Yoga app built for Athletes
MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION
In our Pliability App Review we have covered the best and worst features of the yoga app, making it easy for you to decide if it is the right choice for your fitness journey. If you want to see other great options available, refer to our yoga app review. Otherwise read on!
Overview
Pliability (formerly known as ROMWOD) is definitely not your stereotypical yoga app, in both style and function. The branding is dark, aggressive and masculine in nature, which stands it out from other Yoga workout apps. Pictures of lithe women stretching on beautiful beaches have been replaced by muscle clad men in the gym. This makes sense when you consider the app was designed around the crossfit Workout of the Day concept.
Functionally the app is not even calling itself a yoga app, but rather a mobility and recovery app. It is clear the app pitches itself to serious athletes (their tagline is “Built for athletes”), and this can be seen throughout the design and feature set in the app.
The actual workouts are based on a style of Yin Yoga, which promotes long held poses as opposed to routines with lots of poses flowing together. Pliability claims this is optimal for aiding mobility and recovery and helping athletes achieve peak performance. When testing the app we loved this style of Yoga, it really gives you time to settle into a stretch and feel the benefits.
There are none of the bells and whistles you might find in other lifestyle apps. There are no community features, little progress tracking (with the exception of a very useful mobility test on the iPhone version), and no extras like nutrition guidance. Everything in Pliability is centred around the concept of mobility exercises.
If you are looking for a lifestyle app with lots of extra features, or something with more traditional Yoga workouts and soundtracks, this is not the app for you. If you want a focused yoga experience to benefit your mobility and aid in the other aspects of your fitness life (and you are willing to pay for it!), this is a great Yoga app for you.
Pros
- Huge library of over 1000 workout routines with variations on body target area
- Unique style of Yin Yoga with long held poses allows you to really settle into the stretches
- Stylish videos with guided narration to take you through the workouts
- Will be very familiar to people from a crossfit background
Cons
- Pricey for an app that has very few features other than workout videos
- Lack of community features, progress tracking and other extras
Pricing, Reviews and Signup
- The app requires a subscription with a monthly payment option. There is a 7 day free trial to use the app.
- The minimum subscription term is 1 month at a price of $13.99
- Apple App Store average rating of 4.8
- Google Play Store average rating of 4.6
- Signup is required
Workout Review
As stated in the summary, the unique selling point of Pliability over other Yoga apps is the style of Yoga. The routines typically feature only 3 or 4 poses that are long held (can be up to 5 minutes in each pose), which is different to standard yoga apps with flowing routines that might have 20 plus poses. During testing we really enjoyed this style – you get enough time to push yourself and ease deeper into a stretch. It was also great for trickier poses, as you get time to work out a more manageable version before being ushered into the next pose. Most of the workouts need no extra equipment so are great for home workouts, however there are a few routines that use aids such as stretching bands.
The workout videos are super stylish, featuring fit looking men and women to demonstrate the poses. A smooth male voice guides you through the poses, giving you lots of alternate easier options if needed, and little motivational boosts to help you hold the long duration poses. A choice of relaxing backing music is available to accompany the videos.
The CrossFit roots of Pliability are immediately obvious. The suggested workouts are based around a ‘workout of the day’, which is usually a 20-25 minute workout with a particular focus (arms, groin and hamstrings etc), with a beasty 45 minute all round session on a Thursday. This workout of the day concept is great for convenience where you don’t have time to plan your yoga schedule and just want to be told what to do.
However, for those after specific workouts there is a library of over 1000 yoga routines waiting for you to select from. To help navigate this massive collection of workouts, Pliability has a great filter for narrowing down choice, where you can search on duration of workout (8 to 50 minutes) and target area such as legs, core, etc. Again pliability injects its secret sauce of targeting athletes by including filters based on sport. For example, you can look for yoga routines to help with running, rowing, or even performing squats.
Upon starting the app for the first time you are given a quick quiz which gauges your fitness levels and desired body target areas. This is then used to drive a custom ‘For You’ section in the app, which again helps narrow down the huge catalog of routines to make it easier to find a workout specific for your needs.
Notable extras include the ability to favourite a workout, which is essential with such a huge catalogue of yoga routines. You can also download workouts for times when you are offline.
Training Plans
Pliability has its own version of training plans called ‘Paths’. Paths are simply collections of existing Pliability workouts that are grouped together by something common – for example, leg mobility focus. Immediately upon entering the app you are prompted with the Beginners Path which is a 7 day workout introducing you to the various types of yoga workout available in Pliability. The functionality on the training plans itself is extremely limited beyond tracking what percentage of the plan you have completed.
Progress Tracking and Achievements
In IPhones and IPads running ios 14 and above there is a great mobility test feature which uses the phones camera and some clever AI to test your overall flexibility. Not only does this give you a score to measure your progress against, it is then used to feed into recommended workouts to focus on areas needing improvement. This is a great feature not often found in other Yoga apps, and is likely to prove popular amongst athletes looking to push themselves and improve.
Unfortunately the mobility test is not available in Android devices yet, which have next to no progress tracking or achievement features.
Community Features
No community features in the app. Its all on you to find the motivation to complete that workout!
FAQs
Who should use Pliability?
Pliability is a great option for Athletes and serious fitness enthusiasts looking for a mobility and recovery tool. If you are looking for a more holistic lifestyle app with more traditional Yoga workouts, this is probably not the best choice for your workout app.
Is Pliability a good yoga app for beginners?
Pliability is good for beginners new to Yoga. The long held poses give you time to settle into position and enjoy the stretch, and the guided videos take you through the workouts offering easier variations of more advanced poses.
Is Pliability free?
No, you must signup to a monthly subscription to use the app, currently costing $13.99 per month.
What does ROMWOD stand for?
ROMWOD stands for Range of Motion Workout of the Day, and is styled on the Workout of the Day structure found in CrossFit. ROMWOD was Pliability’s name before the app was rebranded in an effort to cater to a wider audience beyond crossfitters.
