In 2024, the blend of technology and fitness is changing the way we work out, giving fitness devotees a high-tech proxy for gym life in a single click. With IoT, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality, fitness apps can now offer personalized and engaging workouts that go beyond one-size-fits-all routines.
Innovative fitness app experiences have struck a chord with the audience: all top health and fitness subgenres experienced a surge in consumer spending in 2023, with fitness programs generating a record-breaking $188.6 billion of quarterly revenue. The market dynamics underscore the popularity of the fitness app industry, with the global fitness app market size being projected to grow at a CAGR of 29.9%, reaching over $56 billion by 2030.
So, if you’ve ever mulled over the idea of creating your own fitness app, this might be the great moment to take the plunge. In this blog post, we’re serving the ultimate inspiration for your fitness app ideas by going over the trending categories in the niche.
7 booming fitness app ideas to use in 2024
When it comes to the fitness and wellness industry, there's always room for invention. In 2024, tech-savvy experiences, driven by technology advancements, continue to push boundaries, boosting fitness app usage.
AI-based fitness apps
Enabled by AI functionalities, workout apps can build on unique user data to generate personalized workouts, adjust recovery strategies, and provide tailored meal plans and dietary recommendations. Such apps can also leverage artificial intelligence to deliver personalized interactions, such as virtual fitness coaches and smart chatbots. AI-driven video assistants can replace human trainers and automatically adjust workout sessions for better results.
Examples of AI-based fitness apps
One of the apps banking on AI innovations is Zing Coach, a new fitness application that delivers hyper-personalized workouts tailored to each user. This fitness app analyzes body composition, historical performance data, real-time vital readings, activity levels, and health and lifestyle data to offer the right kind of activity and help users achieve their fitness goals faster.
Zing Coach is also supplemented with motion tracking to make sure a user’s form is aligned with exercise instructions. The app caters to over 1 million users and has recently secured $10 million in Series A funding.
RunMotion Coach is an AI-based digital coach that relies on AI to provide high-touch workout routines. The app adjusts running sessions according to the user's fitness level and goals. App members can get a complete training cycle, including physical and mental preparation, nutrition, training, and recovery. Additionally, RunMotion Coach is the first digital coach to provide a chatbot that delivers running and motivation tips to over 800,000 users.
One-on-one fitness apps
One-on-one fitness applications bring the experience of working with a personal trainer or coach to your fingertips. These apps connect users with experienced coaches, allowing for real-time interaction with trainers and customized exercise routines.
Examples of one-on-one fitness apps
Flexit application provides personal training sessions with top personal trainers. The workout app engages users by mixing and matching various fitness styles, including boxing, cardio, HIIT, and yoga workouts. In addition, Flexit also has nutrition and diet guides, physical therapy, pre- and post-natal support, and mediation.
Recently, Flexit has launched an international version, FlexIt Global, aiming to expand its network to include more non-U.S.-based trainers and cater to a global audience.
The Future app brings unique, one-on-one digital training personalized according to the user's fitness level and goals. A Future coach is a real person who provides on-call support to the members on their fitness journey. According to Future, 94% of members talk to their coach about nutrition, stress, sleep, and injury. The Future app allows coaches to message users, build a new training plan each week, and respond in real time when the user needs adjustments or has questions.
Meditation and mindfulness apps
Meditation and mindfulness apps can help people reduce stress, combat anxiety, hone their focus, and improve sleep through guided meditations, advanced breathing techniques, soundscapes, and immersive experiences. The global meditation app market is expected to go beyond $7 billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 17.9% from 2023 to 2033 — which makes this fitness app idea worth a try.
Examples of mindfulness and meditation apps
InsightTimer provides access to a free library of 80,000 guided meditations, with 10+ meditations added daily. Users can browse through thousands of meditations and build daily habits. Also, when users have any questions, they can ask the app's discussion groups.
Trusted by over 8 million users and over 100,000 paying subscribers worldwide, Aura is billed as a one-in-all health and fitness app that has everything one needs, including meditations, stories, and CBT, to improve their well-being. The application also gives access to a community of therapists and coaches around the world. Also, Aura became the first wellness app to leverage the marketplace model and use data science to serve personalized content and wellness recommendations.
Diet and nutrition apps
If you want to create a fitness app, you can also build upon the concept of diet apps. These apps help track calories, improve nutrition habits, and offer her types of self-monitoring, like most fitness tracking apps. This fitness app segment was valued at over $308 million in 2023 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 17.1% between 2024 and 2032.
Examples of diet and nutrition apps
Favored by over 100,000 users, ZOE is a nutrition app based on a scientifically proven personalized approach to nutrition. The app analyzes users' biology through and through and then puts the insights into action with a personalized program.
Fooducate is an app that helps users enrich their diet with nutrients and maintain healthy eating habits. This app uses a particular algorithm to grade foods based on their nutritional value. The more nutritious the food is, the higher grade it gets.
Members can easily add foods by scanning a barcode or searching them by name. Then, users will be asked to enter how much of the food they have eaten, and Fooducate automatically calculates its calories, carbs, protein, and fat. The app can also track physical activity, sleep, and mood.
Connected fitness apps
Connected fitness apps bridge the gap between technologies and fitness. They allow users to get the gym experience without leaving their homes. IoT, AI, and ML technologies level up connected fitness apps.
During the pandemic, Internet-connected fitness gear and apps have become increasingly popular. In fact, the global connected gym equipment market size surpassed $964 million in 2023 and is slated to reach over $8.9 billion by 2032.
This growth is partly driven by consumers' growing need for hybrid workouts: over 70% of regular exercisers take a hybrid approach whereby they combine gym workouts and digital fitness sessions. In response to this trend, most companies in the field are now revamping their business model, offering smaller, more affordable products to supplement hybrid workouts. This will allow market players to live side by side with traditional fitness instead of competing with it.
Examples of connected fitness apps
Kabata is the world’s first AI-powered dumbbell enhanced with cutting-edge machine technology that provides real-time coaching and personalized training plans. Kabata also relies on state-of-the-art velocity-based training to optimize workout intensity based on the rep speed.
Since its conception in 2020, Kabata has grown into a highly anticipated product with a recent Seed funding of $5 million.
Vitruvian packs 400 lbs of resistance into a 65 lb platform by using motors to generate force. When combined with the Vitruvian app, the platform provides excellent resistance training sessions that sport lovers can complete in their homes while being connected to a whole community of like-minded individuals.
The Vitruvian app provides access to multiple classes and allows users to create and share custom workouts. In addition, this app gathers and analyzes performance data, provides personal records, and adjusts the platform settings to get the most out of their workouts.
Physical therapy apps
Although virtual care might seem at odds with the high-touch experience of physical therapy, dedicated mobile apps can bridge the gap by making home exercise protocols easier to follow for patients. Physical therapy apps come in different shapes and forms, including specific tools for measurements, exercise trackers, all-in rehabilitation apps, and more.
It’s a lucrative market, too, as physical software was valued at $1.25 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 11.0% from 2024 to 2030. This growth is associated with the benefits physical therapy apps deliver for the healthcare industry, including reduced admin, subdued staffing strain, and minimized billing errors.
Examples of physical therapy apps
Trak.Physio is VC-funded telerehabilitation software for physiotherapists, backed by advanced features for precise motion analysis and personalized prescriptions. The application improves treatment plan adherence by 75% through gamified elements and app notifications, allowing users to receive high-quality care beyond healthcare settings. For rehabilitation professionals, Trak.Physio offers a centralized monitoring hub with quick response to alerts.
In a traditional physical therapy setting, patients are often limited in the number of sessions. Kins app improves the accessibility of physical therapy by offering one-on-one sessions with vetted PTs. The app matches eligible individuals with vetted therapists, who then draw up personalized programs for individuals based on the results of in-person assessments.
In 2024, Kins secured $7 million in Series A funding and signed strategic investors to reach new markets.
Social fitness apps
Social fitness apps combine the joy of social media connections with fitness experiences. These applications provide a platform for group workouts, challenges, and communication with like-minded individuals. Thanks to the social element, social fitness apps offer an ingenious way to foster a sense of belonging and boost motivation while also making it easier for users to set and achieve fitness goals.
Examples of social fitness apps
FITFCK is a one-of-a-kind platform that blends fitness and dating. The application is designed to connect hard-core gym goers with shared fitness interests through live dating events. Just like a regular dating app, FITFCK allows users to connect through gym-related icebreakers, swipe through potential matches, and engage in direct messaging.
A 2023 survey reported that 46% of Gen-Z USA singles went on fitness-related first dates, highlighting a growing demand for FITFCK's niche. Since its launch in 2020, the app has climbed to over 10,000 members and 1.3 million app engagements.
Rounding out our list is GoJoe, an app combining employee engagement and well-being into a single interface. GoJoe comprises multi-team challenges, team leaderboards, and interactive tracker maps, along with curated content and news feeds to boost employee engagement, improve team morale, and promote employee wellbeing.
In 2024, GoJoe bagged £2.4 million to develop its global corporate offering.
Tips for developing fitness apps in 2024
Several fitness apps are being launched every day. Given this competitive market, you have to integrate some unique twists to give more edge to your fitness app and promote early sign-ups. Below, we’ve curated a list of competitive functionalities to consider for your app.
Build a community
Having a social element is a crucial aspect when developing a fitness app. Not only does it allow users to engage actively, but it also motivates more people to participate competitively. You can add community elements to your app, including goals achieved, group chats, and leaderboards, to allow users to interact with this content and share their results on social media.
For example, FitPic draws upon the social sharing phenomenon and allows users to share their gym selfies with friends and a supportive community. On FitPic, users can engage in team challenges, share their workouts and progress in a group chat, and create a visual diary of their fitness journey.
Add gamification elements
Leaderboards, personal achievements, progress bars, and badges can help you engage and retain users, making fitness less of an arduous duty but an exciting adventure. But why not step it up a little like the Paceline app did? This app financially rewards fitness enthusiasts for their progress and achievements. Users can then withdraw their earnings from the app using a branded credit card.
Personalize fitness experiences
In addition to pre-set plans, consider allowing users to customize their experience and set specific goals. Here, AI, machine learning, and computer vision come in handy. For example, FitnessAI takes advantage of AI technologies to provide custom workouts with optimal sets, reps, and weights.
Synchronize with wearable devices
Nowadays, fitness enthusiasts have multiple devices that help them track and improve their fitness. When building a fitness app in 2024, it's vital to sync all the data from other fitness apps and fitness bands, glasses, insoles, and clothes.
Keep mental wellness in mind
In 2022, 78% of Americans exercised to keep their mental and emotional well-being in shape instead of focusing on just physical health. Following this trend, Nike, Calm, Peloton, and other industry leaders have doubled their efforts to offer low-impact fitness routines such as yoga, stretching, and pilates.
Based on this preference shift, we recommend including exercises and programs that flex mental muscles as well as adding more recovery programs for users.
How to build a fitness app
First and foremost, you should set your vision for the future product. This includes the app type, a basic set of features, the target audience, and other lead-ins. Once you set your sights on the application, you need to give it a reality check to test the product-market fit. Along with market demand, you should also validate your business idea by creating a proof of concept (PoC). A PoC is also a great exercise to explore the financial potential of your product.
After testing the waters, you can proceed with establishing the application structure and building wireframes. We recommend putting a great emphasis on your application design, as it's crucial for the fitness app category.
After that, your fitness app development team will move along with building a minimum viable product of your application that includes only basic features. An MVP helps identify the most in-demand features of your application and reduce the development effort.
Your fitness app developers then roll out the MVP in the wild and gather real-user feedback to later iterate on the app version.
Undoubtedly, there are far more activities that will occur in your development process. To learn more about the fitness app development process and costs, read our step-by-step guide.
Let’s hit the ground running
The fitness industry has had its ups and downs over the last few years. While specific applications have lost their dominance, the market still favors newcomers with bold and fresh ideas. There are no set rules for building a successful fitness app, but there are various functionalities that you can add to your fitness app to win over users.
At Orangesoft, we've been building apps for over ten years, and we can help bring your app idea to life. Contact us to book a session and discuss your ideas.
