training schedule for any event you’ve registered for. You can choose among programs that focus on getting you ready for a specific distance, such as a 5k or a marathon, or programs that aim to improve your running form. There’s also a weight-loss training plan that’s deliberately made for running. You can also customize your plan by changing the distance and goal.
Interface and features
Map My Run’s main layout is simple and well-designed. Albeit there is a lot of sub-menus that must navigate before you can fully explore all of the capabilities. There are a plethora of customization choices to tailor the app to suit preferences. This can take some time to master but are entirely optional. If you start messing around, you’ll see some pretty nice features such as the ability to switch between different sorts of runs, such as intervals, group runs, crossing country, trail, and power walking.
One of our favorite Map My Run features is the fantastic route planning tool, which accesses on the website. If you’ve ever wondered how long a certain journey might take, now you can find out! Simply go to the website and use the basic tools to make a map. You may save it, transmit it to the phone, and then launch it. If you’ve done all of your routes and want to try something new, you can search for routes designed by the others, limited according to where you are and the distance you wish to run. This is especially useful if you are away for work and travel and don’t know where you can go for a run. It’s a function that can be available in Strava and other paid-for-running apps.
Map My Run: Accurate
Apps that rely upon phone GPS haven’t always been effective in terms of accuracy. But we were blown away by how accurate Map My Run appeared to be. For example, one of the top Garmin watches (which would be usually believed to have better GPS) clocked a lengthier run we completed at 24.33km and MapMyRun clocked it at 24.39km, a little difference over a pretty long distance. This was true on other, short trips as well.
Under Armour owns Map My Run, so if you have a pair of their Bluetooth-enabled shoes, you could pair them up and they’ll precisely track your cadence — and they’ll immediately submit your running data to the app the moment you step through the door.
Overall, the stats shown in the app are remarkable when dug into, with graphs and charts to warm the heart of a running stat nerd. You may also watch this over time to see if your cadence or step length varies as you train, or compare runs on a similar path to see if you get fast.
Smartwatch apps
Apps for Samsung & Apple smartwatches are available from Map My Run. The Apple Watch software is straightforward to use. But offers a lot of information on the panels that you can browse or swipe between. They display your splits, heart rate, and the workout zone your heart is now in as well as a little map of your current location. You also can control your music from the app, which is convenient while you’re on the go.
You can also sync the app to Garmin, Fitbit, Suunto, and Withings devices as well as MyFitnessPal for exact calorie-burn tracking. It’s also simple to attach smart headphones & heart rate monitors.
Map My Run: Groups and social
The app has a lot of social features, though we wouldn’t say they’re very strong. Local routes may lead you to meet local runners who you can befriend. However, finding people you currently know is difficult. Because you must search by name instead of linking social apps or using your contacts.
You can join existing challenges or build your own while inviting friends to join. Challenges are a big feature — one of the icons on the main screen connects to them. So you can either join current ones or build your own and invite people to participate. These could be the most workouts, the longest distance, the most calories expended, or the longest workout time, and you can choose the challenge’s duration and whether it repeats.
Conclusion
Map My Run surprised us greatly, particularly with its distance tracking precision. It’s a great pick if your major purpose for a running app is to measure your fitness over time, as well as the route planning & exporting tool is fantastic.
The only drawback we discovered was that the “auto-pause” feature was slow to respond. This is an excellent function. If you don’t want to be fumbling with your smartphone while waiting at a traffic light. It should be possible to perceive while you are sitting still and automatically halt. Nevertheless, we found it difficult to react quickly, which hampered our split timings. Of then, you can always manually pause. The mapping system’s second flaw is that it heavily relies on Google maps. So it’s better for highway routes — trail racers will find it limited in terms of planning. However, this appears to be a small annoyance in what should be a fantastic feature.
In conclusion, Map My Run not only delivers more data than most runners require but also provides excellent tools to help you train more effectively. People who want to share & compete might prefer the more socially focused Strava. Also, no phone-based app could match with dedicated running watches from companies like Garmin. But it’s a great tool for those who just want to focus on their running.
