Our Choice
Beach Body
Overview
Beach Body is a suite of workout programs that offer online instructional videos, personal training, and support services, as well as personalized nutritional counseling and meal planning. They host results-driven weight loss and exercise programming with big names like P90X®, INSANITY®, and 21 Day Fix®. They have over 400,000 personal trainers and counselors on hand to help you navigate their offerings and meet your personal fitness and health goals. You can tell them exactly what you're looking for, be it weight loss, felxibility, building up muscle, or just being generally healthier in your daily life, and they'll tailor programs to fit your needs and support you along the way with one-on-one attention.
Price
$13/mo.
Highlight
Beach Body is a suite of workout programs that offer online instructional videos, personal training, and support services, as well as personalized nutritional counseling and meal planning. They host results-driven weight loss and exercise programming with big names like P90X®, INSANITY®, and 21 Day Fix®. They have over 400,000 personal trainers and counselors on hand to help you navigate their offerings and meet your personal fitness and health goals. You can tell them exactly what you're looking for, be it weight loss, felxibility, building up muscle, or just being generally healthier in your daily life, and they'll tailor programs to fit your needs and support you along the way with one-on-one attention.
Founded in 1998, Beach Body has founded some of the most popular fitness programs for over two decades. In 2019, 56.5 million hours of fitness and nutritional content were streamed on Beach Body, and their virtual suite offers over 1,500 programs available on demand. Their individual programs, trainers, as well as their overarching services have been praised by consumers and major media outlets alike. From People Magazine to Men's Fitness, to Us Weekly and (many) others, Beach Body is a verified resource for anyone looking to get fit in ways that are fast, fun, and easy to tailor to your own personal interests, capabilities, and strengths. Beach Body On Demand makes it easy to be more active from the comfort, and convenience, of your own home. Especially great for those with limited space, living in apartments, or without the funds to invest in high ticket exercise equipment, Beach Body offers strengthening workouts, core workouts, yoga, and much more for the at-home workout.
Beach Body works as a monthly membership. For as little as $13/month, you gain access to their suite of workouts, nutritional information, and access to their one-on-one personal training and coaching services. You can stream all of this online, on your computer, through smart TV devices like Apple TV and Amazon Firestick, and on your smartphone or tablet. So, wherever you are and whatever your setup, you can access your favorite workouts, in your own space, on your own time. Signing up is easy and you can even try it for free for the first two weeks. Not what you're looking for? Cancel any time.
While Beach Body hosts high-intensity workouts like INSANITY and P90X, which focus on high cardio and strength conditioning, they don't skimp on the beginners. If you're uncertain about where to start with your fitness or nutrition, their programs are all rated on intensity level, program length, and each program comes with its own calendar to make it easy to hold yourself accountable and set up new routines when it comes to your fitness. It takes the question out of the exercise. Should I go for the elliptical, or lift weights? Run a few miles on the treadmill, or check out the rowing machine? With Beach Body, you can follow user-friendly guides and schedules to get a great workout and stay active without the anxiety of structuring your own workouts and routines. Better yet, if you don't like a particular program, the variety of options on-demand at Beach Body fit a wide range of tastes and meet a wide range of fitness goals. Whether you're looking for yoga, strength, and conditioning, or just want to dance while breaking a sweat, Beach Body has you covered.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
Beach Body offers personalized options for fitness. It certainly has those high intensity programs, but it's just as beneficial for beginners or those who are looking to ease back into being active. Their rating systems, based on intensity level and length, makes it easy for people to connnect with programs that fit their needs, their fitness goals, and their bodies. It's not just for the buff and limber; anyone, regardless of fitness level, can get a lot out of their services.
Beach Body doesn't just focus on the workouts, but invests in an overall healthy lifestyle. They have meal plans that match up with their programs so you can exercise and eat well to maximize results and increase your health. They also work closely with nutritionists to make custom advising and counseling available to members. If you have specific dietary needs or concerns, they can help you find a plan that works for you and your body.
Their programs are intense, but they're also really fun and easy to fit into busy schedules. They have high intensity workouts that run you as little as 20 minutes/day. They also offer an suite unto itself of dance programs from Latinx, to hip-hop and R&B. You can dance along to fun, high-energy programs with coaches that know how to engage for a full body workout.
Beach Body On Demand allows you to access over 1,500 workouts from anywhere. Whether you're at home in your living room, or on the road and want a quick workout in the hotel, you can stream Beach Body workouts from your television, laptop, your smart tablet, or your phone.
Cons:
More of an inconvenience than a major flaw, you can't purchase a monthly or month-to-month membership through Beach Body. If you want access to their programs, you'll have to sign on for at least three months... and, you'll have to drop the dollars right then and there. While other programs offer monthly billing that spreads out payments, Beach Body lumps all paymennts into one big sum, which is less attractive to those on a tight budget.
Their site interface is exapansive, chock full of information, and... a little overwhelming. While they hosta wide range of programs and exciting, at-home activities to stream. It's a little confusing how to sign up and get started, and even more confusing when you get into add-ons like their Shakeology protein powder line, meal planning kits, and fitness shop that hosts an exorbetant variety of protein shakes, powders, and granola bars.
True to their name, the brand is insensitive to body positivity. Their programs and promotional content focus disproportionately on physicality and overall looks, stressing weight loss over health. With more and more fitness sites and services focusing on the health and mental health benefits of exercise, it feels outdated to prioritize losing weight, feature before and after photos of "fat-to-skinny" Beach Body members, and even call a brand Beach Body in the first place.
Their customer service is mediocre. It seems their corporate model is more focused on selling products than ensuring customer satisfaction and order accuracy. Some users site being transferred from department to department with no answers to an incorrect order. Others say their orders never even arrived. I'd say stick to the streaming and stear clear of their product lines.
BodyFx
Overview
BodyFx is a systemized home fitness program that includes nutritional guidance and coaching. The program offers a video library of over 100 streaming workouts and a convenient pre-filled workout calendar. BodyFx offers e-coaching (with mindset training), which is sent to you, daily, via email. There's also a private Facebook community of over 100,000 BodyFx members who share meal plans and provide continued support.
Price
$11.99/mo.
Highlight
BodyFx is a systemized home fitness program that includes nutritional guidance and coaching. The program offers a video library of over 100 streaming workouts and a convenient pre-filled workout calendar. BodyFx offers e-coaching (with mindset training), which is sent to you, daily, via email. There's also a private Facebook community of over 100,000 BodyFx members who share meal plans and provide continued support.
BodyFx features unique, Latin dance-inspired workouts, known as their patented Figure 8 routines. Figure 8 was designed to be fun and customers say it's more enjoyable than traditional workouts. The workouts combine simple steps with Dynamic Core Cardio Training that targets every abdominal muscle (transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, internal oblique, and external oblique). Workouts alternate between dance routines and the Jennifer Nicole Lee (JNL) fusion routines that utilize 30 second intervals of cardio and strength training.
BodyFx is an entirely individualized health and fitness experience, which means there's no person-to-person contact like there is at public gyms. It is a convenient and safe home option during the pandemic. Members can order DVDs and supplements in the mail, download the BodyFx app, and stream videos on any device.
BodyFx is an all-in-one package that offers both a diet program and a fitness program. It provides a full nutrition plan with meal options, a constantly growing library of workouts, and a pre-filled calendar of workout schedules to conveniently tailor the fitness experience to each customer's schedule and needs.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
BodyFx workouts efficiently target multiple areas of the body at once to provide full body fitness at a minimal time commitment. The JNL Fusion Fit system works by fusing three different disciplines, strength training, cardio, and rest intervals, into one seamless session to develop a toned body shape.
Most of the BodyFx workouts don't require additional purchases of equipment, though a mat may be helpful in a space with a hardwood floor. A jump rope and dumbells may also be used in some of the fusion routines.
The daily time commitment for BodyFx workouts is minimal since workout videos average about 30 minutes. The shortest workout in the library is just 10 minutes and the longest workout is only 50 minutes. Calorie-burning workouts are often described as "intense" so BodyFx programs burn the same amount of calories as other workout videos in a shorter, more efficient amount of time.
Though email is the preferred BodyFx customer service option, responses are prompt and thorough and they frequently offer to extend the free trial period in instances of uncertainty or customer service complaints.
Cons:
The majority of the Figure 8 BodyFx workouts are derived from Latin dance competitions so the ability to pick up basic choreography is helpful and may be challenging to some members. Videos range from beginner to advanced but some may find the progression accelerates too quickly. Additionally, the BodyFx dance routines move in every direction so members will need a bit more space than typical workouts.
It may be somewhat unclear on the website but customers cannot purchase BodyFx workout DVDs without subscribing to the monthly service. Once purchased, the monthly subscription can be easily cancelled at any time if the customer prefers not to take advantage of the streaming option.
Though men are featured in the routines and the co-creator of the program is male, BodyFx is primarily designed just for women.
Due to the virtual nature of BodyFx, certain features of the program may be difficult to access for users who are not familiar with apps and similar streaming services. Even for users who are tech savvy, the app is a little clunky and could be improved by providing better direction on which video to start with first. The workout videos also need to be updated with descriptions explaining what equipment might be needed, whether it? considered a beginner, intermediate or advanced workout, and whether the workout is geared more toward cardio or toning. A visual preview would also be a beneficial improvement.
Daily Burn
Overview
Daily Burn is a home fitness program focused on helping customers meet their toning and weight loss goals through an expansive collection of workout videos. In addition to the library of streaming options, Daily Burn offers a live workout every morning. Members can choose from dozens of systemized fitness programs and hundreds of workouts as part of the monthly membership.
Price
$14.95/mo.
Highlight
Daily Burn is a home fitness program focused on helping customers meet their toning and weight loss goals through an expansive collection of workout videos. In addition to the library of streaming options, Daily Burn offers a live workout every morning. Members can choose from dozens of systemized fitness programs and hundreds of workouts as part of the monthly membership.
Daily Burn features a wide variety of fitness activities that cater to almost every workout preference. Options include barre, kickboxing, yoga, pilates, high intensity interval training?(HIIT), and cardio workouts. The videos are conveniently categorized based on length and they range in difficulty from beginner to advanced. Members can also select workouts according to the equipment they require. The Daily Burn programs last anywhere between just a few weeks to a few months. Should members prefer not to follow a systemized program, alternatively, they can select a la carte from multiple individual workouts. Plus, several audio-only workouts are offered to compliment an individual's treadmill or outdoor routine. The audio selections also include great meditation options.
Daily Burn offers a supportive online community in which members can share their progress and workout challenges. A unique feature of Daily Burn is the live classes offered each morning, which gives members an opportunity to chat with other users during the class, creating a sense of community and keeping members engaged with fresh content to keep the fitness experience from getting boring or repetitive. Workouts last anywhere between 5 and 60 minutes, making it easy to fit in a workout into a daily routine, regardless of a busy schedule.
With a Daily Burn subscription, members have the option to easily track their weight and set a goal for the number of workouts they want to complete each week.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
Daily Burn offers a convenient, 30-day free trial, making it easier for customers to determine whether it? the right fit before fully committing to a membership.
Several Daily Burn workouts don? use any equipment but many of the programs require basics like dumbbells, resistance bands, yoga mats, or a medicine ball. Members have the ability to filter their workout search results to only routines that don? use equipment. Unlike many other fitness brands, a Daily Burn subscription doesn? have any hidden costs or fees but members may want to consider investing in some basic exercise accessories.
A unique feature of Daily Burn not offered by other subscription-based brands is a live virtual workout every day at 9 am. Members can find the live workouts under the 365 tab.
The Daily Burn workouts are fairly simple to pick up. They don't require complicated choreography so anyone is able to easily jump in. The advanced routines are cardio intense but not complicated. Members have the option to filter the workout search results by exercise level (easy, medium, or hard), workout length (short, medium, or long) and also pace (slow, moderate, or fast).
Cons:
Although Daily Burn features a supportive online community, it doesn? offer personal coaching or one-on-one training that other subscription-based brands may include. It's for this reason that Daily Burn may not be a good fit for customers who require additional support or motivation to hold themselves accountable and meet their goals. Daily Burn is also not ideal for beginners who are looking for personalized feedback on posture or technique to prevent injury and maximize the workouts·effectiveness.
With Daily Burn, some nutrition resources and recipes are available on the company blog, however, Daily Burn is mostly focused on fitness. Customers who are looking for a program that also offers?dietary advice?may need to look elsewhere.
Daily Burn currently requires an internet connection to stream workouts and there? also not an option to save or download workouts for later use offline. Due to the virtual nature of Daily Burn, certain features of the program may be difficult to access for users who are not familiar with apps and similar streaming services. Since workouts cannot be saved, once a subscription is canceled, members will lose access to the entire online library of videos.
Though it features one of the wider selections of workouts, Daily Burn doesn't offer step aerobics. There are also fewer workouts in the Hard category, compared to the easy and medium categories so if a member is particularly advanced in their fitness journey, they may find Daily Burn a bit limiting. That being said, routines can be easily modified to make them more challenging.
Aaptiv
Overview
Aaptiv is a subscription-based fitness app that has been hailed as the world’s best fitness experience by multiple consumer reports, Aaptiv combines motivating music with a wide variety of structured workout programs. Since its inception in 2016, over 200,000 members have joined Aaptiv to take part in these heart-pumping fitness programs. A unique feature to Aaptiv, as opposed to other fitness competitors, is that the app is primarily audio instruction to listen to while exercising without being pinned to watching a screen. The workouts are led by certified personal trainers who guide members through the routines with preset energizing tunes.
Price
$14.99/mo.
Highlight
Aaptiv is a subscription-based fitness app that has been hailed as the world’s best fitness experience by multiple consumer reports, Aaptiv combines motivating music with a wide variety of structured workout programs. Since its inception in 2016, over 200,000 members have joined Aaptiv to take part in these heart-pumping fitness programs. A unique feature to Aaptiv, as opposed to other fitness competitors, is that the app is primarily audio instruction to listen to while exercising without being pinned to watching a screen. The workouts are led by certified personal trainers who guide members through the routines with preset energizing tunes.
Upon signing up for an Aaptiv membership, customers are asked a series of health and fitness-related questions about their fitness level, preferences, weight goals, and strength goals. Based on the customer's answers, the Aaptiv algorithm provides a tailor-made, personalized workout program. As goals are met and preferences change, members have the option to adjust their training plan and workouts or incorporate new habits into their daily schedule. The benefit to this degree of personalization is that members are more likely to stay motivated and stick to their program long term, compared to a less individualized programs.
Aaptiv offers a tremendous amount of workout options. More than 40 new workout classes are released every week and members can enjoy unlimited access to 2,500 guided workouts so exercising doesn't start to feel stale or repetitive. Classes include treadmill, stretching, strength training, stair climbing, outdoor running, elliptical, yoga, indoor cycling, pilates, barre, and Aaptiv even offers guided meditations. There are also specialty workout regimens offered for members who need to train for a marathon, stay active during pregnancy, or who wish to incorporate suspension training using the TRX system.
With Aaptiv, members are not assigned a specific trainer but they can choose workouts from their personalized plan led by different trainers who better suit their personality and preference.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
Aaptiv features a supportive community feed where members can post messages, trade encouragement, interact with the Aaptiv trainers, and hold each other accountable. Aaptiv also features team challenges members can join to mix things up in a team setting, feed a competitive nature, or continue to challenge themselves in a group setting. For extra accountability, Aaptiv gives members the option to enable notifications on their phone to stay on track with fitness goals.
Aaptiv includes all the right ingredients to help develop new fitness habits and encourage progress toward goals. The Aaptiv trainers are very encouraging. Plus, the varied durations of workout sessions fit every schedule.
Aaptiv members have the opportunity to connect with Aaptiv trainers on social media and communicate about their fitness progress.
The yearly subscription to Aaptiv is an excellent deal since it breaks down to approximately $8.30 per month, which is cheaper than a lot of popular apps out there, including Netflix.
Cons:
Aaptiv workout programs are primarily audio-based and that can be challenging at times. The workout programs are designed to only be heard without watching a screen and while the trainers provide detailed directions and guidance throughout the workout, members can sometimes get lost or confused by the trainer's directions if they're not that familiar with certain exercises. Each workout program does include video demonstrations for most of the exercises. The tricky part is that the audio has to be paused before the video plays to stay on track with the trainer's directions. To have to refer back and forth between the demonstration videos can be inconvenient and interrupt the flow of the workout.
Some customers have found the Aaptiv 7-day free trial misleading. Customers have to be very careful to cancel 48 hours before the 7th day of the free trial period or they will be automatically charged the annual $99 membership fee and once charged, refunds are not honored. Additionally, should customers who have purchased an annual membership decide they want to cancel, they have to make sure to manually cancel or the subscription will automatically renew and no refund will be given.
While using Aaptiv, the volume of the background music can make it difficult to understand and follow along with the full workout.
Aaptiv offers minimal focus on nutrition. The Aaptiv app allows you to add nutrition-related goals to your fitness plan, such as drink more water, eat slower, and incorporate more nutritious foods into your diet but that's the extent of the dietary offerings. Good nutrition is not only important for a great workout but also key for weight loss.
Fitbit Coach
Overview
Fitbit Coach is a fitness coaching app to accompany a Fitbit smartwatch. Members access the app from their mobile device. The app offers a variety of audio and video workouts at every fitness level, meditations, advanced insights into health and wellness, and sleep tracking. To help more people benefit from a combination of a Fitbit activity tracker and a personal coach, Fitbit Coach provides subscribers with custom workouts, fresh content, wellness programs, and other customizable tools, based on their activity information and health and wellness goals.
Price
$7.99/mo.
Highlight
Fitbit Coach is a fitness coaching app to accompany a Fitbit smartwatch. Members access the app from their mobile device. The app offers a variety of audio and video workouts at every fitness level, meditations, advanced insights into health and wellness, and sleep tracking. To help more people benefit from a combination of a Fitbit activity tracker and a personal coach, Fitbit Coach provides subscribers with custom workouts, fresh content, wellness programs, and other customizable tools, based on their activity information and health and wellness goals.
With one of the world's largest health databases, Fitbit Coach is able to offer more thorough and more meaningful insights to help members stay on track, receive encouragement when needed, and celebrate fitness successes to keep members motivated. Fitbit has the benefit of an advisory panel comprised of psychologists and professors of preventive and behavioral medicine in order to better serve their clients with the most reliable fitness data available. ?
Fitbit Coach features both audio and video coaching workouts, including over 40 running and walking workouts with both indoor and outdoor options. It gives members the experience of having a personal trainer as they, for example, jog on a home treadmill. Subscribers can choose from a variety of trainers and choose their personal activity levels. There are also spinning and elliptical workouts and dynamic bodyweight workouts, which increase or decrease in difficulty based on subscriber feedback. Workouts range from 7 to 60 minute sessions so they're easy to squeeze into a busy schedule.
Fitbit Coach subscribers can select their preferred video workouts from the on-demand library based on duration, level of difficulty, or type of exercise. Videos include step-by-step instructions that demonstrate proper form and technique to maximize physical safety. Fitbit Coach also recommends workouts to members based on their Fitbit activity. For example, if a member focused on cardio one day, Fitbit Coach may recommend weight training the following day.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
Fitbit Coach features Fitbit Radio, powered by feed.fm. Fitbit Radio offers a variety of music from pop to rock to hip hop and it's easy to search for workouts by music category. Fitbit Coach makes it easy to choose a music option that works best for the client at any given mood or moment. Members say the audio quality is good. Plus, music conveniently continues to play in the background even when the member's mobile device is locked.
With Fitbit Coach, members receive an email informing them when their subscription is about to renew. Since most subscription-based fitness apps on the market renew memberships automatically, the Fitbit Coach renewal notification is a small courtesy that members seem to appreciate.
Fitbit Coach is an excellent home fitness app because no additional equipment or fitness accessories are required. Even in the Get Strong section, there is no need for additional weights.
Fitbit Coach is available in English, Spanish, French, German and Portuguese.?Even Fitbit Premium, the higher-tiered app with more expansive options, is only available in English.
Cons:
When starting a new workout with Fitbit Coach, the app first downloads the workout but later, should a member want to start that same workout again, the session has to re-download. The app does not store workouts for later use so members should factor in additional download time prior to each session.
Fitbit Coach conveniently tracks member progress. However, should a member take a fitness break, even a substantial break, when they return to the app, they have to continue at the point where they left off, which may be at a higher fitness level of difficulty than they're currently able to achieve. Customer service confirms that it's not possible to restart a program from the beginning after it has begun.
Some member reviews say Fitbit Coach has an audio disparity between the volume of the music and the volume of the coach's voice. For example, if the music is turned up, the coach's voice may become too overpowering.
Fitbit Coach does not give members the option to disable the preview that may cause unwanted wait times between exercises. Additionally, the library of available workouts is more limited than many other similar fitness apps.