In this article, we review the Forme Life Studio Lift and Forme Lift Studio to see if these smart home gyms are worth the price tag!
Digital Weights
YES
Forme Life Programming
YES
BARRE
yes
Integrations
yes
Digital Weights
NO
Feature 2
YES
BARRE
yes
Integrations
yes
This is an exciting time to be into health and fitness. Although the pandemic hit hard, there are some silver linings to be recognized, and one of them is that more people are focusing on their health.
With gyms closed and growing consumer demand for home gym equipment - like Mirror, Tonal and Tempo - and apps spiking rapidly, we’re seeing new players in the digital fitness game that are bringing some serious competition to the market.
There’s now widespread availability of tech-inspired home gym equipment that’s creating a new culture of fitness and redefining what it means to workout from home.
One of the newest pieces of fitness tech to hit the market is Forme Life, a personal training studio for the body and mind. This kind of innovation comes at a price, so the question becomes, is it worth it?
In this article, I’m reviewing Forme Life and covering the following topics which will help you determine if this is the right home training studio for your needs:
Let’s peel back the layers and get to the bottom of this brand new home gym studio, but before we do, let’s first talk about the benefits of investing in a smart home gym.
Benefits of Smart Home Gyms (AKA Studios)
The at-home fitness trend is not going anywhere anytime soon. In fact, the global home gym market is expected to reach $4.3 billion by 2021. Add in the fact that many gyms and fitness studios are closed, with some sadly never reopening, and you have a recipe for anxious gym-goers who need to recreate that experience from home - while still knowing that they’re doing it right.
Enter smart gym equipment and studios, a way to efficiently workout from the comfort of your home. Here are the top benefits of smart studios for home:
You don’t have to go anywhere
One of the biggest barriers to working out is not having the time to drive to the gym. When your workouts are done from home, you eliminate the need to leave, which saves you tons of time and eliminates a very common excuse.
You can work out on your schedule
No matter what time of day or night that you want to workout, you can. No working your schedule around the gym’s open hours or the studio’s class schedule - take control of your schedule and find what works for you.
Experience variety
One of the biggest deterrents to a commitment to exercise is boredom. Smart fitness equipment allows you to choose from tons of classes and workouts, letting you mix things up as much as you want.
It’s like having a personal trainer in your living room
Many smart home studios offer live and on-demand classes that give you the experience of having a personal trainer at your home.
You’ll be more effective
Piggybacking off the personal training aspect, smart gyms that feature AI technology like Tempo Studio and Forme Life, offer personalized form feedback and cues along with rep counting, weight selection, and more, taking all the guesswork out of training and allowing yourself to workout safely and effectively.
You aren’t tied to one modality
Unlike buying a treadmill or spin bike for your home where the bulk of the workouts are based around one type of workout, home studios offer a wide range of modalities that include cardio, strength, HIIT, yoga, mindfulness, and more. The exception to this is companies like MYX Fitness who offer their Bike plus a complete home workout solution thanks to their innovative programming and equipment.
Now that you’re enlightened regarding the benefits of investing in a smart workout studio, let’s take a look at Forme Life and discover more about their brand.
Video Review of Forme Life
If you prefer watching a video, here's our video review from the Fit Healthy Momma YouTube Channel:
What is Forme Life? A Look Behind the Brand
The Newest At-Home Fitness Studio
Forme Life is a home fitness studio that combines artificial intelligence, a giant 43-inch 4K display, voice control, and customized workouts all in one brilliant piece of equipment. The brand was founded by Trent Ward, an investment banker turned entrepreneur, and Yves Béhar, an industrial designer and award-winning designer. Together, they saw a vision of smarter, more efficient home workouts, and after four years of development, the Forme Life studio is now available for purchase.
The pair recognized that the world is quickly turning to digital, on-demand fitness content, with brands like Peloton leading the way for innovation. They know that, especially after COVID-19, more and more people are looking to work out from home, so they created a groundbreaking product that’s making the experience seamless.
Forme Life was founded for people who want to live a healthy, balanced life, but they’re short on time. It’s for those who crave quality, efficiency, and convenience - and Forme Life delivers just that.
Next, we’ll take a look into the studio itself, reviewing its specs, footprint, and general concept behind the machine.
The Forme Life Studio and Studio Lift Reviews
Tech & specs of this smart mirror home gym
The Forme Life Studio is “designed for people who care about design.” This isn’t a clunky piece of gym equipment that you’re going to want to hide in your basement, this is a brilliant, full-length mirror that will add to the aesthetic of any room. The idea is to be able to add fitness to your life and your home, without the need to rearrange or change the look and feel of your home. This is particularly important for those who don’t have a dedicated home workout space that they can keep separate.
Height, Width, Depth, Mirror
The system is 70” high and 26” wide. It features a giant 43” 4K mirror display that’s both touch screen and voice control enabled. The mirror has 70% reflectivity and can conveniently be installed onto your wall or be floor mounted - the choice is yours.
Camera and Mirror Display
The studio also contains 2 x 12-megapixel cameras that allow for advanced motion capture and computer vision guidance.
When the display is on, you’ll be greeted with a full selection of fitness classes that suit your individual needs, and an easy way to browse and control your selections with the user-friendly touchscreen interface. When your Forme studio is turned off, you’ll see nothing other than a sleek mirror that blends seamlessly into the aesthetics of your home.
Related Articles on Forme Life Compared to Other Smart Gyms
Two Options to Choose From: The Studio and Studio Lift
The Forme Life Studio comes in two different packages: The Studio or the Studio Lift. As you may have guessed, the Studio Lift package is designed for users who wish to strength train as part of their fitness routine.
Both models are going to give you access to an incredible library of workouts, led by the world’s leading training experts and a sleek, innovative design, but the Studio Lift takes things to the next level by adding in arms with independent motors that create perfectly synced resistance with each movement to ensure that you’re training evenly and efficiently.
Forme Life achieves this by using machine learning and AI to suggest the correct weight for each exercise, spotting you when you’re ready to go to the next level in your training, and making strength training safer and more efficient than ever before.
The best part is that the additional equipment that comes with the Lift can be tucked away when it’s not in use. So no need to worry about intrusive arms sticking out in the middle of your living room. All you’ll see is a brilliant, beautiful mirror.
What Equipment & Extras Are Included With Forme Life?
Both models come equipped with the following:
- Premium non-slip mat
- Heart rate monitor
- Cleaning kit
- Screen wall-mount & screen wall-mounting hardware
The Studio Lift comes with the following extras:
- Free-Forme handles
- Short bar
- Rope handle
- Ankle straps
- Storage cabinet
Additionally, Forme offers the following additional add-on accessories to further enhance and personalize your experience. These add-ons can be used with both the Studio and the Studio Lift:
- Barre bench
- Bench
- Long bar
The Tech: What makes this studio unique?
While Forme Life didn’t create the first AI-powered smart gym, they have certainly made their own mark in the industry by making their product incredibly unique and technologically advanced.
Starting with the mirror, Forme Life’s full-length mirror can transform any room in your home into your personal fitness studio, even if you choose the Lift model, which effortlessly stores its equipment away when not in use. Forme Life has successfully blurred the lines between home gym equipment and home decor, which is more important now than ever considering more and more people are working out from home instead of the gym.
In addition to raising the bar when it comes to the aesthetics of the machine, Forme Life has done the same with the tech they’ve packed into it. The screen is the largest, highest resolution screen in the industry and it comes equipped with touch screen and voice control capabilities, giving you plenty of opportunities to customize your workout quickly and easily.
Beyond that, the system contains stereoscopic cameras that use human-centric technology that provides you with guidance and feedback based on your form and technique. This is fitness AI at its best! Even more, if you prefer to work one-on-one with a real trainer, you can, thanks to the fact that the studio is enabled with two-way live interaction capabilities - It’s just like having a professional trainer right in front of you, but far more convenient and cost-effective.
Lastly, Forme brings you accessories and add-ons that allow you to take your workout to the next level. You won’t find these innovative accessories included with any other smart home studio. So whether you’re into barre or heavy lifting, Forme’s accessories are designed to allow you to move the way you want to move.
The Work: A look into Forme Life's programming
Ok, so the system is next-level cool and decked out with all the latest tech and features, but that’s only half of the experience. What’s the programming like? Here’s are the content categories you can expect to find within the programing:
- Resistance training
- Barre
- Yoga
- Pilates
- Mind
- And more
It’s evident that Forme Life put a lot of time and effort into making sure that their studio was not only superior but also their programming. Their digital fitness programming is built on collaborations with the best body and mind experts in Los Angeles. They brought together the hottest, most renowned experts in the industry to create carefully curated content that’s designed to help you reach your goals and live your best, most fulfilling life.
You know those people who you’d do anything to participate in a live class with but their classes always have waitlists? Those are the people that Forme partnered with so that you can not only have exclusive access to their programs, but you get to do it with the convenience of being inside your own home.
Content that inspires
Within the cutting-edge library of programming, you’ll find workouts and programs that will suit any vision, goal, and fitness level. You can choose from weekly plans, goal-based plans, or you can simply turn your machine on and get started on what feels most inspirational for you that day.
Forme Life wants you to live your best life, and that means having the options and freedom to choose what works best for you. You not only get access to dedicated, expert-led workouts, but you have access to mind and bodywork that you never knew you needed. It’s a complete, holistic experience that encourages health and wellbeing from the inside out.
Forme Life Studio's Personalization
Say goodbye to cookie-cutter workouts and routines, with Forme Life, you can customize your workouts to fit your unique needs and preferences. The studio will curate your workouts for you based on your goals, fitness level, and even your mood.
Each day, your studio will plan a personalized workout for you based on your preferences and where you’re at in your fitness journey. Or, you can choose to scroll the extensive library and cue up any workout of your choice that day - the choice is completely yours!
To take things up a notch, the studio uses machine learning and AI to select the right weight for a given exercise while also dynamically adjusting its selections as your fitness level changes. Essentially, Forme Life takes all the guesswork out of training, helping you to progress safely and efficiently as you gain strength and confidence in your workouts.
It’s important to note that although the AI and tech allow for cameras and sensors to see you and track your movements, you can also disable these if you prefer more privacy and a more independent approach to fitness. Again, the choice is yours.
Pros of Forme Life
Cons of Forme Life
Review Conclusion: Are Forme Life's Studios the best smart gym investment?
By now, you’re no doubt convinced that this smart gym studio is the real deal, but is it worth the investment? Well, that depends on you, your needs, and your budget.
I’ll preface by saying that the Studio is very competitively priced, coming in at $2495, it’s right between two of their biggest competitors - Tonal home gym ($2995) and Tempo Studio ($1995). But, when you upgrade to the Lift model, the price takes a pretty steep step up to $4495, which I feel is very justified. The tech and equipment on this studio are in a league of its own.
If these price points are too high, consider going with the MIRROR Smart Home Gym (read review). Sometimes it's on sale for under $1,000. Visit their website now to check the live sale!
Before you decide on purchasing any kind of home gym equipment, I highly recommend that you take the time needed to critically think about how often you’ll use it, what the cost of a gym membership or personal trainer would be, and so on.
After doing all the research into Forme Life, I’m quite confident that this is going to be a groundbreaking piece of equipment that’s going to become a mainstay in the connected fitness industry, which is only going to continue to improve and grow over the coming years.
If you’re looking for the latest in innovation, design, and programming, and your budget allows, I highly recommend investing in the Forme Life Studio.