The Scoop: 99 Walks is an app that tracks, promotes, and rewards individual walking habits. The app offers research-based resources, including classes and podcasts, to motivate people to take a stroll or a hike in their free time. Within the last year, over 11,000 members have joined this fast-growing community and reaped the benefits of walking on a regular basis. The 99 Walks app has become a leader in the movement to make exercise more accessible. Its tools can encourage couples to make meaningful progress toward their personal health and relationship goals.
The world is full of scary headlines and daunting challenges, and it’s all too easy for adults to get bogged down by it all. While grinding through their daily responsibilities, some people can forget to follow their passions or make time to foster close relationships.
A walk around the block or a hike through nature can be a gift that cuts through the noise and stress. The very act of walking can provide an endorphin boost and clear a person’s mind of distractions. Plus, multiple studies have shown that couples who walk together can improve their love life in a number of ways.
Joyce Shulman and Eric Cohen co-founded 99 Walks to support positive habits.
That’s why 99 Walks has taken steps to motivate and reward people for walking on a regular basis.
A dynamic husband-wife duo named Joyce Shulman and Eric Cohen created the 99 Walks app in early 2020, and it has sparked a national walking movement. The app has tools and programs that inspire its community members to reach their personal goals.
Fittingly, the idea for 99 Walks came to Joyce and Eric while they were taking a walk during a vacation in Hawaii. The app offers rewards for completing walking challenges.
As a passionate health advocate and entrepreneur, Joyce has used the 99 Walks platform to foster greater awareness about the benefits of low-impact exercise. By strengthening the body and sparking deep conversations, a leisurely walk can inspire singles and couples to get out of a personal rut and find happiness in the simple things of life.
“Throughout my life, walking has always been a core practice of mine,” Joyce said. “It’s how I manage stress and fuel creativity, and it’s also a valuable way to connect with my husband.”
Encouraging Women to Take Steps Toward Their Goals
Couples who walk through life together can keep their relationship strong by literally walking together. Joyce and Eric have seen the benefits of daily walks in their own lives, and they launched 99 Walks to inspire others to follow in their footsteps.
“The whole idea of 99 Walks is to encourage as many people as possible to develop an intentional walking practice,” Joyce said. “There is a lot of value and connection to be had in walking with a partner.”
The 99 Walks subscription starts at $16 a month and has a 100% money-back guarantee. A yearly subscription costs $149. The app offers a two-week free trial to all new users.
Couples can take walks to improve their health and strengthen their relationship.
Anyone seeking a digital walking coach can download the 99 Walks app to get moving in the right direction. Some members go on daily walks by themselves, while others engage in weekly walks with their friends, family, or significant other. The app allows members to set unique walking goals and decide where and when they want to go.
Every month, 99 Walks offers a new challenge to its members. The app encourages individuals to set a goal and tracks their progress by recording their walks. Its graphs provide a visualization of an individual’s progress and accomplishments.
In addition to its robust tracking system, 99 Walks provides walking classes, walking inspiration, and walking meditation to keep its members engaged in their health journey.
Members who fulfill their monthly goals will receive a bracelet engraved with the theme of the month. This wearable inspiration carries messages such as “savor the sunshine” and “joyful wanderer.” The bracelets cannot be purchased, only earned, and they are a simple yet effective motivator for 99 Walks members.
So far, 99 Walks has over 11,000 active members who smash their walking goals month after month. Most members are women between 30 and 65 years old.
Joyce characterized the 99 Walks community as one focused on positivity and health. “The women in our community are leaders,” she said. “They may start walking by themselves, and then a few months in the men in their lives see the impact and start to join in, so it becomes a couples practice.”
Thanks to its array of features, 99 Walks has made walking habits more of a collaborative and inspirational effort. Couples can even join public teams on the 99 Walks app to further their connections through walking.
The Community Offers Meaningful Support & Rewards
Joyce and Eric started working on 99 Walks as a passion project and side hustle. And it has become so much more. The app launched in 2020, coincidentally right around the time when the coronavirus pandemic was leading to global lockdowns. With gyms being closed and social events canceled, people needed something to blow off steam and keep them energized. The 99 Walks app filled that role nicely.
“We’ve been hearing from people that this has been a lifeline during the pandemic,” Joyce said. “The year has been a rocketship with 99 Walks going from 0 to 11,000 members.”
People can have fun tracking and completing goals through 99 Walks.
Today, 99 Walks supports a driven community that finds solace, joy, and human connection on walks through their neighborhood or on local trails. Positive reviews have come pouring in from across the U.S.
“I ended up doing over 3 miles the first time,” said Amy B., a 99 Walks member from Jackson, Mississippi. “It was great — it just flew by. I feel so much better. I feel like it makes me a better mom.”
“I have only been a member of 99 Walks for a short time, but it has been awesome,” said Diane B., who walks the city streets of Atlanta in her free time. “I joined because I wanted to motivate myself to be more active and in turn got a community of other people striving to do the same. Truly motivational and fun!”
The 99 Walks community is led by a passionate and wise team that’s predominantly female. Joyce said the app was created with women’s health in mind, so she has depended on female voices to lift it up and spread the word.
Joyce also practices what she preaches and gets outside for walks about three times a week. Her husband usually accompanies her, and sometimes they bring their dog along too. She told us these family walks have become a sacred time for starting deep conversations about their opinions, ideas, and goals.
“If something requires real thought or discussion, it’s nice to have that undistracted time,” Joyce said. “We’re on a mission to get people walking, and the impact has been beyond anything I could have imagined.”
Looking to the future, the 99 Walks team intends to grow and reinforce its walking community with a goal of one day reaching over 1 million members.
99 Walks Sets the Pace for a Healthier & Happier Lifestyle
Research has shown that walking can have an overall positive impact on a person’s mood, fitness, and relationships. Joyce gave a TED talk about how walking reduces loneliness, and she created an app to inspire a community around walking. The 99 Walks app helps people make strides toward better health and fulfillment.
You don’t have to be incredibly athletic to join the 99 Walks program. Members set their own goals, go at their own pace, and find a lot of joy in the activity.
Whether you’re walking by yourself or with a partner, you can get your mind and heart on track by taking on the 99 Walks challenge to get out there.
“The beauty of a walking practice is all you have to do to get started is lace up your sneakers and walk out the door,” Joyce said. “You can start slow and take a 10-minute or 15-minute walk. Just try it and see where it leads you.”
