Via Flickr Creative Commons – by Tara Angkor Hotel

Last year, I wrote about BlackBerry Apps for Runners, which my wife and I have used while getting into running. Now I am by no means a hardcore diet or exercise fanatic, but I definitely care about staying in shape. So, I’ve equipped my BlackBerry smartphone with apps that help me monitor my fitness progress, and hopefully stick to my 2013 resolution.

Healthy living enthusiasts, here are some great apps available in the BlackBerry App World storefront to keep you going (or get you started).

• Calorie Counter and Diet Tracker by MyFitnessPal, LLC: Monitor your food intake and exercise, plus set goals and view progress charts with this mobile app for your BlackBerry smartphone. A media darling, this mobile app has been featured in the news for its database of nearly 2 million foods and more than 350 exercises. And since I spend a good part of my day at my desk, a great bonus is that I can access my profile from the web too.

• Diet and Calorie Tracker by SparkPeople, Inc.: A major determinate of successful weight management is the setting and meeting of goals. This app excels in the ‘goals’ category, and really plays to the lazy guy in me by providing daily meal plans that keep me tracking towards my objectives. Since I like variety and get bored of the dieter’s ubiquitous chicken breast and grilled veggies, I use this Free Healthy Recipes app, also by SparkPeople, Inc. (FREE), for more than 200,000 dish ideas.

• Health Meter – Health Tracker Fitness Calculator by Pace MobiTech: This app allows users to quickly calculate their daily caloric needs by measuring BMI (Body Mass Index), BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate), Body Fat and Hip-to-Waste Ratio. Other than my yearly check-up at the doctor or sporadic use of the scale at my gym, I have very little insight into these measurements. Having an app that does the math for me is a great help!

There are countless other BlackBerry device fitness apps in BlackBerry App World. Let us know some of your favorites in the comments below.

Since I’m also a gadget geek, I usually end up talking to other runners about the mobile devices and apps they use to keep track of their training, pace, and so on. My goal isn’t to be the fastest runner, but I’m definitely focused on improvement. I wanted to share a few of my favorite BlackBerry ® device fitness apps that can help you to reach your running goals:

Endomondo Sports Tracker PRO by Endomondo – The paid version of this free app allows you to track your activity using the GPS in your BlackBerry ® smartphone, and also includes audio feedback. The free version is nicely robust, but for about the price of a cup of gourmet coffee you can review graphs of your performance and get help from the audio coach while you’re working out.

runtastic PRO by runtastic GmbH – A second solid paid version of a more basic free app, runtastic PRO includes many of the same Sports Tracker PRO features, but includes a social media component allowing you to share your progress with your friends via Facebook® and Twitter®.

Fitness Tracker by Magra Systems – Probably the most basic (but least expensive) run tracker of these three is Fitness Tracker. Fitness Tracker tracks your run results, pace, and distance, but also catalogues your results and offers for more info on your training route. It’s a lightweight app, so you can listen to your music while running.

If you have any favorite fitness apps or thoughts on the apps I’ve shared, shout ‘em out in the comments section. Let’s get running!