Apple Fitness+, the first fitness service built entirely around Apple Watch, is introducing a new way to work out or meditate together with people in other locations with SharePlay, starting today.
SharePlay makes it possible for iPhone, iPad, and Mac users to have shared experiences with friends and family while on a FaceTime call.
Beginning November 3, 2021, Fitness+ will also be available in 15 new countries, bringing the total number of countries the service is available in to 21. In both new and existing markets, Fitness+ will be available in English, with subtitles in Brazilian Portuguese, English, French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish.
Additionally, beginning November 1, 2021, as part of their plan benefits, approximately 3 million fully insured UnitedHealthcare members in nearly every state in the US can enrol with Apple Fitness+ for a year-long subscription, at no additional cost.
“We created Fitness+ so everyone would have a place they feel inspired and motivated, no matter where they are on their fitness journey. We are so excited to be available to millions more people as we bring Fitness+ to 15 new countries next week, and can’t wait for them to meet our welcoming trainer team,” said Jay Blahnik, Apple’s vice president of Fitness Technologies.
“We also think our users are going to love working out or meditating together with SharePlay. It’s a really fun way to connect with friends and family, even trade some words of encouragement or friendly smack talk, while also making progress toward closing their rings.”
Work Out or Meditate Together with SharePlay
Today, Fitness+ is introducing a new way to work out or meditate together with family and friends using SharePlay, to help people stay motivated and accountable on their fitness journey. Fitness+ subscribers can use SharePlay to start a group workout or meditation with up to 32 of their friends and family while using FaceTime on an iPhone or iPad, and the selected Fitness+ session will stream completely in sync for every participant.
Once on a FaceTime call, users will navigate to the Fitness app, select a workout or meditation, see their friends and family onscreen, and get started. SharePlay also works with Apple TV so users can follow the workout on a big screen while staying connected with friends on FaceTime using their iPhone or iPad.
When working out in a group through SharePlay, users will see their metrics and progress toward closing their Activity rings, while also seeing and hearing friends. During a workout, when someone moves ahead on the Burn Bar or closes their Activity rings, everyone working out will be notified so they can celebrate together.
Country Expansion
Fitness+ is currently available in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. Beginning November 3, 2021, Fitness+ will be available in 15 new countries with the addition of Austria, Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Arab Emirates.
Fitness+ will be available in English, with subtitles in Brazilian Portuguese, English, French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish, so more people can experience the workouts led by a diverse and inclusive team of trainers whose approach is tailored to every body at every fitness level.
Fitness+ is the first fitness experience built around Apple Watch, bringing studio-style workouts and guided meditations to iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. Workouts and guided meditations are led by a diverse and inclusive team of trainers whose approach is welcoming to all.
Fitness+ intelligently and seamlessly incorporates key workout metrics users love from Apple Watch for a personalized and immersive experience that users can complete wherever and whenever it is convenient for them.
Workouts are fuelled by music from today’s top artists and designed to keep users motivated from start to finish whether their workout is five or 45 minutes long. Workouts include High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), Strength, Yoga, Dance, Core, Cycling, Pilates, Meditation, Treadmill (for running and walking), Rowing, and Mindful Cooldown.
With Fitness+, users can also get moving outside with Time to Walk — an inspiring audio experience on Apple Watch designed to encourage people to get active by walking more often. All that is needed is an Apple Watch and AirPods or Bluetooth headphones.
Fitness+ also has programs designed to help users reach their goals during a specific season of life — like Workouts for Pregnancy, Workouts for Older Adults, Workouts for Beginners, and Meditations for Beginners.
As Fitness+ expands to new countries, the service is also building on its offerings, providing more options for maintaining and improving overall well-being. Fitness+ recently introduced a new program — Get Ready for Snow Season — featuring and designed with two-time Olympic gold medallist and five-time world champion skier Ted Ligety, along with Fitness+ trainer Anja Garcia.
To prepare users to get back to their favourite winter sports, the program will help build strength, balance, and endurance so everyone can have more fun on the slopes, all the way to the last run.
Time to Walk
Today, Fitness+ is also introducing a new episode of Time to Walk, with writer, educator, and actor, Marilee Talkington, who has appeared on the Apple TV+ series “See.” Talkington advocates for herself as someone who is legally blind, as well as other performers who have disabilities. On this walk, she talks about defying expectations and how she helps empower others to do the same.
Time to Walk is an inspiring audio experience on Apple Watch designed to encourage people to get active by walking more often, featuring some of the world’s most interesting and influential people who share stories, photos, and music with Fitness+ subscribers.
The series, now in its second season, has featured guests such as Dolly Parton, Anthony Joshua, Naomi Campbell, Bebe Rexha, and more.
Group Workouts with SharePlay
Training with friends and family is a great way to stay motivated and accountable on your fitness journey. Group Workouts powered by SharePlay brings support for up to 32 people at a time.
Users will be able to start a Group Workout from a group message thread or FaceTime call on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV with AirPlay. From there, they will navigate to the Fitness app, select a workout or Meditation, see their friends and family onscreen, and get started.
During a Group Workout, users will see their metrics and progress toward closing their Activity rings, while also seeing and hearing friends as they work out. With Group Workouts, when someone moves ahead on the Burn Bar or closes their Activity ring, users will be notified so they can celebrate together — or even trade some friendly smack talk to keep each other going.
UnitedHealthcare
In September, UnitedHealthcare announced that it has expanded its work with Apple to provide millions of members with access — at no additional cost — to Apple Fitness+. This is the first such offer for Fitness+ by a health insurance provider.
Starting November 1, fully insured UnitedHealthcare members in nearly every state will be eligible to enrol with Fitness+ for a year-long subscription.
Starting next year, employers with self-funded health plans will be able to purchase an Apple Fitness Bundle, which provides a 12-month subscription to Apple Fitness+ as well as a $25 Apple digital gift card.
Fitness+ is available as a standalone subscription, or as a part of the Apple One Premier plan, which, where available, also gives customers access to Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and iCloud+ with 2TB of storage.
