Definition

At first I began to go to the gym with people who more or less knew what they were doing. They were lifting weights and invited me to join. I would mimic what they did and adjusted the weight accordingly. I soon realized that they were receiving guidance from a weightlifting app. I downloaded the app they were using, called 5x5, but it was not very easy to use and it was obviously designed for men.

In the photo shown to the right, there are pictures of men with the work out equipment. Men and women, having different body types, cannot perform the same task in the exact same way. Due to this, I felt this application would not be able to help me and I could, in fact, hurt myself by using it.

I still wanted to work out and lift weights, so I got the idea to search “lifting app for women” into the App Store on my iPhone. I found “SPITFIRE”, a fitness application that describes itself as "the ultimate fitness application for women." Unlike in 5x5, Spitfire has women performing the exercises.

The application has multiple programs such "The Fighter - Weight Lifting Strength and Conditioning" or "The Heroine - High Intensity Interval Training." The programs very in difficulty from beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Each plan is divided into a certain number of weeks and those weeks are divided into days with specific workout plans.

By clicking on the day, you see which exercises need to be done and their duration. If an exercise is unfamiliar, you can click on it to see of the different movements. If those are not as clear and one still has doubts on what to do, there is a link to a YouTube video that demonstrates the movement. It is like having a personal trainer on your phone for free.

The description given by the founders on the About page of the application further demonstrates that Spitfire is an application for women, by women. They want women to be confident and empower themselves and reach their goals. Seeing these exercises done by women is refreshing. We can model our movements after the video demonstrations or the photos because for women, it is easier to imitate another woman's movements than a man's.

In addition to the application, the founders provide an online community on Facebook where the members can discuss concerns, trade tips, and support each other. A description of the different qualities of the Facebook group can be found on the Interaction page.