Let me be honest, I’m a major control freak. When it comes to pretty much every facet of my life, I like doing things my own way. (Surprisingly, Virgo is not? in? my? Zodiac? chart?)
But after a long day of matcha lattes and work (and more matcha lattes and more work), I’m completely brain dead and have trouble forming full sentences. Just me?
This means the last thing I want to do after a full day of adulting is to plan a 30-to 45-minute workout. And that’s where Apple’s new at-home fitness program, called Fitness+, comes in, my friends.
The new app features really fun fitness classes—and makes my life so much easier. All I have to do is pick the class and wait for the instructor to tell me exactly what to do and how much to do it. And I don’t know about ya’ll, but that’s exactly what I need out of a workout.
I’ve been using Fitness+ for the past two-ish weeks because #workperks, and I just have to say, it's totally legit. I seriously can't get enough of it. Allow me to explain why it’s literally the best.
How it works
Fitness+ requires you to have 1) an Apple Watch Series 3 or later and 2) some sort of Apple product to view the videos, like an iPhone, iPad, and/or Apple TV. (So sry Android users.)
You also have to have the iOS 14.3, watchOS 7.2, iPadOS 14.3, and/or tvOS 14.3 versions, which I know sounds like a lot of gibberish, but just make sure you have the most up-to-date software on whatever device you want to use this program on.
I used my iPad and Apple TV primarily, so I made sure those were installed with the latest software.
As for accessing the workouts, they’re all right in your Fitness app. (You know, the app with all the rings on it.) And if you can't find it, there's a good chance you accidentally deleted it—just redownload it from the Apple store.
The Pros
It's easily the most affordable at-home fitness class app I’ve found.
Fitness+ gives you the most bang for your buck. It’s $10 per month or $80 per year. (A whole month of workouts = less than two of my Starbucks orders, ya’ll.) Most other at-home fitness class apps are at least $20 to $30 per month for the same type of trainer-led workout class.
Plus, your Fitness+ subscription can be shared with up to six family members. So, really, the price is even lower since my sisters are getting in on the workouts too.
There are so! many! classes!
I’ll be honest, I’m notorious for doing the same kind of workout every day because, hi, I like structure. But Fitness+ was designed to encourage users to mix up their workouts. If you get bored easily, you'll like it here.
Here are your class options: strength, HIIT, yoga, core, treadmill, cycling, rowing, dance, and a mindful cooldown (aka 5 to 10 minutes of stretching and meditating.)
Similar to most of the other fitness class apps I’ve seen, you can also filter for the trainers you like, how much time you want to spend sweating, and musical genre.
I focused on the strength, cycling, mindful cooldowns, and HIIT classes (because, again, I like to stick to what I know), and they were all super amazing, IMO.
If you’re a fellow spinner (not sure if that’s a word, but let’s make it one), you'll be into the cycling classes. This might sound weird, but I fully appreciated that the classes were exactly how long they said they'd be. So I knew exactly what I was getting before I started. Let's normalize this, shall we?
Also, I’m going to take this time to give some love to the "mindful cooldown" option because the five-minute stretches and meditations had me feeling so zen.
In general, all the classes are pretty beginner-friendly. I try to work out four to five times a week, and I didn’t have trouble keeping up with the instructors. That said, you’re new to sweating, Fitness+ offers a whole section of classes for beginners.
And, hey, if sweaty workouts are totally not your thing, they also offer "Time to Walk," a feature they describe as an "audio walking experience." When I tried it on a day I didn't feel like working out, I listened to Shawn Mendes talk to me for 15 minutes while I strolled around my neighborhood. Twas lovely.
Workouts sync with your Apple watch.
Yeah, this right here is the coolest part of the whole program. During your class, your Apple Watch rings are displayed on the screen, so you can see how close you are to closing them.
I loved this feature because I could see how long I'd been working out, check my heart rate, and estimate when I'd close rings. That helped me assess if I could push harder or needed to pull back a bit. Plus, it’s really motivating to see how much further you need to go in order to close your rings without having to look down at your watch.
The music is no joke.
Considering Apple has its own music streaming platform, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that their workout playlists are seriously The Move.
Music absolutely makes a workout, and I was jamming to a healthy mix of throwbacks, current bops, and everything in between. (Little Mix’s “Power” played in multiple classes took and—I don’t care what you think—that’s the GOAT of workout songs.)
The instructors make the classes.
It’s like Apple Fitness+ plucked the best instructors from all around the world and put them in this app. (I know I sound like a superfan at this point, but I've tried A LOT of fitness classes and apps. You can trust me, promise.)
The first class I took was cycling with Tyrell, and he really set the tone. (Like, he is the workout BFF you've always wanted.)
I also took classes with Emily, Betina, Jessica, Sam, Sherica, and Bakari and they are 110 percent the reason why I was able to get through my workout.
Oh, and every instructor also knows a bit of sign language, so you can expect them to sign to you in the beginning and at the end of the workout. (We love to see it.)
The Cons
There are no live classes.
This might be a personal preference, but sometimes I like to feel like I’m in the actual moment with my trainers. Pre-COVID-19, that looked like me being in the room with them. Now, it's me taking live classes.
It’s not a huge deal, but live classes make me feel more connected to the class, like we’re going through the same thing. The Fitness+ on-demand library is great, but the trainers didn't give us a pep talk on stressful current events, which is something I kinda loved about my old IRL spin classes.
You might have to retake the same class.
Remember when I said that I stick to what I know? For me, that was Fitness+’s 45-minute cycle classes. They were seriously made me feel invincible. But, unfortunately, because this app is tailored to mix up your workout as much as possible, they only offered roughly 10 45-minute long cycle classes. I burned through all of them in two weeks.
Luckily they add additional classes each week and the app is very new. So hopefully they'll be more variety as time goes on.
The Verdict
If I wasn’t obvious enough about where I stand, this app is everything and more. It’s the best, easiest, and cheapest way to get moving at home. Plus, control freak or not, you have to admit that taking a class is high-key great. Especially when you can stream it from your bb iPhone or hella large Apple TV.
So whether you’re looking to 1) increase your fitness levels 2) work your boooooty out 3) get more flexible 4) feel more confident and/or 5) do something in quarantine that isn't TikTok, you’re $10 per month away from your answer.
Taylor is one of the sex and relationship editors who can tell you exactly which vibrators are worth the splurge, why you’re still dreaming about your ex, and tips on how to have the best sex of your life (including what word you should spell with your hips during cowgirl sex)—oh, and you can follow her on Instagram here.
