Fitbod vs Hevy

Fitbod, Hevy and RIRLift side by side

Fitbod is for lifters who never want to plan; Hevy is for lifters who plan and want it free, social and on any phone. RIRLift sits between them: your plan, Fitbod's job of picking the weight, free on iPhone.

What actually separates Fitbod and Hevy

• A planner or a logbook

  Fitbod builds each session from your goal, split, equipment and which muscles are recovered. Hevy logs what you planned, with ready-made splits on the free tier and Trainer, a full program, in Pro.

• What free gets you

  Fitbod has a 7-day trial and no free tier. Hevy's free tier is unlimited workouts, 4 routines, 7 custom exercises and graphs for the last 3 months, with no ads.

• Who decides the weight

  In Fitbod the weights arrive set, and some days are lighter on purpose. In free Hevy you pick them yourself from last session's numbers. That decision, every set, is the one most lifters get wrong.

• Effort per set or per exercise

  Hevy logs RPE on every set. Fitbod asks for reps in reserve once, after an exercise's last set, and uses it for future workouts.

• Where RIRLift is different

  You log weight, reps and how many reps you had left, and RIRLift sets the next set before you rest. Your plan doesn't change unless you change it. How it decides.

  

Fitbod, Hevy or RIRLift in a real week

A year of push/pull/legs in Hevy, weights barely moving

You like your routine and your log. What you don't know is when to add weight, so most lifts sit where they were in spring.

App	What it does here	For this lifter
Hevy	Keeps your routine and shows last session's numbers. On free, the next weight is your call; Trainer's suggestions are Pro and come with its own program.	Fits if you're happy to keep deciding.
Fitbod	Sets every weight, but writes its own sessions from your split and recovery instead of your routine.	Fits if you're ready to give up the routine.
RIRLift	Imports your Hevy history, keeps the same lifts and sets the weight for every set from what you log, free.	Fits, on iPhone.

The routine wasn't the problem. Deciding the weight was.

First push day after the Hevy import

Your Hevy CSV is in, so the first weights come from your history. You set your RPE 8 targets as 2 reps in reserve.

Exercise	You logged	Next session	Why
Close-Grip Bench Press	Set 1: 185 lb × 8, 1 left	Set 2: 185 lb × 8	You got the 8 with 1 left against a planned 2, so it holds. You did what was asked; going closer to failure never cuts the weight.
Arnold Press	40 lb, 12 / 11 / 10 reps, 2 left	40 lb × 11	Not every set reached 12, so it holds. The weakest set hit its target of 10, so the target moves to 11.

The same push day you ran in Hevy, with the next numbers decided for you.

Plans for a push/pull/legs lifter

• The best workout routine for men, for your week

  Busy: 3 gym days, push/pull/legs

  One push, pull and leg day a week, inside the 4 free routines.

  3× a week · 48 sets a week · ~40 min

  Add to RIRLift

  Add to RIRLift

  Scan with your iPhone camera to add this plan.

  See the plan

• The best workout routine for the days you can train

  6 days a week: push/pull/legs

  Each day twice a week, if you run PPL six days in Hevy.

  6× a week · 102 sets a week · ~45 min

  Add to RIRLift

  Add to RIRLift

  Scan with your iPhone camera to add this plan.

  See the plan

Make it fit you

• Import from Hevy

  Export your workouts from Hevy as a CSV and import it in RIRLift. Weights worked out from it are marked From history.

• Turn RPE targets into RIR

  RPE 8 is 2 reps left, RPE 9 is 1. Set them once per exercise.

• Want Fitbod's variety? Ask Coach

  Ask Coach for a new block when you're bored of a plan. It arrives as a preview and applies only if you say so.

When a different app fits better

• You never want to plan a session. Fitbod writes every workout for you.
• You want a social feed or Android. Hevy, with a feed, Android, Wear OS and a web app.
• You log RPE and want to keep it. Hevy. RIRLift logs reps in reserve.

Questions

Read next

• Fitbod review: who it's worth paying for

  Is Fitbod worth it, and for whom.

• Fitbod alternatives, free and paid

  Every option ranked, free and paid.

• Hevy on Apple Watch, and what RIRLift does differently

  What Hevy does on the wrist.

• Hevy app review: free vs Pro, and who should pay

  Hevy's free tier and Pro, in full.

• RPE vs RIR

  Moving from Hevy's RPE to reps in reserve.

More ways lifters use RIRLift

• Fitbod review: who it's worth paying for

  What Fitbod does with your sets, what it costs after the trial, and who should pay for it.

• Hevy on Apple Watch, and what RIRLift does differently

  Hevy's Watch app logs sets and rest. RIRLift adds reps in reserve and sets the next weight on the wrist.

• Strong vs Hevy on Apple Watch

  Strong and Hevy are close on the wrist. Here's where they differ, and where RIRLift fits.

Every lifter and goal