I’ve always been a little bit obsessed with fitness gear and gadgets. Even before the pandemic, I’d developed a habit of trying new fitness gear both at home and in the gym to see what’s actually worth the hype, and I’ve learned a lot since then. From VR workouts to hopping on the Peloton craze with a Bowflex C6 bike, my husband and I even built out a fully-equipped home gym in our garage prior to moving into the city, but thanks to downsizing, we’ve had to be a little more strategic about our space.
As you can imagine, that meant I was pretty familiar with the concept of fitness mirrors, so when I had the opportunity to try out one of the newest ones to hit the market — the FORME Studio(opens in a new tab) — I absolutely jumped at the chance.
What is the FORME Studio?
A fully customizable fitness studio, the FORME is hands-down one of the most interesting fitness mirrors I’ve seen to date. At 68 inches (nearly six feet tall), the FORME Studio is a full foot taller than the Mirror and 18 inches taller than Tonal, making it a stunning full-length mirror that actually, you know, looks like a mirror. With white glove delivery, users have the option of wall mounting the mirror or resting it on the ground — which is what I chose — and at 102 pounds, it’s definitely a weighty and surprisingly well-made device.
At first glance, the FORME Studio genuinely looks like a gorgeous, high-quality mirror. Several of my friends were shocked to find out that it was a fitness studio, which was definitely a win in my book. Compared to other fitness mirrors like Tonal, which have more of a gadget-y vibe, I loved how the FORME actually looked like an intentional part of my home decor, which was huge compared to other fitness equipment (like my spin bike) that eats up a lot of floor space.
Users have the option to customize their FORME Studio according to their preferences. I stuck with the basic package — which included the mirror itself, a yoga mat, heart rate monitor, cleaning cloth, and camera covers — but FORME also offers a barre add-on(opens in a new tab) (that includes a removable, real wood barre as well as barre socks and a barre ball) and a lift add-on(opens in a new tab) with strength training gear.
Like most at-home fitness equipment, the FORME does require a monthly membership fee of $49 per month, but this includes access to their entire class library with accounts for you and five other people. Plus, your membership also comes with a personal fitness concierge who can answer any questions you may have and offers you a selection of curated classes each week tailored to your preferences.
How does the FORME Studio work?
Once it was installed, the FORME Studio(opens in a new tab) was up and running within seconds. I created an account and was quickly given access to their entire on-demand class library — which included options like barre, yoga, pilates, strength training, boxing, and meditation — as well as classes from Barry’s X, at-home training classes from Barry’s Bootcamp.
Unfortunately, I sustained a pretty severe leg injury shortly before receiving my FORME Studio, which meant I wasn’t able to jump into most of the classes right away. However, FORME was incredibly flexible and even rescheduled my white glove delivery to accommodate for my injury, and my fitness concierge recommended a selection of meditation and recovery classes that would allow me to utilize the studio without worrying about my injury.
Once I was able to use the FORME Studio, however, I was sold. The experience was incredibly seamless, and it was easy to navigate the touchscreen to find whatever type of workout you were looking for. Plus, the class library offered useful filters so you could search for the type of class, length, difficulty level, and more which made finding the perfect workout super easy.
Since I was recovering from an injury, I mostly stuck with low-impact classes like pilates and yoga once I was given the all-clear from my physical therapist. For the most part, the classes were pretty straightforward — the instructors were friendly and engaging, the classes kept my interest, and I liked that I had the option to increase the volume of the background music or keep the music low so I could hear the instructor’s voice.
There was also a decent amount of variety in the class library, so it was easy to find something that suited my mood. On days when I wanted more of a challenge, I could find an upbeat class on my first try — which is something I struggled with when I was doing Peloton classes — and it was just as easy to find slower, gentle classes on days where I just wasn’t feeling it.
What I liked about the FORME Studio
Obviously, I love how the FORME Studio looks. My husband and I had been dreaming of purchasing a massive floor mirror for our living room, and the FORME absolutely nailed that dream with its flawless, aesthetic design that is luxurious and super well-made. Even my husband — who was skeptical about whether or not the FORME would be “worth it” — said he was impressed with the quality and appearance of the studio.
Beyond that, I really liked that the FORME Studio goes above and beyond as far as experience. My fitness concierge was friendly and supportive, and I liked getting class recommendations from her every single week.
FORME’s live one-on-one personal training sessions were also a fantastic touch, especially during my injury recovery program. After filling out a brief questionnaire, FORME matched me with two potential trainers and allowed me to choose which one I wanted to try, and it was a quick process to book my complimentary introductory session.
From there, the actual one-on-one session was pretty great. It was easy to start my session (and slide off the camera covers) and my trainer asked me a few questions before walking me through a mobility and fitness screening, as well as a quick and easy workout tailored to me and my goals. The entire session was super low-key, and a few things — like how my trainer could switch my display from being a full-screen display of her demonstrating moves back to a mirror with her in the corner — made me really appreciate FORME’s attention to detail.
The cost of the one-on-one sessions was a little high at $130 per hour or $70 per 30 minutes, but it wasn’t too bad compared to some of the high-end trainers I’ve seen in my city. It might not be something I use on a regular basis, but I liked that I had the option to connect with a trainer if I wanted to work on something specific.
How does FORME’s on-demand library compare to other options?
Compared to other membership programs, like Peloton, the on-demand class library was a little smaller, but FORME is consistently adding new classes to their library. They have a pretty impressive selection of classes available, and it was easier to search the FORME library to find something I enjoyed than it was back when I was using Peloton.
Plus, their other wellness classes — like meditation, breathwork, and even massage gun recovery classes in partnership with Hypervolt — felt a little more intentional and impactful than similar options available on Peloton. They even had specialty classes that were a nice touch including kid-friendly family yoga, niche classes like strength training for surfers, treadmill classes, and more, so I didn’t feel like I was limited to “basic” classes like yoga or pilates.
After a few weeks, I found myself preferring the teaching style of the FORME instructors compared to Peloton as well. There was a good level of consistency between the instructors, so while you definitely experienced different teaching styles and personalities, I never found myself quitting a class because I didn’t vibe with an instructor…which absolutely happened when I had a Peloton membership.
What I didn’t like about the FORME Studio
While the mirror itself is incredibly well-made, the sound quality from the mirror isn’t ideal — especially given the price of the Studio. Obviously, this wasn’t a complete dealbreaker (and it was my only issue with the mirror itself) considering you can also use Bluetooth headphones to connect to the mirror if you want to crank it up louder.
However, the FORME Studio seems to have a few hiccups within the software. There were several days when I struggled to get the Bluetooth heart rate monitor that came with the Studio to connect, and I would have to reboot the mirror to fix the problem. One day, the sound didn’t work with any of the classes, but again, a quick reboot solved it.
I had a few more issues with Bluetooth over the next few weeks, but I noticed FORME was releasing regular software updates that consistently improved my experience. For example, I noticed my heart rate monitor would stop working in the middle of class — especially if I was doing something on the ground, like the swimming exercise in pilates — and there wasn’t the option to reconnect the Bluetooth without ending the class completely. However, the next time I did a workout where the heart rate monitor disconnected, it reconnected immediately without me having to do anything, so it seems like they’re very quick to resolve any issues that arise.
Is FORME Studio worth the splurge?
If you’ve got the money? I’ve gotta say yes.
If not? It depends. At $2,495 for the Studio(opens in a new tab) without any add-ons, the FORME is definitely one of the pricier fitness mirrors on the market. They do offer a financing option at $52 per month, but when you add on the $49 per month membership to access the on-demand class library, that gets pretty expensive fast. Obviously, this is less than a boutique studio membership — my favorite yoga studio is $130 per month for unlimited classes — so it really depends on what you’re looking for.
If you’re wanting a budget option, or you aren’t sure whether or not you’ll “stick” to an at-home fitness program, you might want to consider a cheaper alternative. However, if you already know you love working out at home — or you’re looking for a space-saving option that looks phenomenal — then I’d highly recommend splurging on the FORME.
While it might not be as “established” as some of its competitors, I loved my entire experience with the FORME Studio and the company itself. They were responsive and supportive, and — given that this is obviously a luxury purchase — the fact that they are so connected to their customers created a truly personalized, high-touch experience that feels just as luxurious as the mirror itself.
