Back in September, Apple showed an array of new products and services, including the launch of Apple Fitness+, a new fitness experience that launched on 14 December 2020.
Part of the Apple One family of connected services but also accessible on its own, Fitness+ looks like a great new way to get fit using Apple’s devices, all built with an Apple Watch in mind.
We’ve got all the details you need to know about the new service right here, so strap in to find out everything.
What is Apple Fitness+?
Put simply, Apple Fitness+ is a new way to get workouts to complete in whatever setting you prefer, whether at a gym you visit, in your own home or outdoors, using Apple Watch to pair with visuals on an iPhone, iPad or Apple TV. Apple Fitness gives you the studio-style experience that’s become very popular on other well-known services during lockdown.
The idea for Fitness+ is that you won’t need any equipment, you can simply prop your phone up, follow along with a workout, and get personalised stat displays both on your wrist and on your display of choice in real-time. The service will have workouts you can complete on your own, as well as studio-style classes you can tune into with the cast of trainers Apple’s proudly shown off, all of whom look, well, like fitness gurus, so that’s good.
It also offers a wide range of activity types to make sure that there’s plenty to appeal to people, including Cycling, Treadmill, Rowing, HIIT, Strength, Yoga, Dance, Core, and Mindful Cooldown among others. Finally, if you’ve got Apple Music, you’ll also find integration there, letting you easily browse and save playlists geared around each workout.
What You need for Apple Fitness+
Apple Fitness+ is built with Apple Watches in mind but won’t work with every single combination of Watches and iPhone. The baseline requirement is an Apple Watch Series 3 or later paired with at least an iPhone 6s or later, or iPhone SE.
On the iPad side, the service will work with iPad Pro, iPad (5th generation or later), iPad mini 4 or later, iPad Air 2, or iPad Air (3rd generation), while Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD will both support it.
In terms of exercise equipment, you will need to bring your own, and unlike Peleton, which you buy the bike or treadmill, Apple is expecting you to have those. In terms of exercise kit, workouts that use kit currently focus around you needing either dumb bells, a yoga mat, an exercise bike, a rowing machine or a treadmill, although there are a number of classes that won’t need anything other than yourself.
How it Works
Each class is between 5 – 45 minutes. Apple has confirmed there around twenty-four new classes added each week across the catalogue with the hope that this combined with the launch classes means there is quickly hundreds of different classes to get you started.
The Fitness+ recommendations engine will suggest workouts in the times, types and trainers you typically do (looking back at the past 60 days.) Things you don’t do or can’t do won’t show up in recommendations with the exception of complimentary workouts suggested for cross-training which are clearly labelled as suggestions to balance out your routine.
And while the classes are hosted by exclusive professional trainers, there will be plenty of guidance for your fitness levels. From fitness fanatics to beginners, on Apple Fitness+ you can find your perfect class for every body.
