Home workouts: 5 apps to help you stay fit

The brighter days are back, and with them comes that familiar urge to get moving and look after yourself again. The problem is that gym memberships can be pricey, and finding time to travel there (and back) is not always realistic. The good news: a handful of well-designed fitness apps can help you get fitter at home without blowing your budget.

Looking after both physical and mental health has become non‑negotiable in modern, high-pressure routines. Between work commitments, constant screen time and packed diaries, making space for yourself can be difficult. Regular exercise remains one of the most reliable ways to lower stress, improve sleep and boost day-to-day energy-something health professionals and researchers consistently agree on. Still, the organisation (and motivation) required to get to a gym can quickly sap your enthusiasm.

That’s where fitness apps come in. They make it possible to train, let off steam and unwind without leaving your front room. In just a few minutes, you can follow a session matched to your level-whether your goal is toning up, stretching, or simply decompressing after a long day. Many apps also include breathing exercises or meditation, taking a more rounded approach to wellbeing that supports both body and mind. In most cases, they adapt to your profile and offer workouts suitable for every fitness level.

So, no more excuses. Whether you want to ease back into activity or push for new challenges, these digital tools can provide structure, coaching cues and motivation from home. Below are five go-to apps to help you stay in shape and take better care of yourself-straight from your living room. All the sports apps listed are available on iOS and Android. Most are free to download, although some rely on in‑app purchases or subscriptions to unlock extra features. If you’re tempted, start with the free version and only upgrade once you know which one suits you best.

Before you begin, it’s worth setting yourself up for success: clear a small, safe space (about 2–3 m² is often enough), keep a bottle of water nearby, and choose a time of day you can stick to. A short warm-up and a few minutes of cooldown stretching will also help you train more comfortably and reduce the risk of niggles.

It can also be sensible to check what data the app collects (especially if you link wearables). If you prefer a lighter-touch approach, choose an app that works without an account or lets you opt out of community features.

This is a non-exhaustive selection-feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments wherever you’re reading this.

What are the best apps for working out at home?

Nike Training Club (NTC) - home workout app

Nike Training Club is among the best-known fitness apps, helped by the fact it’s backed by the global sports brand. Its biggest strength is how broad-and how tailored-it can be. When you first open it, you’ll create an account and enter a few basics such as your gender, height and weight.

The Workouts area is the heart of the app, as that’s where you’ll find the sessions themselves. Once you’ve indicated your level, Nike Training Club suggests workouts that match what you’re trying to achieve. Each option clearly shows the activity type, duration and difficulty. You can filter by muscle group, training style, or the equipment you have available-whether you’re training at the gym or at home. There are also multi-week programmes available at no extra cost, typically labelled by goal (for example slimming down, rock-solid abs, and so on). Be aware that some plans mix formats, so you may see Pilates workouts or running sessions included to vary the training.

NTC is packed with features, including a badge and rewards system tied to your effort, the sessions you complete and even when you do them. You also get a dashboard that sums up your total number of workouts, your current programme and more.

As for the sessions themselves, you’ll either follow video classes led by coaches or step through animated illustrations that show each move. A timer and progress tracking are built in so you can focus on your workout rather than on what comes next. The library is refreshed regularly too, which helps prevent the routine from feeling repetitive.

Download: Nike Training Club (iOS/Android)

Freeletics - home workout app and training plans

Freeletics is widely seen as NTC’s closest rival. You can pick sessions based on criteria such as muscle group, time available, equipment, or workout type (workout, warm-up, recovery, stretching, cardio and more). The main navigation is organised into three areas: Community, Coach and Profile.

In the Coach section, you’ll find the workout catalogue. Rather than filmed classes with real coaches, the app uses a timer plus images that show the positions to hit in sequence-either for a set time or a set number of repetitions. It’s efficient and easy to follow, though generally less engaging than NTC’s video-led approach. That said, you can switch on a clip of the current movement by tapping the camera icon in the top-right corner, which can make it easier to perform correctly.

The Community section provides an article feed (in English), alongside community comments (mostly in English) focused on fitness, wellbeing and related topics. You can also join or create challenges to share with others, which can be a useful motivation boost.

Under Profile, you’ll see your training statistics. Your “level” increases as you complete more sessions, unlocking badges and other rewards. One important limitation: access to the Daily Athletic Score (and its calculation) is only available with a paid subscription, which also unlocks personalised programmes based on your training profile.

For those who want a more complete ecosystem, Freeletics also offers a separate standalone app focused on nutrition.

Download: Freeletics (iOS/Android)

Decathlon Coach - home workout app plus multi-sport training

A major sports retailer is well placed to guide you through training, and that’s exactly what Decathlon aims to do. With its free app, you can access dozens of sessions and structured programmes based on your level and physical ability. You’re not limited to one discipline either: you can choose from walking, running, boxing, swimming, football, cardio fitness, Pilates, tennis, triathlon, and many others. If you create a free account, you can also build your own sessions, or log a “free training” workout without following a specific plan.

As you’d expect, Decathlon Coach includes workout tracking so you can view your history, stats and body weight (entered manually). In the settings, you can connect accessories such as a heart-rate sensor or a smartwatch (supported brands vary) to capture more accurate performance metrics. It can also link with other apps and services such as Strava, Garmin and Fitbit that work with their own devices.

You’ll also find advice articles inside the app, plus a Shopping section highlighting kit promoted by the brand. To keep you moving, there are challenges offering points and rewards.

In addition to Android smartphones and iPhones, Decathlon Coach is also available as an online service, so you can use it on a PC’s larger screen regardless of your operating system.

Download: Decathlon Coach (iOS/Android)

7 Minutes Workout - quick home workouts with minimal setup

Even with a packed schedule, you can still squeeze in exercise with 7 Minutes Workout. It’s arguably the simplest home workout app in this selection for anyone who wants something straightforward rather than highly personalised. You don’t need to create an account, and you won’t be asked to set goals. The interface is extremely basic with only a handful of functions-and visually, it’s not the most polished option.

There are two tabs: Workout and Calendar. In Workout, you’ll see a list of targeted sessions (abs, glutes, legs, arms, and so on) alongside more general ones (full body, stretching). For each workout, you can read instructions and view a list of moves with images showing how to do them, then start the programme by following the set order or enabling random mode. There are no built-in demonstration videos-only fairly simple illustrations and a timer. The voice guidance is robotic, minimal and not especially motivating. If you tap the small camera icon, you’re sent to YouTube videos, which forces you out of the 7 Minutes Workout app and pauses the timer.

The Calendar tab shows an agenda view with a small tick on days you trained. This is also where you can check stats such as the number of sessions completed, your weight and your BMI (as long as you’ve entered the required data). You’ll need to tolerate adverts, and that’s largely it-no tips articles, no personalised plan, and no meal plan. If all you want is a simple set of workout timers and routines, this is the most minimal choice here.

Download: 7 Minutes Workout (iOS/Android)

30-Day Fitness Challenge - home workout app with challenges and meal ideas

30-Day Fitness Challenge takes a more targeted route. From the first time you open it, the app prompts you to answer a series of questions about you, your physical ability and your goals. It uses those answers to build a training profile and generate a tailored programme-although that personalised plan requires a paid subscription. You can, however, close the prompt using the small cross in the top-right corner to get back to the main interface and access the free programmes. One downside is the volume of adverts, though sessions themselves are ad-free.

Overall, 30-Day Fitness Challenge offers a solid feature set. From the Programme menu, you can access the personalised plan as well as a meal plan section that suggests daily menus aimed at creating a calorie deficit to support weight loss (if that’s your objective). These are guidelines rather than a plan designed by a nutritionist, and there are no specified quantities or measurements.

The most useful area is 30 Challenges, which groups workouts by focus: arms, abs, glutes, full body and legs. For each category, there are two sessions available across the three difficulty levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced.

You can then choose your preferred coaching style (a real coach video, or animated male/female demonstration), tweak the difficulty if needed, and save sessions to favourites. During a workout, the robotic voice guidance (if you selected the animation option) provides alternatives and tips when a movement feels too difficult. Every completed session is saved to your history, allowing you to view stats such as calories burned, total training time and the number of workouts completed.

As with the earlier screens, expect adverts when switching menus, just before starting a session and again when finishing one.

Download: 30-Day Fitness Challenge (iOS/Android)