The fitness industry has seen a major transformation over the last few years.
While gyms have been a fixture in society since Ancient Greece and continue to popular, a physical space dedicated to working out is no longer a necessity. Call it the lockdown effect or the result of technological advancements but you can get a solid, effective exercise routine wherever you are – be it at home or exploring a remote destination. You just need a phone or a tablet.
The mental and physical benefits of working out are widely known and publicised. The NHS website summarises it succinctly “Exercise is the miracle cure we've always had”. It goes on to describe its positive impact on our health and happiness – including reducing stress, boosting self-esteem, improving mood, enhancing sleep quality, increasing energy levels and lowering the risk of developing heart diseases, type 2 diabetes and more serious conditions. Yet, the price tag attached to a monthly membership still feels hard to justify in these cost-of-living times.
Enter: fitness apps.
Providing users with a purse-friendly way to embark, sustain or advance on a fitness journey, it is no surprise that there has been a 44 per cent increase in downloads of health and fitness apps since 2020 according to Healthnews, totalling more than two billion.
Proving this was not just a fad when studios were closed across the country due to COVID-19, fitness enthusiasts have wholeheartedly embraced online workouts. Through the libraries of live-streamed, pre-recorded or immersive classes on offer, it is possible to push yourself further, and improve strength, endurance and stamina from the comfort of your own home. You may just find you sweat just as much as you would do if you were in a gym, but you can slip it into your day when it is convenient.
With no tricky studio timetables to stick to, classes designed for every level and a breadth that extends from meditation, yoga and Pilates to functional training, mobility and HIIT so you never get bored, there’s really no excuse not to dive into the world of virtual gyming.
See the best apps worth of your storage real estate below.
BetterMe Health Coaching app
There is a reason why BetterMe’s health and wellness platform already has 150 million users worldwide. The app acts as an all-encompassing health coach with over 3,000 workouts and advice on nutritional and minfulness practices. You can follow its meal plans and detail your water consumption, you can set targets and track your progress.
The exercises include wall pilates - adored for its easy to follow movements, Calisthenics to build strength from the comfort of your own home using just bodyweight and Somatic to release tension and destress.
Buy now, BetterMe
Freeletics
Freeletics pegs itself as “the world’s most advanced digital fitness coaching” and this is down to the inclusion of AI technology.
As you scroll through the app, you will notice a seemingly innumerable quantity of workouts to choose between as well as Training Journey to follow a program and hold yourself accountable – helpful if you have a specific goal in mind, an upcoming race or an event to get in shape for. There is also a mindset coaching feature with advice that goes beyond simply exercise to include tools that you can take into your everyday life.
Freeletics is well aware that the same workout can be boring and tedious, so versatility is what it’s all about. Mix up your home workout by taking it to a gym or vice-versa and flick between the over 500 different classes on offer. There’s also data galore for those who need the motivation to keep going, showing your improvement in your performance and the option to create a personalised plan to fit your busy lifestyle.
The app has already been downloaded by 55 million users and counting. Price from £1.83 a week or a lifetime membership for £234.99.
Buy now, Freeletics
Fiit
Smart TV owners will likely be familiar with FIIT as it comes pre-installed on Samsung, Sky and Amazon boxes. It can also be downloaded via the App Store and Google Play.
The app has 44 classes every single day at peak times so whether you want to slip in a pre-work sesh, have some time during your lunch break or you’re looking to round off a long day by stretching out your body, there’s a studio session to participate in. The classes range from HIIT to Pilates, yoga to circuits at every level.
Free but for more content prices start from £6.99.
Buy now, Fiit
LesMills
We were first introduced to the world of LES MILLS through a live event hosted in London’s Excel back in October 2022. The exercise label gathered fitness fans from across the UK to participate in its signature workouts, but the on-demand app-based workouts are well-established with partnerships spanning Nuffield Health, Apple, Spotify and in the metaverse on the Meta Quest devices.
The app was created by four-time Olympian and head coach of New Zealand’s track and field team Les Mills and is likely best known for its elite-level trademarked classes. BODYPUMP, BODYCOMBAT, RPM (cycling), BODYBALANCE (yoga), LES MILLS GRIT (30-minute HIIT) and THE TRIP (also cycling) were created to push you, challenging the outdated belief that you can’t get an effective workout without stepping foot in a gym. The classes are systematically updated and mixed up to keep fresh. They are presented on the streaming platform, in person or immersively in virtual reality.
Price from £4.99 a month.
Buy now, LesMills
Nike Training Club
A lockdown favourite, Nike has evolved its Nike Training Club app to provide workout plans and access to expert advice to support you on your fitness journey. It’s free to use and there are around 200 classes to browse with a durable of five or 50 minutes, whether you’re looking to improve your cardio or build strength.
Maximise the planner function where you can schedule your sessions and easily hold yourself accountable to ticking each of them off. You will be rewarded with trophies the more consistently that you use the app.
Buy now, Nike Training Club
Apple Fitness+
When Apple dominates your gadget collection, you may just find that its Fitness+ app will work best for you for the sheer convenience of syncing up. You will find it compatible with iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and Apple Watch.
When you first download the app, you will notice that you can browse between a selection of 12 workout types and 4,000 sessions, whether you’re a fully-fledged yogini, need to incorporate Zen into your life through meditation or you’re looking to raise your heart rate in a HIIT class.
It requires no previous expertise to get going, simply select beginner if that is the case or crank it up to advanced when you’re looking to push yourself. The classes are designed to seamlessly fit into your schedule with a bespoke plan and sessions of five or 45 minutes in length.
Price from £9.99 a month or £79.99 a year.
Buy now, Apple Fitness+
Centr
Training like Thor is a tempting proposition. And this dream (you likely didn’t know you had) can be a reality without Tinseltown’s traditional elevated price tag. Chris Hemsworth founded Centr to give us non-Hollywood folk access to his army of experts. These include Luke Zocchi, the middle Hemsworth brother’s personal trainer, Joseph ‘Da Rulk’ Sakoda whose CV includes Navy SEALs and fire fighters and Hemsworth’s wife Elsa Pataky’s yoga instructor Tahl Rinsky. There are also chefs, nutrition experts and wellness specialists for a 360 approach to health.
Not only do you get a personalised training plan, but this comes alongside a shopping list too and meal plans for foolproof fuelling. There are over 4,000 workouts – some of which feature Chris himself and spanning muscle building, core training and HIIT classes.
Prices from £7.83 per month but there is a free trial.
Buy now, Centr
Shreddy
Sure to make you question how you spent your time at university, Grace Beverley used it to start a fitness empire. While a student at Oxford, the entrepreneurial vlogger grew a community of exercise enthusiasts that, via the Shreddy app, pay a monthly fee for classes, challenges and meal plans. This evolved into a collection of resistance bands, protein bars, powders and supplements but at the heart of the business is the app that has only grown in popularity since its inception in 2016.
The challenges are perhaps the most lauded part of the app where your schedule is auto-populated for you to achieve the goal in question. You can, of course, switch out a class that doesn’t appeal to you and tailor it to your lifestyle. The transformations will be enough to seal the deal.
Price from £7.50 a month.
Buy now, Shreddy
FitXR
FitXR is taking your workout to another dimension – literally. Available on either the Meta Quest or Pico headsets, it presents a futuristic take on fitness by encouraging its users to get fully immersed in a class through the wonders of virtual reality.
There are over a thousand on-demand classes to box, sculpt, dance, practise martial arts or test your stamina in a HIIT class with interactive and joy-inducing movements. These are led by experts in the field; you can jab, cross, uppercut with former professional boxer Nicola Adams OBE or Zumba with Dahrio Wonder who has cut shapes alongside Britney Spears. Your living room gym has never been so exciting.
Buy now, FitXR
MyWhoosh
MyWhoosh is a virtual app with runners and cyclists in mind. There has just been an upgrade to the system and the 3.0 version encourages you to enter the MyWhoosh word to interact and train with other users with your unique avatar.
There are over 700 training plans that you can participate in as well as one-off workouts designed for all fitness levels. Smash your targets with time motivation-based goals or in live coaching workouts.
Connecting to your bike or treadmill, the app transports you around the world to try your hand at race routes in Belgium, Colombia and Australia as if you were participating in the UCI Road World Championships.
The more you use it, the greater the chance of winning in-game currency that unlocks prizes and new content. Ideal for reward-based kind of gym-ers, the app gives you the chance to set goals and decorates you for doing so, whether you complete a particularly challenging route or an event series, giving you a real sense of accomplishment and igniting your competitive side.
The app is free and compatible with smart equipment from Elite, Wahoo, Wattbike, Garmin, Polar and more. The full list is here.
Buy now, MyWhoosh
Peloton
Peleton is perhaps the best-known and one of the leaders in the home fitness space. The app was originally intended to provide owners of its legendary exercise bike a chance to tap into live classes but has evolved over the years. Nowadays, you don’t even need to invest in one of the bikes or treadmills to participate in the workouts, in which there are live and pre-recorded options for every interest.
Whether you’re looking for a core workout, arms, legs or cardio (on the brand’s own equipment or on any other label), there’s a library filled with classes to suit. You dictate the length so there is really no excuse not to slip in a speedy 15-minute session. Class types range from running and walking to stretching and meditation, and there are even themed sessions by music taste and spotlighting artists like Beyonce and Taylor Swift.
Prices £10.75 a month.
Buy now, Peloton
