Future Fitness Review: Safe Postpartum Workout Plans at Home

This post was created in partnership with Future App. We were given a free trial to test but all opinions and recommendations are our own. This post contains affiliate links. See our disclosure.

I don’t know about you, but just about the last thing on my mind after having kids was starting a workout routine.

Exhaustion, feeling physically broken, and not loving the idea of dropping my infant off with strangers in a germy room full of other strangers kept me from embracing a postpartum fitness journey. Not to mention wanting to rebel against the whole “get your body back” patriarchal hogwash we’re bombarded with—go to the gym? I’d rather revisit the ring of fire!

However, the reality is that ‘fitness’ encompasses so much more than just weight loss. Areas such as joint and bone health, mental well-being, improved sleep, and core strength could all have benefited from a fitness plan after I had my children. Finding time and regular motivation felt almost impossible in those first few years and even as my kids grew older, their staggered nap times and clinginess made it challenging to find a routine.

Enter the Future Fitness App

As someone who’s been half-assing her way through a yoga app for the last ten months, I was hesitant to dive into another home-based fitness program. But Future Fitness combines personal training, a personalized wellness plan, and just enough accountability to encourage you to show up. It’s a unique way to accomplish fitness goals and improve overall wellness.

Phone showing instructor holding boat pose

Virtual Personal Training On Your Own Time

The goal of the Future Fitness app is to allow you to work out when and where you want, guided by a personal trainer. The experience revolves around video messaging, voice instructions, and video demonstrations, creating a fitness routine specifically tailored to individual needs. This flexibility means you can work out wherever and whenever it suits you, without the pressure of timing naps or finding childcare.

The app syncs effortlessly with your iPhone or Android (and compatible smartwatches) to track heart rate, calories, and daily activity. Though I don’t own a smartwatch, my iPhone has been more than sufficient to monitor my progress.

Signing Up

Getting started with the Future app is quick and straightforward. After downloading it, I answered a few questions about my fitness level, goals, and available equipment (which, in my case, was very little). Then, I was ready to choose my coach.

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The Trainers

Future offers a wide variety of coaches – from different genders, ages, races, and skill sets, to personalities and body types – maximizing the chances of finding someone I felt comfortable with. The app allows you to filter all these options or complete a survey about my goals and preferences, presenting me with four recommended coaches.

Once I selected my coach, Kelly (who specializes in strength training and postpartum support), she reached out via the in-app texting channel to schedule a quick chat. Worried I’d made the wrong choice? Changing coaches is easy, so I never felt trapped.

Preparing For The Workout

Preparations began with a FaceTime call with Kelly, in which she explained how the app works and I had the chance to express my goals and any concerns I had. Before using Future, I had chronic back pain that began after the birth of my second child. I shared this with her, and Kelly provided insightful suggestions and made it a priority to focus on my comfort and progress rather than on weight loss from the get-go.

The Workout Begins

Every Sunday, my workout schedule for the week would automatically populate in the app. Initially, it included an assessment to establish a fitness baseline. Each workout featured a video demonstration guiding me through warm-ups, specific exercises, and cool-downs. Individual exercises could be flagged, commented on, replayed, or paused, which was incredibly helpful when I found myself confused by movements like an isometric bear crawl.

My personalized plan included four workouts a week – two high-energy and two focusing on yoga – with the flexibility to message Kelly when I needed to skip a workout or adjust the session based on how I was feeling.

What to Expect

Future workouts are as diverse as the people using them! Depending on the focus of the day, I would engage in movements tailored to my fitness level and gear. There’s a wide choice of practices available, including strength training, injury prevention, and even guidance for those using gym memberships.

For instance, my workouts typically included a mix of stretching, targeted exercises, and cooldowns, tailored to address my back and sciatic pain. Kelly focused on bodyweight movements with minimal equipment, which was perfect for me.

Female performing lunges in Future fitness app program

What's A Real-Life Example?

To give you an idea of what I experienced, my workouts generally contain a lot of stretching, intervals of more focused movements like lunges, squats, planks, wall sits, and bear crawls (her favorite), and more stretching at the end. The only gear I have is a yoga mat and a single kettlebell, so she really focuses on using my own body weight with targeted movements to achieve my fitness goal (which, for the record, is to have less back and sciatic pain).

My coach has set me up where each week will contain two harder days and two yoga days, with Friday, Saturday and Sunday as rest days. Every few weeks, I do an assessment, giving me the chance to track my performance slowly but steadily.

Phone showing video of lateral lunge to drop step lunge move

The Next Day

Although I wasn't entirely new to fitness since I had been practicing yoga 3-4 times a week, the first day after my workout with Future surprised me. Yes, I was sore –but it was a good reminder that my muscles were capable of working hard.

Female looking at phone while in plank position

How Often Should You Use It?

That decision lies between you and your coach, whether it's 1-2 days in the beginning or jumping in at five days. Whatever pace you choose, it’s important to celebrate the wins along the way.

Wishlist

While I appreciated Kelly’s coaching, I found that vocal cues could enhance the workout experience. It would be helpful to get real-time reminders on form (e.g., "keep your shoulders away from your ears" or "draw your belly button in") throughout each movement. These reminders are occasionally included, but I’d like to see more of them.

What It Costs

A membership to Future costs $149 per month. While that might seem steep, when compared to in-person personal training (typically around $100/hour), the value becomes clear. Pregnant Chicken readers can grab their first month for 50% off using a special link. Along with unlimited weekly workouts, I received personalized support and rapid responses to my countless questions.

Overall Impression of Future Fitness App

As someone who tends to gravitate toward the easy route, I’ve found the last month with Future to be quite enjoyable. Kelly's caring nature, the quick workouts, and the flexibility to exercise when and where I want have helped me reach my goals and generate real progress.

While it might be on the pricier side for some, compared to traditional personal training and gym membership rates, Future could be a better fit for those who want to work on their fitness without the gym setting.