7 great apps and sites for at-home workouts

7 great apps and sites for at-home workouts

Toronto gyms are officially open, which is great news for those of us who have been missing live classes and fancy fitness machines. But not everyone is super-keen to get back to the gym just yet. Despite all the precautions most gyms are taking, some people just aren't ready to be indoors with folks outside their social circle, no matter how many times benches get wiped down. And others find all those precautions too much of a hassle to make a trip to the gym worthwhile.

So what's the solution? Keep working out at home! There’s no shortage of amazing apps, sites and YouTube videos that are all about staying fit without a gym membership – and these days, they're more popular than ever. We asked our agents and staff what apps they love most for their own sweat sessions. Here's a list of their favourites – we hope you find something that inspires your own inner fitness buff!

Yoga with Adriene

Woman doing yoga

Need some incentive to work on your flexibility? This site is great for that. Adriene is a personable and enthusiastic instructor who offers plenty of free yoga videos on her YouTube channel. You can choose from themes like Yoga for Beginners (great if you're not sure where to start), Yoga for Back Pain (perfect for people who spend a lot of time hunched over a laptop in their makeshift home office), and Yoga for Uncertain Times (whatever it takes to help you cope…)

Related info: Setting up a healthy home office on a budget

“She has tons of videos at different levels from beginner to expert,” says Bonnie Ackerley, Manager of Data, Content & Information Resources at Condos.ca. “She does themed practices too, like Yoga for Neck Pain. It's great.”

Price: free (with ads)

The Peloton app

You don't have to have a pricey Peloton bike to take advantage of this content-rich app. There’s a great selection of non-cycling classes available for a low monthly fee, with on-demand workouts including running, boot camp, stretching, strength, audio and yoga. It's free for the first 30 days if you want to give it a go.

“The app is really reasonably priced and offers a lot of different options for working out,” says Matthew Himes, Sales Representative. “You can run, cycle, dance, do aerobics, or in my case... pay $12.99 a month and never use it. But in all seriousness, it's a great app!”

Price: $12.99/month

Fitness Blender

Man following workout from his laptop

Recommended by Franklin Evans, Sales Representative, this site has hundreds of free full-length workout videos. There's also the option to upgrade to a paid membership called FB Plus All Access for expanded content, custom workout programs and meal plans. They have a great blog, too: check out this post for ideas on condo-friendly workouts.

Price: Basic content is free, with upgraded memberships starting at $8.99 a month

Boho Beautiful

Wouldn’t a yoga retreat on a tropical island be just what the doctor ordered right about now? (Sigh.) But since travel isn't currently in the cards, this YouTube channel offers the next best thing: a virtual retreat where you can downward dog to your heart's content while watching beautiful instructors in ridiculously gorgeous tropical locations.

“Boho Beautiful has yoga for various levels, yet it’s all challenging and drives your focus,” says Rob Ackerley, Sales Representative.

Price: free (with ads)

Sydney Cummings

This reco comes from Manuel Anzoategui, Sales Representative. It's another YouTube channel with a ton of great fitness content, with a new workout added every day. You can choose from an enormous range of 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60-minute workouts, plus she has a helpful Q&A section that covers fitness and nutrition topics.

Price: free (with ads)

Nike Training Club

This offering from the iconic sports brand helps you “just do it” with a big library of workouts with Nike Master Trainers. You can focus on running, strength, training, cardio and HIIT, yoga and more, with a boatload of health and fitness content to help you figure out your form, eat right and move smart. And it has a 4.9 out of 5 rating in the App Store, so you know it's gotta be good. Plus, it’s free. When COVID hit, Nike made their premium content completely free, and they recently announced it would remain that way indefinitely. (Nice.)

“Nike Training Club lets you choose your workout based on your skill level and the time you have available,” says Marc Ronne, Sales Representative.

Price: free

TRXtraining.com

You’ve probably seen those black and yellow straps at the gym, with people doing gravity-defying stuff that looks really hard. Those are TRX straps, and they’re part of a cool workout system (developed by a former Navy Seal!) that uses gravity and body weight for a workout you can do pretty much anywhere. TRX stands for Total Resistance Exercise, and is designed so you can make it as hard (or as easy) as you want.

TRXtraining.com has lots of classes – both live and on-demand – and it’s a good option for home workouts. All you need is a door that closes, but you can also connect the straps to trees, playground equipment, basically anything stable. You do have to buy the straps, which aren't super-cheap, but they're durable, so you’ll only have to buy them once. (If you can find them used, go for it. They last forever.)

“I learned to use TRX at the gym, but I bought the straps to use at home during COVID,” says Tamara George, condos.ca writer. “The site has live classes several times a day, plus videos you can access anytime. It’s a great workout, and you don’t have to have weights or other gym equipment to really challenge yourself."

Price: free (TRX straps start at about $185)

More fitness content is coming your way soon!

We’ll be posting more blogs to help you stay fit at home, with everything from bodyweight workouts to setting up a home gym to stretches that help you feel less stressed. Stay tuned!

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