By: Emily Bunn
Accomplished personal trainer and digital entrepreneur, Vicky Justiz, is taking her workouts to the next level with the debut of her fitness app, Daily Thrive by Vicky Justiz, now available on the App Store, Google Play, APPLE TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire, and ROKU.
Justiz started her career on her YouTube channel, where she has grown an impressive following of 1.69M subscribers, and is one of the platform’s top trainers. The fitness guru is now expanding her brand to her very own app, which features full-length workouts organized by difficulty, body part, and length, as well as hosts challenges, exercise schedules and fitness programs. A new exclusive workout is updated every Monday, granting users the versatility to switch up their routines and target different areas of the body. All of the workouts require zero equipment or commitment, so you can work out from the comfort of home alongside a professional personal trainer and community of like-minded individuals with similar fitness goals. Daily Thrive’s workouts can be downloaded from the app, so you can bring your virtual personal trainer everywhere you go.
Justiz demystifies nutrition and fitness in an approachable and exhilarating way, leaving users feeling and looking their best. Here at 360 Magazine, we chatted with Justiz about the exclusive content on her very own app, her dream of hosting a post-pandemic bootcamp workout, and her best tips regarding staying motivated to follow a consistent workout routine:
What inspired you to transition from only making videos on YouTube to creating content on Daily Thrive?
“I always knew I wanted to have my very own platform with the freedom to grow and expand and inspire others. I love YouTube and I owe all my success to that amazing platform, but at the end of the day, being on YouTube leaves me to the mercy of their algorithm. The YouTube algorithm is set up in a way that many creators have to resort to clickbait to be seen by a bigger percentage of their audience. For vlogs and entertainment videos, this is more than fine, but in the world of fitness, using clickbait can be damaging and harmful. It can make people feel like they can take quick fixes to get fast, drastic results. But that’s not how wellness and fitness works! Having Daily Thrive by Vicky Justiz, my very own workout app, allows me to focus on the stuff that truly matters-which is creating effective, fun workouts and content that will get people excited to be active, make them happier, and help them build habits! My focus is now on quality content that people truly need and want rather than what can get more “clicks” or more attention.”
Do you plan to keep creating YouTube videos, or do you see yourself transitioning into only using the Daily Thrive app?
“Absolutely! I do not plan on leaving YouTube any time soon. I will be putting most of my workout content exclusively on Daily Thrive, but leaving YouTube open to educational content, nutritional content, vlogs, etc. And of course, I will still be uploading workouts here and there for all my ladies (and gentleman) that cannot afford or do not want to commit to an app.”
Do fans who buy the app have access to any exclusive content that isn’t available on your YouTube?
“Oh yes! Absolutely–that’s the point. So far, we have about 30 full length workout classes that cannot be found anywhere else. These range anywhere from 10 mins to over an hour long. I also release a brand new, exclusive workout every single Monday. I was originally planning to have ONLY exclusive videos on the app, but I made a last-minute decision to import (most) of my YouTube content into the app as well. This will make it easier for those who want to use Daily Thrive but still have their favorite YouTube workouts they like to do. A key difference is that for the Daily Thrive app, we have removed any ads or sponsors from the YouTube videos. This way, you can go straight into the workout with no distractions!”
Obviously the classes on Daily Thrive are virtual. When COVID allows, would you be interested in guiding in-person workout classes as well?
“It is literally my dream to host a huge bootcamp workout class. You just can’t compare the energy you get in-person to virtual. It would be super hard to decide where to do these because my audience is very diverse. I literally work with someone in every single country in the world! It’s definitely a dream post-covid though…”
What is your biggest tip regarding sticking to a consistent workout regimen?
“My biggest tip is to start small. I like to go by something called the 5-minute rule. When you don’t feel like doing a workout, when you are coming up with a million excuses as to why you can’t, just show up and do something for 5 minutes. Many times, we talk ourselves out of doing things, we let the idea of working out overwhelm us, but if we just show up, we get through the hardest part, and many times we muster the energy to keep going and finish through the actual workout. But my motto has always been that ‘something is better than nothing.’”
Do you have any tips for readers who may be interested in your app now that they’ve heard of it, but are new to working out?
“Start with the 28 Kickstart Challenge. This is a great challenge for any fitness level, and we have two “pre-retraining” workout classes that go very in depth on the form for each exercise. To stay motivated, join in on the fun in the Facebook community, on Instagram, etc. Seeing other likeminded women doing the challenge and workouts right alongside with you will give you motivation and you won’t feel alone! Daily Thrive also has a 7-day free trial with no commitment, so you can always try before you buy to make sure you love it (but I absolutely know that you will!).”
What is your favorite feature of your app?
“I wouldn’t necessarily call it a feature – it’s more of an approach. I am never ever afraid to show my struggle in my workouts. You will see me red faced, hair all over the place, having to stop to take a breath, cursing the workout, laughing at myself, and more. Its real and raw and I want you to feel like you are doing the workout with a friend rather than a robot fitness instructor. I want you to know that it’s absolutely okay to take a pause, to struggle, and to find it difficult. This is where growth comes from.”
