1. Born Fitness
Created by New York Times bestselling author Adam Bornstein, Born Fitness is a site dedicated to simplifying the world of health, fitness, and nutrition, by delivering the most important and actionable information in a way that’s concise and easy to understand.
When we’re considering which blogs to include in our top 10 and how to rank them, we actually look at hundreds of sites before deciding which ones make the cut. One of the reasons we ranked Born Fitness in first place is due to its beautiful, responsive site design, which is incredibly easy to use and clearly breaks down the blog into the key areas you’re most interested in – Fitness, Motivation, Nutrition, and Recipes.
There’s also a really nice feature where you can quickly check on the best post of the week from each category. This attention to detail and talent for producing high quality content are two of the reasons why more than 50 million people have trusted the Born Fitness content and programs, and why Adam has been featured in world renowned fitness publications such as Men’s Health, LiveStrong and SHAPE.
But one of the most unique features of the Born Fitness site is the consulting service, which helps businesses in the fitness industry grow their customer base, create new content, and strengthen the overall health of the business.
Born Fitness Consulting is packed with case studies of their work for companies such as Muscle & Fitness, Microsoft, and Greatist. If you currently run a business in the health and fitness industry, it’s worth taking a look at their website to see if they can help your brand grow.
2. Jason Ferruggia
If you’re passionate about strength training and fitness, the chances are you’ve already discovered our first finalist, whose definitive guides, and unique perspective on strength and endurance have made his blogs one of the most popular fitness sites online.
Despite running a highly successful training business for over a decade, there’s an incredibly motivational story behind how Jason Ferruggia started the site, which you can read here.
The blog itself is home to over 400 articles, which cover everything you could want to know about muscle building, bodyweight training, and exercise form, as well as some insightful and motivational posts to help strength your mental attitude both in and out of the gym.
If you love what you read on the blog but want to take your training to the next level with a more personal approach, you can choose to join the Renegade Strength Club.
You’ve probably come across workout programs online before, but Jason’s is one of the most comprehensive health, fitness, and strength solutions available, featuring complete guides to cardio, supplements, meal planning, bodyweight workouts, and much more.
You’ll also gain access to a member’s only community, HD video library and exclusive members only podcast, as well as new Renegade workout programs every week. You can find out more about what’s included on the Renegade Workout page.
If you’re looking for an even more personalized approach, you can even upgrade to the Renegade Elite Mastermind program, which includes 4 meet ups per year in places like New Orleans and Miami, as well as fitness, life and business coaching for your personal goals, and a whole lot more. If you’re interested, you can have a one-on-one Renegade Elite Strategy Call with Jason here.
Jason Ferruggia has been featured in some of the world’s largest fitness publications, including Muscle & Fitness, Men’s Health, ESPN, and T Nation, as well as in our guide to the Top 10 Strength Blogs in 2015.
3. Catalyst Athletics
Founded by Greg Everett, author of ‘Olympic Weightlifting: A Complete Guide for Athletes & Coaches‘ and director of ‘American Weightlifting: The Documentary‘, Catalyst Athletics is the world’s largest source of educational material for Olympic weightlifting.
The site is home to over 300 articles, 37 weightlifting programs, and thousands of weightlifting workouts, but the main highlight is the extensive video library, where you can find more than 1100 videos dedicated to helping you improve your technique and strength in the Olympic lifts.
On the blog itself you’ll find hundreds of articles authored by experienced competitive weightlifters, state record-holders, and strength and conditioning coaches. These are designed to help with everything from positive mental attitude, through to rehabilitation training and long-term workout plans.
Daily workouts are available under a free subscription, and there’s no shortage of action photography taken mid-lift, which is a useful resource in itself for analyzing the form of experienced lifters and comparing it to your own.
Catalyst Athletics is also home to podcasts, interviews, guides, and an active forum where you can discuss all aspects of Olympic weightlifting, and even request feedback on videos of your lifting technique.
Olympic weightlifting seminars are available if you’re interested in improving your ability to teach and perform the major Olympic lifts and assistance exercises, as well as the option to distinguish yourself as a strength coach through the Catalyst Athletics Certification Program.
4. Ross Training
Founded by trainer and boxing coach, Ross Enamait, Ross Training is a site tailored towards anyone with a passion for high performance conditioning and strength development.
Since the site was created in 2007, the blog has grown to nearly 1000 articles, most of which are focussed towards training, the importance of a positive mental attitude, and inspirational success stories.
As for the training articles, you’ll find expert advice on the safest and most effective way to perform various strength exercises with a variety of equipment, including bench pressing and resistance bands, as well as exercises designed to improve your conditioning, such as jump rope routines and sand bag drills.
In addition to the blog, RossTraining.com also has an incredibly active forum, with thousands of topics centered around strength and conditioning, nutrition, supplementation, and boxing, with a section specifically designed for posting your workout logs. If you’re looking to start strength training from home but have a limited budget, there’s an excellent post about how to make your own home gym equipment, which is well worth a read.
If you’re specifically interested in Ross’ training experience with boxing, he also runs an excellent site called RossBoxing.com, which is regularly updated with training advice, conditioning drills, and instructional boxing videos.
5. Tabata Times
Founded in 2012 by Joel Toledano, Tabata Times has quickly established itself as one of the leading online resources for CrossFit workouts and training.
There are currently over 600 articles to choose from, covering everything from rehabilitation after injury, through to mental training and improving your strength and form in lifts such as the Kettlebell Swing and deadlift.
You can also find upcoming CrossFit events in the US using the Tabata Times online event calendar, or use articles in the ‘Ask the Doc‘ series to help with problems many CrossFit athletes must overcome in order to progress with their training.
6. DAREBEE
Formerly known as NeilaRey.com, DAREBEE is run by a dedicated team of fitness enthusiasts with the belief that fitness should be accessible to anyone, regardless of their circumstances.
The big difference between DAREBEE and the other sites in our guide is the way information is presented, with a much heavier focus on workout plans and programs.
Being able to present information that’s actionable and easy to understand in a short amount of time isn’t easy, which is why the team at DAREBEE have created an entire library of beautifully designed infographics. We found these an excellent way of walking us through everything from diets and meal timings, to planning your first half marathon.
Because the site is now home to hundreds of these graphics, in categories such as workouts, challenges, running, and nutrition, there’s even a convenient filter section. For workouts, this can be used to find types of programs that use specific equipment or work specific muscle groups. There’s even a ‘Theme’ option, where you can find workouts to train like your favourite superhero or movie character, which has proven incredibly popular on Pinterest.
In addition to the infographics, there are also more in-depth articles and guides designed to help improve your overall health and wellbeing, such as their guide to Healthy Eating on a Budget.
DAREBEE is completely ad-free, and supported exclusively via user donations. If you enjoy the content and would like to help ensure the future success of the project, you can choose to donate here.
7. Mobility WOD
Mobility WOD is a project that was originally started by Kelly Starrett in 2010 as a way of sharing knowledge on movement and mobility via a series of instructional videos, based on subjects such as deadlifting mechanics and squat technique.
It’s now home to hundreds of videos and guides designed to help resolve pain, prevent injury, and optimize athletic performance through education, in the form of free videos, daily WOD, and webinars.
For full access to over 150 hours of movement and mobility instruction, as well as exclusive webinars and targeted content for specific movement patterns, there’s also the option to sign up for m|WOD Pro.
There’s even an active online community where you can ask for help and advice on a range of subjects related to mobility, such as shoulder and knee injuries, or problems specifically related to running.
If you’re specifically interested in CrossFit, you can also find out about upcoming seminars for both athletes and coaches. These seminars are designed to develop effective mobility strategies and improve the total body setup of athletes taking part in CrossFit on a regular basis, and also discuss the best practices when it comes to whole-body maintenance.
If you’re keen to get started with improving your stability through Mobility WOD but not sure where to start, we would certainly recommend the free videos, or check out a copy of the New York Times bestselling book, ‘Becoming a Supple Leopard‘, authored by MOWD’s founder Kelly Starrett.
8. Nerd Fitness
NerdFitness.com is a site dedicated to helping you achieve your fitness goals through hard work, healthy nutrition, exercise, education, and most importantly, consistency.
Since it’s creation in 2009, Steve Kamb has continued to develop a unique writing style and perspective on health and fitness that’s proven incredibly popular, with over 100 articles highlighting inspirational success stories, effective training methods, and healthy recipe ideas.
Although this isn’t exclusively a Paleo blog, Nerd Fitness does have an excellent guide to the Paleo Diet which has been viewed millions of times, and a recently released Paleo Central app.
If you’re looking for health and fitness advice beyond what’s offered in the blog, you can also choose to join the Nerd Fitness Academy, which has helped thousands of students build sustainable habits that can help you get stronger, lose weight, improve self confidence, and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
The Academy features a number of different modules, guides, and features, including workout routines for specific equipment (bodyweight, dumbbells, barbells), an HD video library with over 120 exercise tutorials, and healthy meal plans.
One of their latest features even lets you track your progress with a unique profile, where you can create quests as a form of goal setting and motivation, and increase your current ‘level’ by gaining XP every time one is completed.
For some quick advice from other members of the Nerd Fitness community, the forum is an excellent place to start, with new discussions added daily and over 40000 members. This is where you can discuss everything from Powerlifting and Martial Arts through to Yoga and Tai Chi, and can even keep track of your progress by creating your own training log.
If you’re passionate about Yoga, you might also want to check out Nerd Fitness Yoga, which includes a collection of full yoga workouts and an archive of over 140 poses, tailored towards a variety of fitness levels.
9. Fit Bottomed Girls
Since its inception in May 2008, Fit Bottomed Girls has grown into one of the leading health and fitness blogs online, with their hundreds of articles proving an excellent source of information for cardio and strength training, workouts, fitness motivation, nutrition, and much more.
Workouts are available for all fitness levels and a variety of situations, whether you’re just starting your first session on a treadmill, looking for a way to exercise in your dorm, or in need of a quick and effective full-body workout.
FBG also have a book filled with the experiences and life lessons of the site’s founders, called ‘The Fit Bottomed Girls Anti-Diet‘. The book is filled with 10-minute healthy lifestyle changes that can be introduced into your daily routine to assist with healthy eating, exercising, and weight loss, written in a way that’s fun and easy to read, yet inspirational and informative.
In addition to the nutrition, workout, and motivation articles, FBG also has a large collection of in-depth reviews for everything fitness related, including apparel, footwear, workout DVDs, apps, and personal fitness trackers.
The team at Fit Bottomed Girls have done a fantastic job with the site design, with a clean, responsive layout that’s easy to read on any device. Whether you’re catching up on the latest running shoe reviews or in need of playlist motivation for your workout when you’re at the gym. Highly recommended!
10. Nia Shanks
The Nia Shanks site and Lift Like a Girl tagline were created to help motivate you and support you in achieving your strength training goals using tried and tested workouts, and taking a manageable and balanced approach to your diet.
If you’re new to strength training and wondering the best way to get started, Nia created a guide that could help, called the Beautiful Badass Mini Course. You can also find a useful collection of tutorials, which do an excellent job of explaining important information about fat loss, bodyweight exercises, strength training, and workouts.
As well as being home to a regularly updated blog, you can also find ‘The Nia Shanks Show‘ podcast, with discussions on a wide range of health, fitness, and lifestyle topics. There’s also regular interviews with experts from various sectors of the health and fitness industry, and the STRONG Woman series, which highlights a number of inspirational success stories.
When she’s not writing new articles for her own site, Nia has also written for some of the world’s largest health and fitness companies and websites, including Muscle & Strength, EliteFTS, BodyBuilding.com, and T Nation.
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