Week 332 was posted by Charanjit Chana on 2024-03-04.
Included with my Apple Watch Ultra 2 was a trial of Apple Fitness+, I waited a little before getting it going, but was keen to see what the service was like.
Overall, it is a great service but for my own body I pushing myself too hard with longer workouts on my exercise bike. I've had to take a bit of a break but the plan is to get back on it tonight.
The trainers are all very good, instructions are clear and the on screen graphics help to push you along. The full integration between devices is brilliant, Apple have nailed it as a non-line coaching set up. I really enjoyed lots of the workouts I did and there were plenty that pushed me well out of my comfort zone too.
Things that were not so great with Apple Fitness+
Let's get the bad things out of the way, there aren't many.
My biggest annoyance was how things are filmed when a new move is introduced. For cycling you always see the leader's legs so matching their speed is up to you. For other workouts, like HIIT for example, you might feel like you're doing it right until the camera angle changes. Too many times I was too far gone in burst before realising I wasn't set up right.
My only other annoyance was around zone information when cycling. If you're doing a generic indoor cycling session, you get zone information which helps you understand how much effort you're putting in and I find motivating. When in an Apple Fitness+ session with a trainer you're often asked to 'go all out' but without the context of zones, I don't have much to go on. I think zones should be available in all cycling workouts or at least made an option.
Audio gripe
I do not understand the appeal of Spatial Audio with these workouts. My iPad or iPhone mounted on a bike, Spatial Audio makes it feel like everyone is a little further away. Maybe others find it useful and more immersive, but I found it pointless.
The great things about Apple Fitness+
The coaches are all enthusiastic. My favourite partners for riding were Bakari and Sherica. When Cory was in the room too, you know you're gonna have a good session. Wierdly, I found Cory a great partner for the room because he's always smiling and matched my rhythm more often than not.
Honestly, all the coaches were motivating and never let you down with a dull or pointless ride, but Bakari and Sherica were the best persona's for me. If you're using Apple FItness+, give them a go!
Being able to use your phone, your iPad or your TV (via the Apple TV app) made it a great option. Sometimes I'd take over the living room, other times I'd be zoned in with the iPad. Paired with an Apple Watch made it all seamless. With my various headphones it's great too. No need to worry about Spatial Audio, in my opinion and a recent update let you put more emphasis on the soundtrack. This helped me enjoy it all more because sometimes a great song comes on that get's you in the right frame of mind and this helped to stay there.
It's worth mentioning that they've done a lot of work to make sure you can do all sorts of work outs that are tailored to the equipment you have, even if that's none. It's pretty accessible even if you're not using a bike, treadmill or weights.
Being able to build a custom program is great and there are automated options to. Just tell it what kind of activities you want to do and your plan will be ready in seconds. I didn't always appreciate a notification saying 'there's still time' when it gets to about 7pm when I know I'm almost free from work and family duties to be able to work out, but the reminders did keep me on track and even if I was tired I did do something more often than not.
Is Apple Fitness+ worth it?
If you have the equipment at home, then it's pretty cost effective. Cheaper than Peloton, but I didn't realise they had free lessons. That would be a great move for Apple to introduce a subset of classes you could take but right now it's a paid experience no matter what.
I think it's worth the price. I need to figure some stuff out personally so that I'm not pushing myself harder than I should. Once I've done that it will be something I'm looking at diving back into.
Tags: apple, apple fitness+, health