May 2023
Tenets
- I want to work out without any extra equipment
- I should be able to work out no matter where I am in the world and under any circumstances
- Not like “in the bathroom” or “while walking a tightrope,” but things like, “I’m in a hotel room,” shouldn’t be an obstacle
- The more decisions I have to make, the more likely I will quit
FitBod
I like that it just tells you what exercises to do and doesn’t force you to make any decisions.
The way this app works is that, when you start a workout, it shows you a list of exercises and starts a timer. It’s up to you to tap into individual exercises if you want to see how they should be done. You have to then type in how many you’ve done and click a log button for each exercise. It’s a glorified checklist with a timer and forcing you to do more tapping and typing during the workout. I don’t like this approach. When I’m in the workout, I want you to take me through everything. Assume I’m doing the number of reps you’re telling me. Don’t make me change anything or tap a “Log” button. Give me that option if I do want to add reps or weight, but assume I’m doing what you suggest.
I can’t tell it to give me a downstairs-neighbor-friendly workout, but I can replace individual exercises. The UI for this is really challenging to use though. I eventually got it done, but it seems like there are multiple places on the row representing the new exercise where tapping does not result in the replacement happening. I still don’t know what I did to make it work.
I knew this app had a paid component. I was confused while doing my first workout because I hadn’t seen how to access it. The app just threw me straight into the workout. I assumed this glorified checklist with timer approach must be the free component and there was a paid workout UI hidden somewhere in the app.
Turns out, I was wrong! This is the paid component — they just don’t charge until you complete two free workouts. They’re going to charge me $80/year to generate these checklists and run a timer for me! Not at all worth it. No Apple Watch integration either. It’s an incredibly minimal offering for nearly what I would pay for a cheap gym membership.
Adidas
This does make me pick a training plan or a workout before I can get started. Don’t make me think! Just tell me what to do, please. You can still offer me the opportunity to break out and pick my own workout, but tell me what I should do so that barrier is removed for me. I worry what will happen once this six-week training plan I’m on is done. Will I have to pick something else? Will the app make suggestions, or will it just dump me back at square one to figure it out myself?
Once you’re in a workout, this app does an excellent job at driving you through it. The only intervention required is to start the warm-up and the main workout. Once you’re in one of those sections, the app speaks what you should be doing and automatically plays videos while the timer runs. I love this approach! The only thing I wish it would do is to let me either specify low-impact beforehand or to replace individual exercises.
I had to log my workout in Apple Health manually because the app didn’t prompt me to connect HealthKit. Just do this proactively. Again, don’t make me think!
As far as I can tell, this has no paid component. That’s impressive since the workout portion of the app is much richer and easier to use than FitGo. I’m scared about having to program my own fitness routines after this training plan is done, but so far, so good.
I take that back. There is a premium component, but it’s unclear what it gives you.
The two worst parts of this app are the way the watch component works and the fact that you don’t get partial credit for a workout. There’s a watch app, but it doesn’t connect to the phone app if you start the workout from the phone. If you start from the watch, it starts a workout on the phone and the watch controls the phone, but it doesn’t appear to work in the other direction. I’m not sure what would happen if you started a workout on the watch after having one going already on the phone.
I did two supersets of a workout today (2023-05-10). This was after a ~3 mile walk. It was getting late, so I wanted to quit. I did, but I didn’t get any credit for the workout. This doesn’t make much sense. I did two thirds of the work. I should get two thirds of the credit instead of none of it. I’m not sure why they did it this way.
Freeletics
Like that it gives me the option for quiet workouts. Good options for getting started. Makes me feel like this app will work well for me. I wish they hadn’t hit me up for a subscription first thing. That almost caused me to bounce because I didn’t know I could bypass it. No need to ask me to pay when I don’t even know yet what you’re selling.
Oh, wow. I was able to bypass the screen, but it’s not going to let me try the app before I pay. It’s just letting me look at the interface. That’s a non-starter, particularly at these prices (minimum $39).