Fitness App Overview: Chasing the Ideal Solution (If There Is One)

Why build an app when you can take advantage of a ready-made solution?

Fitness enthusiasts and fitness centers crave more than just class scheduling and activity tracking solutions. This is why we frequently receive requests from both gym chains and personal trainers seeking to create robust multimedia skill tracking and lifestyle management and wellbeing incentive apps. The concept of advanced fitness apps also excites IT companies and those dreaming of creating their own app, who reach out to us with requests for something akin to a specific app, but better, cooler, and with a few extra features.

And although, seemingly, there are more fitness apps on the market than excuses one can come up with to skip the gym, the demand continues to grow, and the niche remains highly competitive. Why so if there are already so many off-the-shelf solutions to choose from? To get to the bottom of that question, our pretty representative will test the hottest fitness apps on the market, looking into their technological components and business aspects, all while scrutinizing them through the lens of the end-user convenience and benefits.

Meet our cute EdTech girl who’s eager to test a few fitness apps!

To start things off, let’s put ABC Trainerize under the microscope

1. Let’s see how user management stacks up from the trainer’s angle.

The first thing I’m happy about is having immediate access to training history, since it reduces the chances of the student slacking off. You can keep a close eye on their progress and step in if they’re stuck, tailoring the workout program to get them back on track.

Oh, and you can log in through Facebook, which is a massive time-saver. Plus, when it comes to adding clients, you can do it via email, and that’s pretty nice because it just adds to the whole ease of the experience.

2. So, how versatile is the app? Can you do online workouts for those abroad?

The video features are great — you can do both online consultations and workouts, and there’s even an on-demand video option. So, you can mix things up in terms of how you teach. This variety in lesson formats is sure to please clients and keep them engaged for the long haul.

3. Speaking of making things easy for fitness businesses, let’s talk about payment options.

From what I can see, when it comes to payment integrations, there don’t seem to be any issues. Whether you’re going for the basic package, the premium one, or personalized training — you can easily pay with just a click through your own account. I haven’t put all the options to the test, but it looks like you can link up your PayPal, Stripe, or whatever accounts. This is a definite win because you won’t lose a single user for not having a payment option they might prefer.

Moving on, next up is Virtuagym

1. How’s the situation with remote learning here?

It’s really nice that besides the usual creation of personalized workout plans and training programs that can be sent directly to the client, here you can also hook your users up with access to some insightful articles, videos, and resources on nutrition and wellness, as it saves them from going to the web looking for answers and stumbling into a rival’s ad by accident.

Plus, it looks like you can record and share workout sessions with others, which is always a great motivator. The feedback part is also pretty good — coaches can chat with clients and keep them in the loop with workout plans and updates.

2. Let’s now explore the pleasant world of payment handling.

I really liked how the app takes care of client billing, fees, and payments. You can easily get yourself a membership, or if you’re anything like me and not sure about going all-in for a whole month, you can just buy individual sessions separately. However, there are some significant nuances here, but I’ll get into those a bit later when we go into the not-so-great stuff.

3. And now about the perks for the coach: how easy is it for them to keep tabs on their clients’ progress?

This app is just a visual paradise! It’s loaded with a whole bunch of metrics to help you keep your clients on the right track. Personally, I find all this data visually pleasing, so clients won’t get lost in the details and come to you asking for explanations. And the option to set clear goals — just a synonym for firing up clients’ motivation.

And completing our trio of contenders — TrueCoach

1. What’s the word on the ease of interaction with clients over there?

I can see that besides the videos in the library, trainers can attach their own video demos or instructional clips for exercises — super personalized, super good. But hey, there seem to be some pretty significant hurdles in the mix, let’s circle back to this later.

The app has all the standard tools for trainers to manage client profiles, from adding new clients to dishing out custom workout plans and sharing updates. So no complaints on that front.

As for in-app messaging and notifications, I see they’re alright, not perfect, but we’ll get into that in a bit, like usual. But what really deserves some applause — is the chance to create and send customized assessment forms to gather updates on your clients’ health, goals, and preferences, so you can keep your finger on the pulse all the time.

2. How easy and enjoyable is it to receive payments?

From what we saw, handling finances can be tricky, but no worries here. The app keeps all the admin tasks in one place and collects the revenue almost instantly. Seems like an example to follow.

3. Can users and trainers easily keep tabs on all the processes and results?

Here, you’ve got the option to keep track of exercise history and metrics, which is fantastic for both trainers and clients to track their progress towards specific goals over time. But wait, I see something even better — trainers can see various health metrics, like heart rate and sleep data, to make smarter coaching decisions. Now we’re talking about a serious approach. Oh, and, without pointing any fingers, if you’re the forgetful type, there are customized reminders to complete workouts or check in. Looks promising, but, as experience has taught us, there’s always room for a hiccup or two to be detected.

Ladies and gentlemen, I’m rendering my conclusive verdict. No appeal

You probably couldn’t help but notice that every application has at least one area that could use some improvement. Some struggle with catering to the specific needs of coaches, while others lack support for multiple languages, customizable notifications, full integration with wearables, or encounter difficulties in properly tracking client progress.

As a result, my conclusion is as clear as day — each one of the pre-built solutions available today has its unique strengths, but none of them can perfectly check off all your boxes. As there’s a significant risk that your customers might be the ones desperately missing that tiny detail that users of other applications are blissfully ignoring. And this is where the concept of customization comes into play, whether it involves developing new apps, modifying existing ones to optimize monetization, or integrating the app with other systems you use.

If you’re eager to explore ways to overcome the constraints of pre-made solutions or tired of compiling an endless checklist of must-have features for your fitness app, Oxagile, equipped with many years of experience in fitness software development, is here to lend a hand, fine-tune the existing apps to create an exceptional user experience or help you decide on creating one from scratch.