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Check out these fun fitness apps for the best virtual reality workouts

Take your workouts virtual with these VR fitness apps

Amber Sayer
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Man playing VR fitness game with Oculus
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Even though we all are aware of how important exercise is for our health, you may find days where you have little to no motivation to make it to the gym or go for your usual run. This is the perfect opportunity for you to try a virtual reality workout instead!

With virtual reality platforms and headsets, gamers can engage in active exercise while playing games. Much like a ninja, when you strap on your headset and start playing VR fitness games, you can stealthily get in shape, strengthen your muscles, burn calories, and improve your cardiovascular fitness.

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VR fitness apps are transforming the entire fitness industry by encouraging previously sedentary gamers to get moving and play in ways that absolutely boost their health and fitness. As VR fitness games become increasingly popular, developers are finding even more exciting and effective ways to disguise challenging workouts as riveting VR games. If you’ve struggled with finding the motivation to go for a run or jump on an indoor cycle, keep reading for our list of the best VR fitness apps to take your workout virtual and sweat as you play.

Women wearing VR gear
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Can VR apps give you a good workout?

Before we get to the list, we need to answer the question, can you really get a good workout in virtual reality?

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Yes, you can.

According to Everyday Health, you can get the same level of exercise using VR apps as you can during an old-fashioned gym workout, provided your VR workout makes you work up a sweat and gets your heart rate up. And with VR workouts, you can have fun while you’re working out. Now your workouts can involve boxing, smashing objects with a sword, or even dancing, to name a few things. No more staring into space as you listen to a podcast on your phone, you can have a seriously good time and get fit while you’re doing it.

Screen grab of Liteboxer VR.
Liteboxer

Litesport VR

Litesport VR is unique in that it’s the first VR fitness platform that enables you to work out alongside real trainers. With a crew of world-class trainers to choose from, Litesport workouts are more motivating, instructional, and effective than working out on your own or using other VR fitness apps with avatars or simulated coaches.

There are plenty of ways to track your progress as well, such as goals for each workout, 7- and 30-day performance views, and your workout score, which is based on a combination of accurate hits, streaks, and force. Litesport VR has a free and premium version. The free version offers limited access to classes and music tracks, while the premium version has over 800 trainer-led courses and access to in-app, chart-topping music.

FitXR VR fitness reality game.
FitXR

FitXR

FitXR is our pick for the best VR fitness game out there. This motivating virtual reality fitness app blends the immersive world of virtual reality with challenging total-body workouts designed by top fitness experts. The app includes boxing, dancing, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts, which enable subscribers to create a well-rounded workout routine.

The workout classes in FitXR are extremely fun, yet they absolutely “count” as a good workout. The boxing and HIIT workouts are especially effective, with hundreds of classes to choose from and more added every week. You can select different environments to serve as the virtual studio for your workout as well. For example, some of the HIIT workouts take place in a mesmerizing clifftop studio, which adds a whole dimension of visual pleasure to the experience as you punch, dodge, and smash your way through total-body moves.

The music is fun and upbeat, with popular favorites like Tiësto and Calvin Harris, and the coaches are motivating and encouraging. This VR fitness app will keep you entertained not only during your workout but over time, as they are constantly building and expanding their library of options.

Supernatural VR fitness boxing game.
Supernatural

Supernatural

Supernatural is a serious VR fitness workout app. After FitXR, this is the best VR fitness app if you’re looking for structured, effective VR fitness workouts. You get to work out in realistic virtual locations around the world as you take on over 500 different workouts. There are virtual coaches to help you get the most out of your workouts and tons of challenges. Users can select workouts based on difficulty level and even connect with a community of other fans on social media.

Supernatural workouts are musical in nature, blending movements with music. There are four types of VR fitness workouts available in Supernatural: boxing, flow, meditation, and stretch. Boxing and flow are the more intense options. Flow classes, which are Supernatural’s signature content, involve high-intensity rhythmic movements. You’ll lunge, swing, and swipe your way to the beat, burning calories and elevating your heart rate.

OhShape VR game.
OhShape

OhShape

OhShape is more of a VR rhythm game than a VR fitness app, but you’ll certainly get your body moving and sweating. Inspired by the Japanese TV show Hole in the Wall, it has players moving their whole bodies to punch, dodge, and go through various body-shaped holes in the walls to the beat of the heart-pumping music. The faster you move your body and the more precisely you perform, the more points you earn.

From an onlooker’s perspective, the player geared up in the VR headset may look like they’re doing a pretty bizarre and frantic dance as they contort their body into all sorts of random forms in rapid succession. Still, it’s an engaging way to get your body moving and grooving.

Holofit VR fitness screen showing bikers.
Holofit

Holofit

Holofit may be the solution if your rowing machine, exercise bike, or elliptical resembles more of a towel rack than a piece of well-used exercise equipment. Holofit is a VR fitness app that allows you to run, cycle, or row your way through different immersive worlds from the safety of your stationary exercise equipment right at home.

The VR fitness app has all sorts of cardio challenges, virtual coaches, and different landscapes and worlds to explore as you work out, taking the concept of “distraction” to a whole new level. You can choose to row, run, or cycle through international locations like Antarctica or the Amazon rainforest, or you can take things to the fantastical realm and enjoy outer space and more.

Between the immersive scenery and the competitive goals and challenges the app sets (along with multiplayer mode), Holofit can transform boring, monotonous cardio workouts into gamified excursions.

VZfit biker on a vr fitness game.
VZfit

VZfit

VZfit is like Holofit, in that it transforms your home exercise equipment or basic stationary cardio into a world-exploring virtual adventure. VZfit pairs with Google Street View to bring over 10 million miles of road into a three-dimensional world surrounding you as you sweat. You can bike the Tour de France route from your stationary bike in your living room or ride along the streets of San Francisco from your garage in Connecticut. The visuals are incredibly immersive and make the time fly by. If realistic roadways aren’t your cup of tea, you can use your pedaling power to race a car around a track while firing guns to destroy other vehicles. There are fun challenges and something for everyone.

Another perk of VZfit is that you don’t have to own an elliptical, treadmill, or exercise bike. With the freestyle mode, you can ride the “exerboard,” a virtual exercise device you can propel by engaging in a total-body movement created by a professional trainer. It’s surprisingly challenging and a great aerobic workout.

Wearing a VR headset
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Honorable mentions: Other good VR fitness apps to try

While the aforementioned VR fitness apps earn our top recommendations for the best VR fitness games available, there are plenty of other VR games that will have you sweating and burning calories as you play. Honorable mentions go to Beat Saber, Pistol Whip, Thrill of the Fight, and Dance Central. Most of these games allow you to play them for a trial period or download a demo version to see if it’s something you’d like to purchase. Remember, ultimately, the best VR fitness app is one you’ll actually play, as you have to do the workout to reap the benefits.

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Amber Sayer
Amber Sayer
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Amber Sayer is a fitness, nutrition, and wellness writer and editor, and was previously a Fitness Editor at Byrdie. She…
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