strength-training
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The Gym That Fit Inside a Phone
Barbell Logic took the most local business imaginable - a coach watching one person lift - and rebuilt it around delayed video, patient feedback and a surprisingly consequential piece of software.
Bodybuilding.com
Bodybuilding.com helped invent the content-to-commerce fitness playbook. Now the 1999 internet original is trying to turn its store, workouts, social community and new health services into one daily habit.
Hyperwear
Hyperwear is an Austin, Texas functional-fitness equipment company founded in 2011 by inventor Dirk Buikema. It designs and manufactures patented, versatile training gear - most notably the low-profile Hyper Vest weighted vest, the sand-filled SandBell, the Hyper Rope weighted battle rope, and the Hyper Ruck rucking backpack. Sold direct-to-consumer and to gyms, tactical professionals, and rehab settings, the brand built its business around a single idea captured in its trademarked mission, 'Get Strong for Life.' In 2025 it landed on the Inc. 5000 list of America's fastest-growing private companies after posting 85% revenue growth from 2022 to 2024.
Dirk Buikema
Dirk Buikema is the founder and CEO of Hyperwear, an Austin-based functional fitness company he started in 2011. A former corporate attorney and semiconductor strategist turned inventor, he holds multiple US patents for training gear including the SandBell sandbag, the Hyper Vest adjustable weighted vest, and the SteelBell. Under his lean, research-driven, direct-to-consumer approach, Hyperwear grew 85% from 2022 to 2024 and landed on the 2025 Inc. 5000 list of America's fastest-growing private companies.
Fitbod
Fitbod is a San Francisco fitness company whose app builds personalized strength-training workouts using machine learning. It analyzes your training history, available equipment, and muscle recovery to generate a fresh, adaptive plan every time you walk into the gym - effectively a data-driven personal trainer in your pocket. Founded in 2015 by Allen Chen and Jesse Venticinque, Fitbod has grown to more than 5 million downloads, over 40 million logged workouts, and surpassed $20M in annual recurring revenue while remaining profitable.
Allen Chen
Allen Chen is the co-founder and CEO of Fitbod, the San Francisco strength-training app that uses machine learning to design a fresh, personalized workout every time you open it. A UCLA computer science grad and former Wall Street high-frequency trading strategist, Chen swapped optimizing stock portfolios for optimizing sets and reps, building an algorithm that picks exercises the way he once picked trades. Since launching in 2015 with co-founder Jesse Venticinque, Fitbod has grown to more than 300,000 paid subscribers while staying lean and profitable.
Barry's
Barry's is the boutique fitness brand that turned the group workout into a nightclub. Founded in West Hollywood in 1998, it pioneered the high-intensity interval training (HIIT) class with its signature Red Room - low lights, loud music, treadmills and free weights - and helped launch the boutique fitness industry. Today Barry's runs roughly 90 studios across more than a dozen countries, sells a Fuel Bar nutrition line and a digital platform (Barry's X), and draws millions of class visits a year.
Tempo
Tempo is a San Francisco-based connected fitness company building an AI-powered home gym. Its flagship Tempo Studio uses 3D infrared sensors and computer vision to track form in real time, coach lifters through strength workouts, and adapt programs to each user. Founded in 2015 by Moawia Eldeeb and Josh Augustin, the company has raised over $316M, including a $220M Series C led by SoftBank in 2021.