Best SugarWOD Alternative: Exercise.com vs. SugarWOD

Exercise.com: Your SugarWOD Alternative

Why Choose Exercise.com?

Here are five reasons why fitness professionals use Exercise.com vs. SugarWOD.

If you’re ready to get started with an easy-to-navigate, all-in-one fitness software, designed to fuel your business, request a demo with Exercise.com today.

And, if you want to see how SugarWOD’s additional features stack up to Exercise.com software features, check out our in-depth guide below.

What is SugarWOD?

SugarWOD started as a software platform focused on CrossFit athletes and daily workout posting and sharing. In 2019, SugarWOD was acquired by Daxko, the company that owns Zen Planner. Eventually, SugarWOD started serving other types of gyms like YMCAs, corporate fitness centers, and high schools but is mainly targeted at CrossFit affiliates and box owners.

The main features of SugarWOD are accessed via the mobile app. This software platform has a heavy focus on CrossFit “box” elements like coaching, community, and classes. A CrossFit box is just another name for a gym.

SugarWOD focuses on daily workout delivery, athlete participation, building community, and workout tracking. SugarWOD promotes its software as “a solution for the front of the house” meaning it is focused on program management and the workout experience.

Unless otherwise stated, all images and reviews below are of/about the Exercise.com All-In-One Fitness Business Management software platform.

Fitness Business Management Software

The ideal fitness business management software should have the features needed to make the life of a fitness professional easier. Scheduling options, gym/facility management, business dashboard reports, client automation, and dedicated support are a few of the features needed to allow your fitness business software to work for you.

While SugarWOD is missing many fitness business management software features, Exercise.com includes all of these options. This means you can spend less time on basic management functions and more time growing and managing your fitness business.

Client/Class Scheduling

Exercise.com offers client/class scheduling features that allow fitness professionals and fitness businesses to share availability for classes, programs, and events. Clients can seamlessly book sessions, classes, events, and/or appointments from the mobile app or online dashboard in real-time. It’s easy to add details about programs or classes, such as location, trainer, time, or services offered to your calendar entries. Options like class limits, waitlists, and staff assignments can also be set up.

SugarWOD does not have client/class scheduling options so users would need another software platform to offer this important feature to members and clients.

Gym/Facility Management

Exercise.com is focused on fitness businesses and has the features needed to successfully manage your operations automatically. Administrative options can give staff access to the features they need without compromising secure information. The client check-ins, client profiles, attendance tracking, commissions, staffing reports, and payroll reports offered by Exercise.com will make management easier.

SugarWOD offers limited gym/facility management options. Administrators can set up access for users to have varying capabilities to create, edit, or delete certain workout features. Payroll, staffing, and staff access are not included. Data analytics for staff and members can be accessed, but only regarding performance, participation, and progress.

Business Dashboard Reports

SugarWOD does not offer business dashboard reports for fitness businesses.

Exercise.com has business dashboard reports that can be customized to your business operations. These customizable reports can give you the insight you need to analyze and evaluate your business practices and offerings such as usage, attendance, staffing, revenue, and finances.

Client Automation

SugarWOD and Exercise.com both include client automation features. SugarWOD client automation focuses on the automatic posting of the daily workouts. You can also automatically deliver workout announcements, movement videos, personalized percentage charts, and each athlete’s workout history each day.

Put your fitness business on autopilot and use that extra time to engage with current members and clients or interact with potential new members and clients. Exercise.com takes it one step further than SugarWOD with client automation features that enable fitness professionals and fitness businesses to:

• Automate Emails and Texts/Other Automatic Features
• Automate Workout Delivery
• Automate Resource Delivery
• Automate Assessment Delivery
• Automate Reminders/Alerts via app, text, and email

Dedicated Zapier Support

SugarWOD does not offer dedicated Zapier support with its software platform.

On the flip side, Exercise does have dedicated Zapier support. Our software platform has dozens of helpful and customizable platform features, but sometimes you need a little boost. Our partnership with Zapier allows you to integrate, automate, and innovate easily with over 2,000 applications so your platform is uniquely yours and runs at peak efficiency.

Dedicated Account Manager

This is one other area where SugarWOD is lacking in fitness business management. SugarWOD does not include a dedicated account manager like Exercise.com does.

A dedicated account manager allows Exercise.com users to reach out for any development need, large or small. If you need to change something small like a logo or graphic or something large like your website or app, your dedicated account manager with Exercise.com has your back.

Customized Software

Both SugarWOD and Exercise.com include customized software features. Exercise.com does include a few additional customization options that are not included with SugarWOD.

Exercise.com includes all customized software options, like mobile apps, websites, and marketing integrations, that a fitness business needs for a professional and consistent look. Your mobile app and website are fully customizable so your clients and members are easily able to recognize your brand, logo, graphics, fonts, and colors. SugarWOD has some customization options like custom-branding and mobile apps but falls behind Exercise.com.

Custom-Branded

SugarWOD includes box branding options like a customizable logo, image, and announcement features. There are no advanced features to offer fully customizable options.

Exercise.com has the experience necessary to design a fully custom-branded mobile app and website experience. Potential clients and members will be wowed by the professional appearance of these vital marketing and communication tools.

iOS & Android Apps

SugarWOD has a mobile app for Apple and Android devices. The mobile app allows for posting of the daily workouts, workout tracking, personal records tracking, photo sharing, leaderboards, and community support.

The SugarWOD mobile app has high ratings in both the Google Play and iOS App stores. The Android app has a 4.8 out of 5.0 rating, based on over 5,000 reviews in the Google Play store. The Apple app has a 4.9 out of 5.0 rating, based on over 49,000 reviews in the iOS App Store.

Exercise.com also has a variety of features for mobile apps. Your fully customizable app will match your fitness brand, will be available for Apple and Android devices, and will be listed under your fitness business brand in both stores.

Websites

Exercise.com allows fitness businesses to develop their customized and personalized website. From here, clients and members can get business information, find social media accounts, view calendars, or contact your business. Your fitness business website is an important way to market to potential clients and members and turns leads into new members.

SugarWOD does not include website development or integration features.

Security Features

Exercise.com understands and values the importance of security features to protect private and sensitive client data, including health and payment data. That’s why the necessary security measures for Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance and SSL (Secure Socket Layer) certification are included.

SugarWOD does not mention security features on its website.

Marketing Integrations

SugarWOD does not include marketing features or integrations. There are no include marketing integrations that would help improve your bottom line. Exercise.com provides plenty of marketing integrations that include:

• MailChimp
• ConstantContact
• ConvertKit
• Google Analytics
• Facebook Pixel

Workout Software

One downside of SugarWOD is that it is missing workout software features. SugarWOD is missing essential features for fitness professionals to effectively train clients like 1-on-1 training, group training, and online training. This would mean fitness professionals have to either use another software platform or miss the boat on these workout software features.

Exercise.com workout software has robust features available for fitness professionals and exercise enthusiasts. A workout creator/logger, exercise library, custom exercises, and the ability to deliver training in any scenario are all features of Exercise.com.

Workout Creator/Logger

A workout creator allows trainers to create and share a personalized workout for their clients via the mobile app. Exercisers can view these workouts easily from any mobile device. A workout logger enables exercisers to track their exercise session to share with their trainer or keep for future reference.

Exercise.com includes these important features that allow trainers to engage with clients and keep them on track to meet their health and fitness goals. One of the main strengths of SugarWOD is the options for daily workout delivery, workout logging, and workout sharing.

1-1 Training

One-on-one personal training is still the central type of training for many fitness professionals. Exercise.com has options for trainers to create face-to-face and online personalized training programs for their clients, whereas SugarWOD does not include this option. There is an optional pricing feature for personal training, but the website does not provide additional information about what this package includes.

Group Training

Exercise.com also allows trainers and fitness professionals to set up group personal training for groups of any size. Group training helps engage, excite, and motivate members, but still keeps an individualized approach.

Online Training

Online training has grown in popularity because of its flexibility. Online workouts are also great for business travelers or those on vacation who want to squeeze in a quick workout with only the use of a mobile device. Exercise.com makes it easy for fitness professionals and trainers to create online training programs to be shared near and far.

Exercise Library

An exercise library that includes a variety of exercises with detailed instructions or pictures can be very useful for a fitness business. Exercise.com and SugarWOD both have an exercise library that has instructions and videos that make it easy for any exercise enthusiast to follow. There is also an option to add additional or customized exercises with videos showing your trainers doing the exercises.

Custom Exercises

Trainers using the Exercise.com software platform can create custom exercises for their clients, including combination movements and personalized videos. This customization feature gives trainers unlimited options for fitness routines and keeps workouts exciting for exercisers.

TV Workouts

TV workouts can be broadcast to a screen for all exercisers to view, which comes in handy with group fitness classes or group personal training. Exercise.com and SugarWOD both make it simple for everyone to follow along on a big screen.

Ecommerce Software

The biggest downside to SugarWOD is that this software platform has no ecommerce software features. The website even notes that you need to already have a software platform that handles payment processing and point-of-sale options.

Ecommerce software is an important component of growing your business. Payment processing, selling products, selling online memberships, and selling workouts create a new revenue stream for your fitness business. This a great opportunity that can add to your business offerings.

SugarWOD misses the mark by not including ecommerce features to help grow and manage a fitness business. Exercise.com has you covered with its numerous ecommerce features to help you reach your financial goals for your fitness business.

Payment Processing

SugarWOD does not include any features for payment processing with its software platform. Exercise.com allows clients and users to set up one-time or recurring payments with credit cards or ACH transfers via the mobile app or online dashboard. It is also simple to accept cash, checks, or credit cards in-person. Stripe and Paypal integrations make this process seamless and safe.

Sell Products

Fitness businesses cannot sell any products or point-of-sale items with SugarWOD. Fitness professionals and managers can sell retail items both online and face-to-face with Exercise.com. This is a great way to create member loyalty and market your fitness business.

Sell Workout Plans

Exercise.com recognizes the importance of this feature and includes what you need to sell workout plans for additional revenue. How would you like to sell your customized and individualized workout plans to anyone around the world? With Exercise.com you can take your training to a new level by selling your most popular workout plans to anyone anywhere, like a beginner strength training program, a 10-minute core stability workout, or a 30-minute HIIT workout.

Offer Online Workout Memberships

Online workout memberships allow for extra flexibility for exercise enthusiasts. Exercisers that have a home gym, those who travel, or busy moms who can’t make it to the gym, would benefit from an online workout membership. Trainers can either send workouts automatically or coach clients through a workout using Exercise.com’s online workout membership features. SugarWOD does not offer online workout memberships.

Sell Workout Challenges

Workout challenges are a great way to increase motivation and encourage healthy competition. Nutrition, exercise, and living a healthy lifestyle are options that can be built into workout challenges. Leaderboards can also be shared for the workout challenges.

Exercise.com offers full workout challenge options. SugarWOD does not have workout challenges, although members and fitness professionals can view and share leaderboards for the daily workout scorecards, comments, and encouragements.

Health and Fitness Assessment Software

Health and fitness assessment software gives trainers additional opportunities to engage and connect with clients. SugarWOD includes basic performance and measurement reports for benchmark workouts. 

Exercise.com includes everything you need in its assessment software to gather baseline assessments, share assessment results with clients, generate and share performance and measurement reports, and include nutrition tracking for clients.

Assessments

Trainers that use Exercise.com can not only administer assessments with ease but can also customize assessments that best meet the skills and abilities of their clients. These assessments can measure body composition, muscular fitness, aerobic fitness, flexibility, power, agility, or balance/stability. These results can be shared with clients so they can see their current scores when compared to others or for tracking to compare to future assessment data.

SugarWOD does not allow for full assessment tracking but does have some options for benchmark tracking. The website does not specify which benchmarks are included but it can be assumed these benchmarks are similar to CrossFit benchmark assessments and workouts.

Performance & Measurement Reports

SugarWOD does allow for performance and measurement tracking and reporting of benchmarks. Exercise.com also enables clients to receive performance and measurement reports based on their assessment data. Trainers can use this information to plan an effective and safe exercise and fitness routine.

Nutrition

Nutrition is an important factor when it comes to meeting individual health and fitness goals. Nutrition tracking and logs can help clients see what and how much they are eating and these can easily be shared with trainers. MyFitnessPal integration with Exercise.com is helpful in engaging members to meet their health and fitness goals.

SugarWOD does not include any nutrition tracking features.

SugarWOD Pricing

The pricing for SugarWOD is based on how many athletes are registered in the software platform. Managers and fitness professionals do not have to choose a pricing plan because the pricing is automatically calculated based on the number of registered athletes

The personal training add-on costs $25 monthly for 100 private clients, although there is no additional information about what this add-on includes. There are no contracts with SugarWOD and users can cancel anytime. There is a two-week free trial for SugarWOD with no credit card needed for the free trial.

SugarWOD Alternatives

Alternatives to SugarWOD that are focused on CrossFit athletes and/or daily workout delivery include:

• Beyond the Whiteboard (BTWB).
• WOD Genie
• myWOD
• WOD Roulette
• WODster
• WOD Log
• WODBook
• PushPress

The Bottom Line: Pros and Cons

SugarWOD has some features that a fitness business would find useful. This software platform focuses on workout creation and delivery, mobile apps, and gym/facility management. However, there are many additional features that SugarWOD does not include that can help take your fitness business to the next level.

SugarWOD would be a useful addition for fitness businesses that already have a gym management software platform. The issue with this is the extra cost and extra management that comes along with using two different platforms.

If your goals are to save time by allowing your fitness software platform to work for you so you can spend more time with clients and members, then Exercise.com is the best option for you. Or, if you want to maximize your revenue potential by using an all-in-one fitness business software platform, then Exercise.com is the number one choice for you.

SugarWOD Cons

The biggest cons of SugarWOD are the essential missing features like payment processing, client/class scheduling, administrative reporting, online training, and selling online workout plans, and offering online memberships.

These are useful features that a fitness business would use daily. The SugarWOD website even says, “You have a back-end system for billing, point-of-sale, and payroll. Now, scale and grow the most visible part of your business with tools that support a more professional workout experience.” SugarWOD is not an all-in-one solution for fitness businesses.

A fitness business would need an additional software platform, which comes at an additional cost and requires staff and professionals to be trained in two different systems. Clients and members would need to access two or more online dashboards or mobile apps, which can be time-consuming and confusing.

Exercise.com Pros

The Exercise.com software platform has all the features needed to effectively and efficiently manage any fitness business, big or small. The features described in this article make it easy for trainers, fitness professionals, and managers to access what they need to help all members and clients meet their health and fitness goals. Exercise.com is truly an all-in-one solution for businesses and exercisers to save time and money.

The variety of features offered by Exercise.com save you time so you can focus on your current members and on reaching new potential members. The workout software and ecommerce features give you the power to create additional sources of revenue to meet your business financial goals.

If you’re looking for an alternative to SugarWOD and are ready to grow and manage your business with fully customizable software, book a demo with Exercise.com.