Apple’s paid fitness service, Fitness+, is a pretty good collection of workout videos in a variety of styles, lengths, and difficulty levels. From the beginning, it was intended as a way to increase the value of the Apple Watch. Specific workouts are automatically synced to Apple Watch and live stats from the watch are displayed on your TV, iPad or iPhone to keep you motivated.
With the release of iOS 16.1 on Monday, October 24 (along with iPadOS 16.1 and tvOS 16.1), Apple is officially dropping the requirement to own an Apple Watch.
All you need is an iPhone
If you’re upgrading to iOS 16.1 (available October 24), you’ll find Fitness+ in the middle of the bottom tabs in the Fitness app. From this tab, you can subscribe to Fitness+ in any of the 21 countries where the service is available today, no Apple Watch required.
You need an iPhone to sign up for the service, but after that you can access it from an iPad or Apple TV. If you don’t have an Apple TV device but still want to watch your workout on your TV, you can use AirPlay to stream your workout from your iPhone or iPad to an AirPlay-enabled TV or streaming device.
When you start a workout, even if you don’t have an Apple Watch, you’ll progress on your Move ring based on estimated calories burned from the workout you’ve selected.
In addition to lifting the Apple Watch requirement, Apple is trying to increase Fitness+’s user base with some partnerships. The service usually costs $9.99 / £9.99 per month (or $79.99 / £79.99 per year and is included in Apple One Premier), but Apple partners with SilverSneakers, Target, UnitedHealthcare and Mobile Health to make the service more readily available. SilverSneakers will make Fitness+ available through select Medicare Advantage plans beginning January 2023, Target will offer four months free for members of its Target Circle loyalty program, and UnitedHealthcare and Mobile Health will offer Fitness+ as part of its employer-provided plans.
Other Features Coming October 24
Apple has a few other treats on the way for Fitness+ starting October 24.
Music from Taylor Swift will be available for the first time on Fitness+, featuring a special solo Artist Spotlight series featuring newly released tracks from her album “Midnights,” out October 21.
Apple is adding a new Yoga for Every Runner workout, featuring ultramarathon runner Scott Jurek.
Those who do have an Apple Watch can access the Time to Walk feature, which starts new episodes with Hannah Waddingham (from the hit TV+ show Ted Lasso).
Finally, Apple is adding three new curated collections: Totally 80s cycling, Best Mindful Cooldowns for Athletesand 14 Day HIIT and Strength Challenge.
