I remember when workout videos used to be pretty expensive. Growing up, they were often sold at a premium, and after you’ve done that particular workout 100 times, it was pretty much useless since you’ve already memorized it. But in the digital era some content producers have started catching up by offering subscription model—DailyBurn is one such provider.
Essentially, the app is a collective of workout videos, all in one place. After signing up for a mandatory proprietary account you’ll enter in basic data (gender, age, and activity level), which will present you with an appropriate set of videos. Really though, these are just suggestions, as you can browse the entire catalog yourself at any time. From yoga to kickboxing, the diversity of workouts here is pretty impressive.
However, the said catalog isn’t free like the app itself. DailyBurn requires a monthly subscription for $9.99, or a yearly discount of $89.99. I’ve been trying out the basic plan just for this month to see what it has to offer, and I have to say the videos are generally of pretty high quality.
It’s easy to follow the beginner videos even with a relatively sedentary lifestyle, and you can work at your own pace. If you get bored, just switch the video until you work your way up to the more hardcore content. With the proper motivation, it’s an ideal environment for keeping a workout interesting.
Beyond that though, the app is pretty bare-bones, especially for the subscription cost. There’s no option to bring in external data (such as nutrition, or your routine by way of other apps), which cripples its use as a “catch all” for exercising. Fortunately, the company also has a more holistic health-monitoring app called DailyBurn Tracker that can be used in tandem with the DailyBurn workout videos.
With subscription pay models really taking center stage, it really makes sense for workout videos to go the way of Netflix and Spotify. But DailyBurn isn’t meant to be just a neutral streaming platform—they produce their own high quality videos with their own trainers and hosts. While the dream of having Billy Blanks and P90x all under the same streaming platform might be a ways out, apps like DailyBurn seem like a pretty good place to start.
DailyBurn is an iOS app that you can download for free in the iTunes App Store. It can also be downloaded on pretty much every other platform imaginable as well, including Android, Apple TV, PS3, Xbox 360, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and even a variety of smart TVs.