The gym booking app for those who want to be fit but won’t commit

Photo credit: Gratisography.

A few years ago, Devi Prasad Biswal joined a gym. His housemate at the time wasn’t nearly as excited about the prospect but ended up tagging along out of curiosity and sheer positive peer pressure.

“My flatmate was in India for the next three months,” Devi explains. “He wanted to tag along, get in shape before he traveled.”

It was 75 percent of what Devi was paying for 25 percent of the time.

Devi was paying an annual fee of US$235 for his gym membership. When he and his flatmate inquired about prices for a three-month stay, the amount came back – US$177, which was 75 percent of what Devi was paying, despite the fact that his housemate would only be around for 25 percent of the time.

He poked around and confirmed what he already knew – the majority of the interest (as much as 80 percent) in gyms was like that of his flatmate’s: casual. Gyms were afraid of giving lower rates because they wanted to be able to pay for their facilities, which they would have to provide all year, whether people were coming to the gym or not.

See: A leaner, meaner you for just 15 dollars, thanks to an Indian startup

Lucky for people like Devi’s housemate, Devi was also an aspiring entrepreneur. He approached Avijeet Alagathi, his colleague from Goldman Sachs, with the idea of an app that would allow people to book and pay for gyms by individual session. That way, they’d save money and perhaps be more inclined to work out.

Devi admits he doesn’t work out nearly as much as he used to, but he still feels 22 in his head. Photo credit: BYG.

Devi and Avijeet founded BookYourGame – called BYG, (pronounced “big”) – in December 2015. The app was ready three months later.

Mobilizing motivation

Your mother warned you there’d be days like these. Photo credit: dorian2013 / 123RF.

BYG caters to people of all ages who aren’t necessarily ready to litter Instagram with their #fitspiration progress, but who may occasionally want to venture off the couch or from behind their computers onto a treadmill.

Team Fitness