Hey there, blogger! If you’re interested in making money from your fitness blog, you’re in the right place. There are three primary ways to make money as a fitness blogger, and we’re going to cover them in detail today.
Here are the basics:
1. You can promote and sell products/services through affiliate marketing.
2. You can promote and sell products/services through sponsored posts.
3. You can create and sell your own products/services.
Today, we’re going to lay out the road map for every fitness blogger that ever asked, ‘can I really make money blogging about fitness?’
Spoiler alert: You can!
This article will be focused on fitness bloggers, but it really encompasses all aspects of health and wellness. Let’s get to it!
Our posts contain affiliate links. These links don’t cost you anything, but they allow us to continue running this site and providing free content for our readers. Full disclosure here.
HOW TO MAKE MONEY AS A FITNESS BLOGGER (WITH AFFILIATE MARKETING)
Affiliate marketing is essentially promoting products for a business that you are associated with.
And here’s how it works:
You apply to join an affiliate program that fits in your niche (in this case: health, wellness, fitness). When you get approved by that affiliate program, you gain access to an affiliate link for the products you want to promote. When someone clicks on that link and makes a purchase, you earn a commission. Yeah baby!
So, let’s cover the best affiliate networks that every fitness blogger should join.
Keep in mind, THE NETWORK is the platform that contains a pool of affiliate programs that you can join. You’ll need to join the affiliate network if you want to access the affiliate programs within that pool.
I love affiliate networks because they make everything so easy: you can access hundreds (sometimes thousands of programs) in one place, apply to those programs, find out how much they pay, get your affiliate links, and get paid…all right there in your dashboard.
In this article, I’ll be sharing a bunch of programs within the top affiliate networks and how much they pay you for each sale you make. It’s always a good idea to focus on HIGH PAYING affiliate programs that can bring true value to your readers.
Let’s get to it: the best affiliate networks for fitness bloggers…
You can join the AWIN affiliate network HERE. There is a $5.00 screening fee to join this network, which will be refunded to you after approval. This network is full of awesome affiliate programs that will help you make money as a fitness blogger.
Here are just a few of the programs you can join and how much you can earn from them.
Strength.com // up to 75% commission per sale
BPI Sports // 20% commission per sale
Supplement Hut // 20% commission per sale
Let’s Get Checked (Home Health Kits) // 10-40% commission per sale
Rent Skis // 10% commission per sale
Slender Tone // 8% commission per sale
Ideal Fit US // 8% commission per sale
My Protein // 8% commission per sale
Ryder Wear US // 7-10% commission per sale
BodyBuilding.com // between 5-15% commission per sale
Hamilton Beach // 6% commission per sale
Campus Protein // 6% commission per sale
Under Armour US // 5% commission per sale
Pro Bike Kit // 4% commission per sale
Vivo Barefoot Shoes // 2-10% commission per sale
Wiggle // 2-4% commission per sale
Gym Shark // contact for affiliate details
Remember, you’ll join the AWIN network first, and then you’ll apply to the affiliate programs you want to join in that network.
You’ll search for programs to join in your AWIN dashboard here:
And then you’ll click the button to “Join Program” here:
When you apply to join the program, you’ll have to agree to the program terms and select the primary promotion method you’ll be using. I usually select my website, but you can select whichever platform you use the most. You also have the option to “add a message” to introduce yourself and share why you want to join the program.
Take a quick minute to complete this extra step because it will speed up the approval process. You can even use a basic copy/paste spiel that you write for each affiliate network (that’s totally fine and it saves you time). Just make sure that you edit the content so it applies to that program!
You can join the Share-a-Sale network HERE. Some of my favorite and highest paying affiliate programs are available in this free network. It has thousands of great programs to join, especially for fitness bloggers! Here is a big ol’ list of some great affiliate programs in the network. Again, focus on the ones that can bring the most value to your readers.
Ritual Vitamins // 75% commission per sale
Health, Fitness, and Longevity 4HFL.com // 35% commission per sale
Power Blends Fitness Fuel // 25% commission per sale
Train with Jillian Michaels // 20% commission per sale
WOD Fitters // 20% commission per sale
Keto Zone // 12% commission per sale
The Human Trainer // 15% commission per sale
Fight Camp // $30 per lead
Hip Shake Fitness // $15.00 per sale
Fit Lifestyle Box // $10 per sale
Lifeline // 10% commission per sale
Navy Seals.com // 10% commission per sale
Jump Sport // 8% commission per sale
Reebok // 7% commission per sale
Dancewear Solutions // 6% commission per sale
Pure Formula Supplements // 4% commission per sale
Simply join the Share-a-Sale network, apply to the programs that you want to join, and then start promoting your affiliate products to your audience.
As an example, let’s say you promote the “Train with Jillian” program. It costs $99.99 for 12 months and you’ll get 20% of each qualifying sale. Throw in some health supplements and some workout gear, and you can easily make $100+ from ONE dedicated reader who buys through those links in ONE day… This won’t happen overnight, but it CAN and DOES happen for fitness bloggers all the time.
{Actionable Tip}:
Come up with 3-5 blog post ideas that include fitness-related products…the things that will appeal to your target audience. Join the affiliate programs that will pay you to promote and sell those products, and then pepper your affiliate links into your blog posts and social media posts in a natural, helpful way!
This is the most effective way to make money as a fitness blogger.
Think about it: promote your favorite fitness clubs and make a commission. Promote your favorite protein shakes and make a commission. Or promote your favorite work out gear and make a commission.
Every article you write has the potential of making hundreds of dollars….over and over and over again!
You’ll search for programs to join here:
And then you’ll click the button to “Join Program” here:
Similar to AWIN, you’ll have to agree to the terms of the program and explain how you’ll promote the products. Don’t stress over it too much, just introduce yourself and your promotion plan and hit submit.
RAKUTEN AFFILIATE NETWORK
You can join the Rakuten Affiliate Network HERE. I love Rakuten because they have such a huge range of affiliate programs for bloggers in every niche. If you want to make money as a fitness blogger, this is one of the best networks for you to join!
We are going to outline a few of the highest paying and most popular affiliate programs in this network.
If you have used any of these brands or think they could potentially benefit your readers, you should join that affiliate program and start promoting their stuff ASAP.
NutriSystem // 15% commission per sale
Big City Sportswear // 10% commission per sale
Champion // 10-15% commission per sale
Yoga Outlet // 7% commission per sale
Timberland // 7% commission per sale
Ariat UK // 7% commission per sale
Kicks USA // 6.50% commission per sale
Footlocker // 6% commission per sale
SodaStream USA // 5% commission per sale
Watersport Outlets // 5% commission per sale
Wetsuit Outlet // 4% commission per sale
PacSun // 2% commission per sale
SPRI.com // 1% commission per sale
Once you get approved by Rakuten, you can search for affiliate programs here in your dashboard:
Apply for the program you want to join here:
A box will pop up asking you to read and agree to terms. Read the terms, click the box to agree, and then hit “OKAY.” And that’s it!
Just like every other affiliate network, you’ll apply to your programs, grab your affiliate links from your dashboard after approval, and then share those with your audience. Always be sure to disclose the fact that you are using affiliate links, it’s the law.
And be sure to grab my Affiliate Program Master List that has over 800 programs for you to choose from, organized by niche and commission rate!
HOW TO MAKE MONEY AS A FITNESS BLOGGER (WITH SPONSORED POSTS)
Okay, I know that was a lot of information to cover in our affiliate section, but we have two more main ways to make money as a fitness blogger, so let’s chat about those for a quick minute.
Doing sponsored posts:
As a fitness blogger, you have a few different options for sponsored work. Ultimately, the concept of sponsored work is simple: you reach out to individual companies that you want to work with and pitch them your idea for a sponsored post. This usually consists of promoting their products or services on your own blog or social channels.
Maybe there is a fitness apparel brand that you use and love. Maybe there is a workout program or some gym equipment you can recommend to your readers. Or, maybe there is even a local gym or Pilates program that you’d like to work with…
Best-kept blogging secret:
You can join a company affiliate program AND promote that company through a sponsored post (unless otherwise stated in their terms). This means that you can get paid to write a sponsored post AND use your own affiliate links in that post to promote that company’s products and/or services…. This can lead to double the income with very little effort – and that’s the kind of math >> THIS BLOGGER << likes to do!
If there is a fitness brand or business out there you’d like to work with, send them an email and offer to promote their products or services on your own blog or social media channels, in exchange for product or a fee.
Here is a comprehensive article about working with brands on sponsored posts. It also includes a pitching guide to help you land those sponsored gigs and get paid!
HOW TO MAKE MONEY AS A FITNESS BLOGGER (BY CREATING YOUR OWN PRODUCTS)
When I recommend this idea to new bloggers, they usually laugh and say they could never do that. It’s a pretty common theme that new bloggers lack confidence in their ability.
You are capable of SO MUCH MORE than you realize!
Think about creating and selling your own clothing line, your own fitness gear, your own workout program, creating your own YouTube channel, etc.
The sky is the limit.
Just look at Jillian Michaels, Karena and Katrina from Tone It Up, Sia Cooper from Diary of a Fit Mommy. If they held back and ignored their passion and their purpose just because they felt they couldn’t create their own product, their own training program, or their own fitness gear … where would they be today?
They’d be watching other fitness gurus excel while they sit and watch from the sidelines… Don’t do that.
If they can excel in the fitness field, you can too…if you really want to.
Another thing to consider: when you’re a blogger, you don’t want to put all your eggs in one basket. You want to have income flowing in from a few different places. So, do some affiliate marketing. Do some sponsored posts. Create something awesome and sell it to your audience.
There are so many fun and flexible ways to make money as a fitness blogger!
I hope this article has been helpful. If you enjoyed these tips, please take a minute to share this post on Pinterest!
Wow Cate! So much lucrative information in one post. I can’t wait to put these into practice. Do you have a post on Instagram promoting? I would love to read it. Keep rocking it girl!
Hi Heather, I sure do! At the bottom of my home page is a search bar, just type in Instagram and a few IG articles will pop up! Thank you for reading!