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Apple Fitness Plus Partners with Strava for Enhanced Integration

Apple Fitness Plus is set to undergo significant enhancements through a collaboration with Strava, a popular fitness tracking app. The partnership aims to improve how Fitness Plus interacts with Strava’s user community, featuring new workout summaries, appearances of Strava athletes in Fitness Plus classes, and a complimentary three-month trial of Fitness Plus for Strava subscribers.

As of today, users can expect to see improvements such as thumbnails for Fitness Plus workouts, along with details like episode numbers, music genres, trainer identities, fitness metrics, and personal achievements. Although primarily a cosmetic upgrade, this integration aligns Fitness Plus more closely with existing collaborations Strava has with other fitness services like Peloton and Ladder.

Initially, Apple Watch users were able to transfer their workouts to Strava; however, the data provided was fairly basic, only including details like activity types, calories burned, and simplistic heart rate statistics. Prior to this update, those wanting to showcase fitness classes from Fitness Plus had limited visibility into the specifics of the workout class or its instructor. This transformation is notable, as a screenshot from previous integrations lacked clarity about whether a completed yoga session was indeed a Fitness Plus offering.

How Fitness Plus workouts appeared in Strava previously versus how they will appear going forward. Image: Apple

The integration between Fitness Plus and Strava is bidirectional. Specifically, Strava subscribers located in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia—new and existing—will receive a free three-month subscription to Fitness Plus, irrespective of whether they own an Apple Watch. However, access to Fitness Plus will require a compatible device such as an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV. Additionally, notable athletes from the Strava community will feature as guest instructors in Fitness Plus sessions, with upcoming workouts led by well-known figures in the running community, such as Hellah Sidibe and Kayla Jeter.

This collaboration marks a departure from Apple’s previous model, where free trials for Fitness Plus were only offered with new device purchases. While Fitness Plus has included prominent sports figures as guest hosts, this new initiative represents a first for sourcing talent directly from a third-party fitness network.

Hellah Sidibe, though not a household name like two-time Olympic champion Ted Ligety, has garnered a following among running enthusiasts for his impressive seven-year continuous running streak and his unique approach of using multiple smartwatches during his runs.

“Over the past ten years, we have greatly respected Strava’s influence in the fitness domain, particularly in fostering community,” stated Jay Blahnik, Apple’s vice president of fitness technologies. He remarked that this type of collaboration is relatively rare for Apple.

Blahnik highlighted that partnering with Strava also provides an avenue to broaden Fitness Plus’s audience. When Fitness Plus was initially launched, its focus was on making fitness accessible and encouraging to individuals of varying skill levels. Early iterations of Fitness Plus were designed to serve as an introductory fitness platform for those requiring some extra motivation—something that publication The Verge noted in its original analysis. This strategy, however, does not necessarily align with typical Strava users.

“Strava users often do not require motivation; they are self-driven,” Blahnik added. He proposed that seasoned athletes could find value in Fitness Plus as a supplementary tool for cross-training or trying out new forms of exercise.

Zipporah Allen, Strava’s chief business officer, added to this perspective by explaining that the collaboration could support users in various fitness pursuits. For instance, those beginning a running program may want to incorporate yoga and strength training in their regimen to prevent injury.

Both Allen and Blahnik hinted that this partnership is only the beginning, suggesting that more expansive integrations may be on the horizon. Although specifics remain under wraps, Blahnik noted that there are ambitious plans for how both platforms could enhance user experiences in the future, such as potentially allowing users to directly access Fitness Plus classes taken by their friends on Strava.

In the immediate term, this partnership appears to be mutually advantageous. Strava recently faced backlash from users following changes to its API terms for third-party applications, leading some subscribers to question the value of maintaining their subscriptions. Offering a free trial for Apple Fitness Plus may help retain these users. Strava has established itself as a central hub for fitness data among avid athletes, providing a straightforward pathway for Fitness Plus to reach dedicated fitness enthusiasts who are likely to stick to their goals beyond the New Year.

Source
www.theverge.com