Wello – Get Fit From Home

As the dreary winter season moves in and people become less interested stepping outside the warm comfort of their homes, attendance levels at gyms and fitness studios have been known to plummet. Wello has developed a solution for people who want to exercise but can’t, or won’t, leave their homes to do it.

Put down the cookie and pick up your laptop. Using Wello is akin to hiring a personal trainer to visit your house for daily sessions. Setup your laptop or tablet anywhere you have space to move, and tell Wello what types of activities you enjoy doing the most. You can schedule your training sessions months or just minutes in advance. When the time comes to get going, a personal trainer will appear on your screen and guide you through a 30 or 60 minute workout. Unlike a DVD, Wello is interactive. Your trainer can see you through your webcam and give feedback in real-time when your body is out of alignment or you’re in need of an extra push.

For people who enjoy working out in groups, Wello also offers group classes. Not only can everyone in the group see the personal trainer, but they can also see each other. That extra boost of motivation is sometimes all that’s necessary to get people going on the path toward improving their physical health.

Practical Uses:

• Get motivated to work out more frequently
• Have a professional trainer assess your form when working out
• Workout from home when it’s too cold to go running outside
• Host a workout class for all of your friends

Insider Tips:

• Wello workouts are 30 or 60 minutes long
• Users need a laptop with a webcam and a broadband internet connection to use Wello
• Workouts can happen anywhere there is six to seven feet of empty space
• Group workouts have a maximum of five participants

What we liked:

• Users don’t need any fitness equipment to participate
• Users have the option of doing group workouts with their friends or with strangers
• Multiple pricing options are available for people on a budget
• Wello offers an iPad app for people who prefer using their tablets

What we didn’t like:

• Wello’s one-on-one activities are currently limited to fitness, however the company plans on expanding into other areas of interest in the future

Alternatives:

• DailyBurn – http://dailyburn.com
• FitOrbit – http://www.fitorbit.com
• SparkPeople – http://www.sparkpeople.com

Company Info:

• Launched: 2012
• Privately Held
• Headquarters: San Francisco, California
• Founded by: Leslie Silverglide and Ann Scott Plante
• Web site: https://www.wello.com

Costs:

• Group class memberships start at $49 per month for four classes
• 1-on-1 personal training memberships start at $99 per month for four workouts