Nike today updated its popular "Nike+ Running" iOS app with a new name, "Nike+ Run Club," as well as introducing various user interface changes and features (via Fast Company). The big new addition centers around "coaching plans" that let users choose a workout and running plan, which then dynamically adapt to the specific progress made by each user.
Some of these plans include categories like "Getting Started" and "Get More Fit," which falls in line with Nike's mission statement of treating each one of its customers like a professional athlete in order to help them "reach their full potential." Within each plan there's a new "Benchmark Run" that gauges the improvements -- or slacking off -- of each user as they work their way through a workout.
With the latest version of fitness app Nike+ Run Club, for example, personalized coaching for newbie runners is central to the experience. As the app learns more about you, it tailors your workouts accordingly.
"If you have a body, you're an athlete," says Jay Lee, global head of product for Nike+. "What we've learned is that we really need to serve [athletes] as individuals if we want them to reach their full potential."
On the social side of things, Nike has made it easier to share progress with friends on social networks as well as tweaked its leaderboards tab with new ways to compare and compete with people who are also using the app. Users will also be able to use the companion Apple Watch app independently of the iOS app, since the new update allows users to "run free" and leave their iPhone behind.
The new "Club" naming style follows in the footsteps of Nike+ Training Club [Direct Link], which focuses on a wider array of weight and strength training. For anyone who has yet to download it, Nike+ Run Club is available for free on the App Store. [Direct Link]
Top Rated Comments
*The default running playlists Apple music does have are lacking. 15 or 20 songs. The NRC playlists are usually huge and have great variety for short, long, fast, etc runs. It's a place Apple Music can definitely improved upon within the running section, especially with the upcoming rumor Apple Watch 2.