Appeared in Nikkei Sangyo Journal, March 14, 2014
Daylight saving time has already started. As the harsh winter is finally coming to an end and spring is approaching, it’s time to get back to exercising. Cold weather is no longer an excuse for not going to the gym.
But now, you don’t even have to go to the gym to work out. Wello (www.wello.com) offers online fitness programs through two-way video streams so people can get their exercise at a place and time of their choosing. You can work out at home, office, or a hotel. All you need is a computer with a webcam and an Internet connection.
Wello was founded in July 2012 by two fitness enthusiasts, Leslie Silverglide and Ann Scott Plante, with a million dollar venture capital. Most of its clients are of the millennial generation, which refers to people born between 1980 and 2000. It is also popular among those who have a busy schedule or who find it tiresome to frequent the gym.
On Wello’s homepage, clients select the type of fitness they’re interested in from the list of available programs, which include yoga, aerobics, and martial arts. They also decide on when and how frequently they want to exercise (time and day of the week), a trainer that they want to work with, and whether they prefer individual or group sessions (which consist of seven to eight people).
If you are not sure which trainer to choose, Wello offers recommendations to suit your fitness needs and preferences. More than 200 trainers across the US are on staff. They have gone through a strict selection process which Wello conducts to maintain a high quality of services. Clients’ reviews of the trainers are also available on Wello’s homepage.
Prices vary depending on the trainer’s experience, but the standard fee is reasonable: $99 a month for four 30-minute one-on-one training sessions, or a single training session for $25. Group sessions cost $49 a month for four one-hour classes. A single class costs $12.
Working out with a trainer giving instructions through online streaming may seem to represent a quintessentially digital lifestyle; but it is nothing out of the ordinary for America’s millennial generation.