Are Online Fitness & Health Services Here to Stay?

Yes, it appears so. The fitness industry has adapted to the issues surrounding the Covid-19. How? By shifting their efforts to a more flexible online fitness business model. Personal Trainers, Fitness Coaches, Nutritional Counselors and the like have quickly pivoted their efforts to being heavily online based.

This is by no means a new practice in the industry. It had been one that was secondary to in person training. However, signs are now pointing toward online fitness business model being equal to if not the primary means of fitness interactions moving forward.

The influx of a younger population who seek fitness advice from online mediums changed the game. Health professionals have now adapted to a dual-business integrating on structure incorporating an online fitness business model.

Personal Trainer software has been flooding the market to help online trainers get their business off the ground. Even large fitness certification organizations like NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine) have started shifting online. They have started online virtual conferences in addition to putting out a large scale efforts into their Facebook groups.

Live person to person training in any health and fitness industry will always exist. However, it is short sighted to not at least dip your toe into the online medium as well.

Personal training computer software is being used and developed to quickly meet the needs of both the consumer and the professionals. The online fitness business model is now the norm.

Forbes recently reported in March of 2020 that 73% of fitness consumers were using pre-recorded online fitness video versus 17% in 2019. In addition, 85% were using livestream classes weekly versus 7% in 2019.

Online Fitness Business Model Benefits

There are so many benefits for personal trainers and health professionals to branch out online. No oversight, less time constraints to name a few but none more important than scalability.

For example, lets say you are a personal trainer who focuses on helping clients prep for marathons. You work with clients individually on an hourly basis. You would only have as many clients as hours in the day.

However, with the advent of great fitness software your life has changed. Virtual training is one of the many benefits for the online fitness business model.

You’ve now created a comprehensive training video called “Couch to Marathon”. Subsequently, you review that training guide via live video through a platform like TrulyFit. You can scale up and increase your audience to levels never thought of before.

There are a host of benefits for the users (clientele) as well. Cheaper classes and training for one. Secondly, avoiding feelings of judgment and embarrassment for those who are just starting to exercise are very important features.

Additionally, users aren’t hampered by the time constraints. They can partake in pre-recorded sessions or simply jump on to a live streaming class when it best suits them. 

Will Thing Go Back To Normal?

Covid-19 has certainly played a role in this shift, but all signs point to people staying in virtual fitness.

In the previous study cited by Forbes, 46% of people reported they would continue to make online fitness part of their routine even if their former fitness studio/gym reopened. This can be seen by data from personal training booking software. The following are fitness statistics from on another Forbes showing the astounding numbers for online fitness business model booking:

• The Tone It Up app reported a whopping 950% increase in downloads since quarantine
• Alo Moves of Alo Yoga has watched a 300%+ rise in their free class views through YouTube and and a 50% increase in watch time.
• P.volve reported double digits growth in online subscriptions coupled with over 150% increase in overall sales.

This is not just a trend in the fitness realm, but can be found in every corner of the health industry. Rebecca Abraczinskas, RDN, has watched her nutritional counseling sessions skyrocket during the pandemic.

People are faced with evaluating their current health status during Pandemics, and in turn have to ask themselves tough questions about their efforts in leading a healthier life. Also, with more people working from home, they can now dedicate a small window of time to hop on a zoom call.

Rebecca Abraczinskas, Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist, HappyHealthyBites.com

Running your virtual fitness business from home or the nearest coffee shop also means you save office expenses.

I was renting out an office for appointments prior to Covid, and the rent was astronomical. I am now able to put those costs back into my business and education to better help my clients”.

Rebecca Abraczinskas, Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist, HappyHealthyBites.com

So, you bought in and now want to shift all or part of your fitness and health business online, now what? Finding which personal training business software or app is best for your business would be the logical next step. Check out this article to see why TrulyFit may be the best for you!

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