There are plenty of smartphone apps out there that will allow you to track your runs while pumping out your favorite music tracks. However, if you could use some extra motivation - maybe something like a horde of zombie chasing you, trying to eat your brains - then this app is for you.

Zombies, Run was born from a Kickstarter campaign (like many other awesome things) as a part audio book, part game, part fitness app that provides an engaging story line that keeps you yearning for your next run, to see if you and your camp survives. Your own music is intertwined with the story, providing nice breaks from the dialogue for those of you who need music in order to exercise.

Also along your run, you’ll collect supplies for your base camp, which you can then use to strengthen your buildings and defenses. Even after the 20-some minute story is completed, you can continue running while the app goes into “Radio Mode”, where two postapocalyptic DJs spin your tunes while providing updates about life with the zombs. You can continue to collect supplies while in Radio Mode, which is also surprisingly motivating (I often think, “maybe if I take another trip around this track, I’ll find some more water bottles or clothes for my base camp”).

Once you get back to your computer, you can log into zombiesrungame.com to check out the map of your run, a short recap of the story you just heard, what tracks you listened to, and what supplies you collected. You can also use these supplies to continue building up your base.

PROs

• Fun, engaging story helps break up the monotony of boring cardio
• Provides mapping and stats about your run on the website
• ”Radio Mode” continues the game for your extended runs
• Works fine with Bluetooth headphones (like the Jabra Clipper)

CONs

• Your run will only count in the Zombies Run app and not any of your other fitness apps (the developer hints that RunKeeper integration may be coming soon). So if you have friends on Nike+, they may wonder why you’ve been slacking
• Even with my playlist set to “Shuffle”, I still hear the songs in the same order with each run (although, I think this has more to do with iOS’s music player than this app)

**If you’re getting bored with Nike+ and RunKeeper, Zombies Run is a great way to add some flesh-eating excitement to your fitness routine. Find Zombies Run in the app store.