Progio Training Companion review

I still have not been able to find that personal trainer, so I was thrilled when Dirk Bartels, founder of Progio Mobile, Inc., offered me the chance to test drive their Progio Training Companion.

The Progio Training Companion is a hand held fitness system that provides step-by-step instructions of your workouts and tracks your results. It allows you to take your exercise program with you and acts as a personal trainer, right in the palm of your hand!

The Progio is very easy to use and makes scheduling and completing your workouts quite easy. Here are some of the features:

• a calendar: you can schedule and keep track of your workouts here. No more wondering what to do, just turn it on and be ready to exercise!
• the workout library: You can purchase pre-made workouts from Progio.com, Hyperstrike.com, or another content provider. Just sync your device with your computer and your workouts are uploaded and ready. If you already have a personal trainer, they can also create workouts for you and send them to your device.
• detailed workout information: this was the key for me. It tells you what to do, how to do it, and how many to do. If needed, it will provide more detailed instruction (video clips, pictures, description, etc.) It shows you how many sets you should do and lets you check them off as you are done. It also keeps track of how long it takes you to do each excercise and workout.
• workout log: a summary of your workout, including the date, the total time it took you to complete the workout, the number of exercises you performed, and the total number of sets you completed.
• heart rate monitor: my test model did not have this feature, but the 20p model comes with a built in Polar receiver. Just wear the chest strap and it tracks your heart rate for you.

After using the companion for about a month, I think it is a great tool and I love the portability factor. I can take it anywhere and it is ready to go for me. The video clips are extremely helpful, especially if you are a beginning exerciser. The workouts themselves were quite challenging and I used muscles that I had not used in way too long, especially with Michael George’s 20 minute strength training routine!

I’ve said before that I struggle with strength training, so this device was perfect for me. There were no excuses with it, I wanted to complete the workout, (because it tells you if you haven’t!), and it pushed me to get it done.

The main downside for me was getting the opportunity to use it by myself. My 2 year old was fascinated with it and wanted to play with it, which is not conducive to mommy getting a good workout! When I’m doing a DVD, I can half listen and watch while still paying attention to my boys. With this though, I had to focus on the device and realized it is not something I can use effectively while they are under my feet.

The device itself is also on the pricey side but if you are spending money on a personal trainer each week, the Progio Training Companion is going to save you money in the long run. Other options include loading the workouts directly to your iPhone or iPod touch.

If you have a gym membership, I think this would be perfect for you. You can load up your workouts and go through your routines without distraction. (and the other members and trainers will be very jealous of your portable trainer!)

I definitely recommend the Progio Training Companion for you or the fitness enthusiast in your life. Thank you again Dirk for allowing me to review it!

On that note, I am off to do some lunges, overhead presses, and whatever else my Progio instructs me to do today.

How about you gang? What are you doing to stay active today?

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Tagged as: dirk bartels, hyperstrike, michael george, personal trainer, progio