Kickstart Your 2026 Goals: Everything New on Apple Fitness+ This Month
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Just before 2026 kicked off this week, Apple got our hopes up with several teasers on Instagram hinting at some big things coming to Apple Fitness+ in the New Year. While more will undoubtedly be coming as the year unfolds, it appears that this particular promotional spot was likely about a new lineup of Fitness programs.
Apple refreshes its Fitness+ content on a near-annual basis, and traditionally times these changes for the new year, when many more folks are likely aiming to get back in shape after indulgent holiday celebrations and New Year’s Resolutions. This year is no exception, and earlier today Apple announced a new lineup of programs that include more Artist Spotlight workouts and Time to Walk episodes to keep folks moving in the new year.
Perhaps the biggest news is that Apple is partnering with Strava for a unique third-party challenge — the first time we’ve ever seen Apple do this outside its own Fitness app. In addition to its usual Ring in the New Year challenge, which rewards users for closing all three rings for seven days in a row this month, Strava users with an Apple Watch will be able to participate in a special “Quit Quitting” challenge where they can earn a special badge for logging 12 workouts anytime during the month of January.
New Fitness+ Programs
Starting on Monday, January 5, Apple is adding four new workout programs that will provide weekly training plans to help users get more insight and focus into achieving their goals:
- Make Your Fitness Comeback: This four-week plan will take users through a Strength, a HIIT, and a Yoga workout each week. The quick 10 minute workouts are easy to achieve, and will build on the previous weeks to help users get back into a fitness habit.
- Build a Yoga Habit in 4 Weeks: Designed for anyone looking to get into yoga, either on its own or as part of a broader fitness routine, the plan offers two 10-minute workouts each week to increase flexibility, cut down on stress, and build strength and stability.
- Back-to-Back Strength and HIIT: For those looking for something more intensive, this three-week workout program provides three 20-minute works each week that combine 10 minutes of strength training and 10 minutes of high-intensity interval training (HIIT), designed to be together with no breaks.
- Strength Basics in 3 Weeks: Strength training is becoming more popular, but not everyone is sure how to get into it. This workout plan helps users get started by taking them through the fundamentals, but it’s also a good refresher for anyone who wants to brush up on the techniques. This one won’t be launching until January 12.
More Music to Get You Moving
In 2021, Apple introduced a new “Artist Spotlight” series, featuring Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Lopez, and Keith Urban, and it’s continued to mix more featured music into its workouts every year since, including Rihanna, Britney Spears, U2, Janet Jackson, Coldplay, Bruno Mars, and Kendrick Lamar.
You may recognize some of those names from the Apple Music Super Bowl Halfitme shows the company now sponsors, so it’s little surprise that this year’s Artist Spotlight is headlined by Bad Bunny, who is scheduled to take the stage for the Super Bowl LX Halftime Show.
Other artists on this year’s list include Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter KAROL G, while the narrative Time to Walk series will feature Spice Girls member, singer, songwriter, and TV personality Mel B along with actor and producer Penn Badgley and actor Michelle Monaghan later this year.
What’s Next for Apple Fitness+?
Since its launch in late 2020, Apple Fitness+ has expanded to 48 countries and regions around the world, leveraging sophisticated AI to dub the workout routines into other languages using generated voices that closely matches each of the 28 Fitness+ trainers.
While there have been rumors that Apple Fitness+ is at a crossroads, most analysts believe that it isn’t going anywhere. If anything, Apple is likely to double-down on Fitness+ as it prepares to launch a new AI powered “Health+” service. After all, fitness coaching and health coaching are two sides of the same coin, so they’d be a natural fit under the banner of a single, more premium service.
To be clear, this is still solidly in the “rumor” category, but if it’s coming, we aren’t likely to hear anything official until later this year, likely when Apple unveils iOS 27 during its June Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). For now, Apple Fitness+ remains focused on providing great traditional workout programs. We’ll have to wait and see what comes next.
How to Get Apple Fitness+
Apple Fitness+ is available as a standalone subscription for $9.99 per month. That’s a hard sell for anyone who isn’t at the intersection of hardcore fitness and Apple technology. However, the good news is that Apple power users can get it essentially free by opting for an Apple One Premier bundle.
For $37.95 per month, you can 2 TB of iCloud+ storage, Apple TV, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and Apple Fitness+, all shareable with up to five other family members. Considering the first three of those services cost $39.97 on their own, you’re actually paying $2 less to have the last three thrown in at no extra cost.
While Apple Fitness+ works best with an Apple Watch, users can also track workouts with the new AirPods Pro 3 with personal metrics such as real-time heart rate and calories burned displayed on the iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV screen. If you don’t have a compatible fitness tracker, you can still enjoy the workouts; you just won’t get real-time fitness data.
Apple notes that Strava subscribers can also get two months of Fitness+ at no extra cost, which can be added onto Apple’s standard one-month trial, allowing those who haven’t tried the service before to get up to three months free. Apple also continues to offer a first-time three-month free trial for anyone purchasing a new Apple Watch, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, AirPods Pro 3, or Powerbeats Pro 2.
