Reteno Podcast #2: How Health & Fitness Apps Actually Scale

Scaling a Health & Fitness app looks straightforward from the outside.

Run ads. Get installs. Sell subscriptions.

But anyone working in the industry knows the real picture is much more complex. Growth depends on a delicate balance between creative performance, funnel design, monetization mechanics, and retention.

In the first Reteno Podcast episode recorded in English, Oleg sat down with Vasyl Sergiienko, Industry Manager at Google and a long-time partner to health and fitness businesses from his previous role working at Meta.

The conversation explores what actually drives growth in the category today — from profitability discipline to creative strategy and the evolving subscription funnel.

And the first principle is surprisingly simple.

The rule that shapes everything: Marketing must be profitable

Many growth conversations start with channels, creatives, or attribution models.

But according to Vasyl, successful fitness apps begin with something much more fundamental:

Profitability.

“The best lesson from the past is very simple. Marketing should be profitable.”

It sounds obvious. Yet this principle defines how many successful health & fitness businesses operate.

A large share of companies in the category — especially those from Eastern Europe — were built without heavy venture funding. That forced them to treat marketing not as experimentation, but as an investment that must return capital quickly.

As Vasyl explains:

“When you invest your own money, you become very sensitive in terms of revenue and return on your investments.”

That mindset changes how growth teams behave.

They move faster.

They test aggressively.

And they stop campaigns quickly when the numbers don’t work.

Because ultimately:

“All your activities should end up with some profit.”

For performance-driven businesses, this discipline becomes a competitive advantage.

Why Health & Fitness apps became a creative battlefield

The health & fitness category is naturally suited to visual platforms.

Workout demonstrations, transformation stories, coaching personalities — the content is inherently visual and emotional.

This is why platforms like Meta historically became the primary acquisition channel for many apps.

But the real competitive advantage isn't just access to the platform.

It’s the ability to produce high volumes of creatives and test them constantly.

Winning companies rarely rely on a single winning ad. Instead, they build systems for continuous experimentation.

Creative testing becomes the engine that drives acquisition.

And that creative must connect directly to the rest of the growth system — especially the funnel.

The funnel is where profitability is decided

Once a user clicks an ad, the real work begins.

Vasyl breaks down the typical structure used by many successful fitness apps.

It starts with the creative — whose only job is simple:

“The goal for the creative is to sell a click.”

But from there, the experience becomes much more complex.

A typical funnel includes:

• the initial landing page designed to keep users engaged
• a series of onboarding questions
• a personalized plan or recommendation
• a paywall with subscription options

And then comes one of the most important — and often overlooked — stages:

The post-purchase experience.

Why the purchase experience became critical

In the early days of subscription apps, the funnel usually ended at the paywall.

Today, it rarely does.

After the first purchase, many apps introduce additional offers designed to increase lifetime value.

These may include:

• subscription upgrades
• add-on programs
• coaching sessions
• even physical goods

As Vasyl explains:

“After the paywall we have the first purchase experience, where we have upsell, upgrades — all the necessary parts to increase profitability and LTV.”

Over the past few years, this stage of the funnel has evolved rapidly.

What used to be a simple checkout flow is now a highly optimized monetization layer.

Businesses experiment with:

• personalized offers
• bundled products
• dynamic pricing
• additional services

All with one goal: improve lifetime value to keep marketing profitable.

Rising ad costs forced companies to innovate

One of the reasons monetization became so sophisticated is simple:

Advertising is getting more expensive.

As Vasyl points out, businesses are constantly looking for ways to maintain profitability as acquisition costs rise.

“Ads become more and more expensive year after year.”

This creates pressure on the entire growth system.

To stay profitable, companies must increase:

• conversion rates
• average order value
• lifetime value

Which is why experimentation inside the funnel has accelerated.

Can fitness apps still work with just subscriptions?

With so many monetization layers emerging, a natural question appears:

Is it still possible to run a simple subscription model?

The answer is yes.

But according to Vasyl, the more relevant question is why a company would limit itself.

“Yes, it's absolutely possible. But the question is: why don’t you?”

If a business has the opportunity to increase revenue and deliver additional value through upsells or complementary offers, ignoring that opportunity means leaving money on the table.

In a competitive category like fitness apps, that margin often decides who scales.

What growth teams should take away

The conversation highlights a few lessons that consistently appear across successful health & fitness apps.

1. Profitability is the foundation

Marketing strategies only work if the economics support them.

2. Creative production is a growth engine

The ability to test and iterate on creatives quickly drives acquisition performance.

3. Funnels are evolving

The path from click to purchase is now much more sophisticated than a simple paywall.

4. Monetization doesn’t end at checkout

Upsells, add-ons, and personalized offers play a growing role in improving LTV.

5. Rising acquisition costs force innovation

As advertising becomes more expensive, product and monetization strategies must adapt.

A new chapter for the Reteno Podcast

This conversation also marks an important milestone. It’s the first Reteno Podcast episode recorded in English, opening the door for more conversations with global app leaders about growth, retention, and monetization.

Expect future episodes featuring founders, product leaders, and growth teams who are building and scaling subscription apps around the world.