Start by identifying your fitness goals, as they will guide your app selection. Whether you’re aiming to lose weight, gain muscle, improve flexibility, or train for a specific event, choose an app that specializes in the type of workouts and progress tracking aligned with your objectives. Clear goals can also help you stay motivated and measure your success over time. Some of the apps we’ve tested are excellent for goal-setting, while others are optimized for community or learning. So even if you don’t have serious goals but just want to find a way to stay more fit and find some encouraging workout friends, there is an app for that.
Best Workout App for Bodyweight Training: BetterMe
While some workouts require dumbbells or resistance bands, there are plenty of bodyweight options to choose from as well. You can browse the 250-plus workouts by body part, equipment needed, or desired class length (5 to 30 minutes) to get started. You can also stream the videos on demand or download them for sweat sessions on the go.
These apps show you can reach your health goals without expensive gym memberships. Let’s look at three top picks that offer great value for little to no cost. The secret is finding apps that offer value without cutting out important features. There’s nothing wrong with trying a few fitness apps before settling on one. The most important thing is that it helps you reach your goals safely and effectively.
FLEX YOUR MUSCLES, STRETCH YOUR WALLET
Using advanced formulas and simple-to-use food groupings, the Carb Manager allows you to quickly determine the number of carbohydrates in any food or recipe. Additionally, the app offers portion control, meal planning features, and other tools to help optimize your diet and improve your overall health. Since Signature NO2 does not rely on high stimulant content, it can fit into a variety of workout schedules, including evening training sessions. Users can take it independently for pump-focused sessions or combine it with pre-workouts depending on their goals. The app is well designed, easy to follow, and it keeps the essence of Heather’s workouts while adding great extras like recipes, guides, and programs. The wide variety of premium workouts and challenges makes it a great option for anyone looking to share the app with a friend or partner.
You eat “healthy,” but your energy, weight, or cravings still don’t make sense. You swap ingredients, try new recipes, even cut out entire food groups, but you’re still guessing what actually helps your body feel better. Nitric oxide plays an important role in vasodilation, which helps widen blood vessels and improve circulation throughout the body. Ingredients commonly found in nitric oxide support supplements help increase the availability of nitric oxide precursors, potentially leading to enhanced muscle pumps and nutrient delivery during training. For active lifestyles, maintaining healthy connective tissue is important for long-term consistency in the gym and everyday movement. This makes Signature Collagen Complex useful not only for performance-focused individuals, but also for those looking to support healthy mobility and structural wellness.
As you progress through your program, SHRED uses artificial intelligence to customize the training program to your needs based on your performance and feedback. You’ll have to grant the app access to your camera, though, so it can track and rate your performance and provide form corrections. At $149.99/year, it’s easily the most expensive app I tested—twice the price of Strava. I can totally see the price being worth it, though, especially if you have a home gym or a cheap gym membership. Gymverse basically takes the place of a personal trainer—so if you need a lot of guidance, it could be well worth the price.
Can I effectively track strength gains without premium subscriptions?
Learn how to manipulate training volume (sets x reps x load) within a microcycle to build strength, prevent plateaus, and optimize recovery. 🎉 ｜Another year of training, growth, and consistency, and we’re grateful to have been part of your journey once again. Take charge of your nutrition with guidance on meal planning, diets, supplements, and more from our dietitians and nutritionists.
Best Workout Apps FAQs
But the fitness apps for workout structure lackluster wearable connectivity is a significant drawback—especially if you do most of your training outside. According to our tester, the videos are «amazing and super easy to follow,» and fresh workouts are added every day. It’s truly a fantastic resource for anyone looking to elevate their training ecosystem. Our team of Men’s Health fitness editors, including certified trainers and former athletes, have tried every new app that’s entered the market over the past several years. That’s on top of our expansive experience with digital fitness since it became a «thing.» We also consulted our large network of experts, including our Men’s Health Advisory Board, to share their insights. Popular and highly rated fitness apps include BetterMe, Strava, and Glo.
Expert trainers who GET IT
That being said, Paige liked that she didn’t feel anything about the app was pressuring or shame-inducing. Choose a workout app based on your needs and goals, not based on the pricing. Apps can “gamify” workouts, too, through checking in and earning achievements and badges for breaking milestones. A survey study from determined that apps with achievement-oriented motivations were one of the best ways to keep app users accountable and driven toward progress. For general programming, apps earned a 4- or 5-star rating when the monthly membership fee was under $15.
Exercise before you go home
She grew up playing tennis, became an avid runner in college, competed in a bikini competition in her mid-twenties, and even completed a triathlon. Her workout of choice nowadays is strength training, plus logging her daily steps. After her first daughter was born six years ago, she became especially passionate about prenatal and postnatal fitness, teaching stroller bootcamp classes and working with expecting moms as clients. Post-journalism school, Nicole worked in print media as a magazine editor for eight years, then went freelance for a while, writing for fitness websites and manufacturers in the industry. Now, as director of content at GGR, she brings her expertise in fitness to writing and editing honest reviews on everything you might need for your home gym.
Convenient Daily Formula for Wellness and Recovery
Future is more expensive than the average app, but you’re paying for human coaching, so we think it’s worth the cost. If you want an app with more accountability features, Future connects you with a coach who will observe you and provide actual feedback. “Everything the app suggests makes sense, as long you’re honest and logical about your goals.
- A perennial favorite among runners, Runkeeper uses your phone’s GPS to track your running, cycling, hiking and other distance activities.
- You can essentially get a six-month-long training program without spending a dime.
- The app is generally easy to use and follow, including easy-to-follow exercise videos for the non-live workouts.
- The full membership, Les Mills+ premium, gives you access to all classes and starts at $9.99 per month.
- If you prefer a structured regimen that’s planned for weeks, this may not be the best fit.
- FitOn is a great service for people just dipping their toes into the fitness world, mainly because it’s free and gives you access to tons of guided workout videos, still all for free.
Rogue Deadlift Platform Review ( : A Stable Surface for Sound-Suppressing Strength Gains
The biggest difference here is that the Train tier lets you create your own workouts and is available on equipment touchscreens. This helps the app earn a 4 out of 5 from our tester in the value category. While BetterMe is more affordable than the average workout app, it doesn’t have quite as many strength-training plans.
Best Workout App Overall: Future
Metrics such as active heart rate, calories, steps, and distance are tracked, too, and demo videos are also available on the watch, though trainer audio is not. However, with the update, Nike removed some of their training programs, which used to be a popular feature of the app. Instead, you now have the option to filter workouts by muscle group — abs and core, arms and shoulders, or glutes and legs, workout focus — endurance, mobility, strength, and yoga, and by equipment.