Beachbody on Demand is here! But what is it and is it worth it? In this Beachbody on Demand review, we will take a look at all the features it offers and then weigh the pros and cons. Hopefully by the end, this review will help you decide if Beachbody on Demand is the right fit for your situation.
Beachbody on Demand Review: Backstory
Beachbody first made a name for itself in the home fitness industry with its smash hit DVD programs P90X and Insanity. These simple to follow (though not to do) programs are laid out in 90 and 60 day formats, with calendars to follow and nutrition guides to help you maximize your results. And while Beachbody is now known for its industry leading meal replacement Shakeology as well, it was the DVD workouts that really got it on the map. And so it continued to build on that foundation by coming out with more high quality DVD workout programs like P90X2, P90X3, Insanity: Asylum, PiYo, T25, TurboFire, Body Beast and 21 Day Fix, among others.
Now all these programs have different goals in mind. If you primarily want to add a little (or a lot) of muscle, Body Beast is for you. Looking to improve your overall fitness but only have 30 minutes a day, check out P90X3. Or maybe you need a lot of help focusing on portion control. If so, you’d be interested in 21 Day Fix and its portion control containers. Your goals determine your program and whatever your goal, there’s likely a program geared toward your need. But while they’re all different, they also have one thing in common: they’re all DVDs. Beachbody ships DVDs for you to use in your home or take with you on the road. And DVDs have more or less been the only option (granted you can get P90X2 on Blu-ray, because you know, it’s super worth it to pay a bunch of extra money to be able to see your workouts in high-def!). Yeah, Xbox fitness is out there and sure, you could download the P90x app. Both of those, so far, have not been a big success because they don’t yet offer the same experience people are used to when working out in front of the TV. But all that’s about to change… sorta.
Beachbody on Demand Review: Overview
In a nutshell, Beachbody on Demand is streamable workout programs. It’s Beachbody’s version of Netflix or Hulu. Login on your computer, phone, or tablet, select from a small library of workouts and BAM! You’re working out.
Beachbody on Demand Review: How Does It Work?
Beachbody on Demand is actually an additional benefit to something they’ve offered for years called the “Club Membership.” Beachbody has offered a free membership option to its site where you can use most of the tools, like the caloric needs calculator or the message boards, or read a host of articles. But it has also had an option to open a “Club Membership” (sometimes called “premium”). Until recently, the benefits of the Club Membership have been:
- Access to Celebrity Trainer Chat Rooms
- Meal Planning Wizard
- 10% Discount on all purchases on TeamBeachbody.com
But now we can add to that list:
- Beachbody on Demand!
Now in my opinion, before they added Beachbody on Demand, the best benefit has been the 10% discount. I’ve been a coach for a while and never once have I been in the celebrity trainer chat room. And the meal planning wizard, while better than nothing, is not nearly as good as it could/should be. I’ve had some customers use it but it’s really not a flagship feature for most people.
But getting a 10% discount is always nice, especially if the other features appeal to you. But if you’re ONLY interested in the 10% discount, you’re better off signing up as a coach to get a 25% discount. It’s only $16/month to be a coach, there’s no requirement to coach, and the discount is significantly better (it’s like paying for a discount at Sam’s Club or Costco). So if streaming workouts, chat rooms, and meal planning aren’t appealing to you, but getting a 25% discount is, sign up as a coach.
Beachbody on Demand Review: Cost
Before they added Beachbody on Demand, the Club Membership was $2.99/week (billed quarterly), which I would argue is just a so-so deal at best. But now the Club Membership, including Beachbody on Demand, is STILL $2.99/week. SAME PRICE! So the Club Membership just went from an easy thing to turn down to a hard thing to refuse. Things just got real!
Beachbody on Demand Review: What Workouts Are Included?
The Member’s Library portion of Beachbody on Demand is launching with the full program of many of the most popular favorites:
- 10 Minute Trainer
- Brazil Butt Lift
- ChaLEAN Extreme
- Hip Hop Abs
- Insanity
- Insanity: Asylum Volume 1
- Insanity: Asylum Volume 2
- P90X
- P90X2
- P90X3
- P90X One on One: Volume 1
- P90X One on One: Volume 2
- RevAbs
- Tai Cheng
- TurboFire
Now when I say “Full Program” I’m referring not only to the Base Package of workouts, but the “Bonus Workouts” that many of the programs offer. Like in P90X2, V-Sculpt and X2 Chest + Shoulders + Tris are normally workouts you’d have to purchase separately. But with Beachbody on Demand, they’re included!
Also included are downloadable PDF versions of the Fitness Guides, Calendars, Quick Starts, Fit Tests, and Nutrition Guides that would normally come with the physical products. You really get everything that you normally would get and then some!
Beachbody on Demand Review: “Purchased Programs”
As you see, not every Beachbody fitness program is available to be streamed, which is a bummer if you’ve already purchased it but don’t want to go to the trouble of ripping it to your computer. I’ve got some good news! In the “Purchased Programs” section of Beachbody On Demand, some programs are available to stream if you’re already bought them. And Beachbody says it will continue to add to this portion of the library as well. So if you purchased any of the following, you’ll see them in the Purchased Programs section of Beachbody on Demand:
Beachbody on Demand Review: “News and Noteworthy”
In the “News and Noteworthy” section of Beachbody on Demand, you have the ability to try some of the other programs to see if you’d like to purchase them. So if there have been programs you’re curious about, you can try a workout from them for free. Here are some of the programs available to sample:
Beachbody on Demand Review: The Good, Bad, and Neutral
Beachbody is finally catching up to the 21st century by getting into the streaming game. I have spent countless hours ripping DVDs to my computer so that I could stream them to my AppleTV. This not only makes it quicker for me to get started, but it also ensures that I’ll have these workouts for life since the DVDs get scratched and become unplayable (not much is more frustrating than doing a workout that skips… especially if it skips back and adds time to your workout!!!). So I’m delighted that they’re offering this. But it doesn’t mean I like everything about it. Here are my Beachbody on Demand Review pros, cons, and neutrals.
Beachbody on Demand Review: Pros
- DISCOUNT: Because Beachbody on Demand is part of the Club Membership, you’ll automatically receive a 10% discount on your future purchases at TeamBeachbody.com, including gear, attire, and on supplements like Shakeology, Results and Recovery Formula, and my personal favorite, Energy and Endurance pre-workout formula.
- PRICE: at $2.99/week, it’s super easy to get started. Plus that’s a little over $150/year… about $30 more than the cost of buying just 1 full program.
- PORTABILITY: Wherever you have internet, you have these workouts.
- SHIPPING COST: No cost for shipping. It can cost $2-$15 to have a program shipped. Obviously with streaming, that’s not the case
- START INSTANTLY: No more waiting for the DVDs intro to recap all the legalese. Sounds like a small thing but trust me, this gets annoying
- VARIETY: Afraid to buy the DVD of a particular program because you’re not sure if you’ll like it? Yes, Beachbody offers a money-back guarantee, but still, it can be a pain to send them back. With Beachbody on Demand, you can try a whole bunch of them.
- WAIT TIME: Since access to Beachbody on Demand is instant after having signed up for a Club Membership, no more constantly monitoring UPS tracking codes to see how much longer till your workout arrives!
Beachbody on Demand Review: Cons
- DOUBLE PURCHASING: What if you already own a particular workout program on DVD and don’t want to or know how to rip it to your computer? You’ll have to “buy it twice” by signing up for Beachbody on Demand so you can stream it, assuming it’s available.
- RENTING VS. OWNING: With Beachbody on Demand, you’re essentially renting these workouts since it’s a membership. Just like you don’t own the movies you watch on Netflix, you don’t own these either. So if/when you cancel your Club Membership (and thereby canceling access to Beachbody on Demand), well, no more workouts for you. Whereas when you buy a workout program, it is yours to keep f-o-r-e-v-e-r.
- VIEWING: Not everyone wants to do their workout in front of their computer or mobile device. And unless you have something like an AppleTV, ChromeCast, or a FireTV Stick, that you can mirror the workouts from your device to your TV, you’re out of luck.
Beachbody on Demand Review: Neutrals
- MUSIC / CUES: With the DVDs, many of the workout programs have music, instructions, and cues you can choose to have on or off. But with Beachbody on Demand, the only option is to mute it. Maybe not a big deal to most people, but personally, I like to be able to barely hear the trainer while playing my own music.
- PDFs: While having an electronic version of a manual or nutrition guide is great for some, others would prefer to have something they didn’t have to print off or read on their tablet.
Beachbody on Demand Review: Wrap Up
With the addition of Beachbody on Demand workout streaming, Beachbody has finally made a compelling case for getting the Club Membership. All these years as a coach and until now, I’ve never thought the Club Membership was a very good “product,” especially considering Beachbody makes some of the best fitness products in the industry.
But now? Now I think not only have they dug themselves out of the stone age, but they’ve created a game changer in the process. As you’ve seen from this Beachody on Demand Review, it’s not a perfect situation. But there are certainly more “pros” than “cons.” And most importantly, they’ve made it easier and cheaper to get started with a workout program, giving people more options so they don’t have to pick just one. Let’s face it, not every program works for every person (I hated Insanity and Les Mills, but love Asylum and Max 30, for instance). You have to do what works for you.
And I think Beachbody on Demand will work for most everyone!
