Anthony Vennare: Insights from a Leading Expert in Fitness and Wellness

Anthony Vennare is the co-founder of Fitt Insider and Wellworthy, leveraging his extensive background as a lifelong athlete, bodybuilder, strength coach, and former United States Marine to navigate the fitness and wellness industry. Along with his brother, Joe Vennare, he’s spent over 15 years building solutions through businesses deeply rooted in addressing the pain points observed within the fitness sector, leading him to establish ventures that provide comprehensive solutions. As part of the multi-trillion-dollar health and fitness industry, Anthony advises companies on how to successfully enter and thrive in the world of wellness, using his firsthand experience and insights.

Innovating the Scope of Fitness and Wellness

Fitt Insider, a venture he co-founded, serves as a newsletter and podcast that delves into industry headlines, trends, and investment activities within the health, wellness, fitness, and human performance sectors. The platform functions as an all-encompassing flywheel for industry operators, offering media, talent, and recruiting services, job board visibility, and specialized services to unify the industry as health advocates. Meanwhile, Wellworthy, currently in its beta stage, addresses the challenge of accessibility in the fitness industry, moving away from a pay-to-play model. It aims to connect consumers with high-quality content and products, helping them discover brands and ideas that support their health and fitness goals through expert-driven guidance and inspiration. On the Wellworthy platform, consumers can discover something new, be it a new brand or product to try or even expert advice to help them work towards their well being goals.

Anthony’s goals with both Fitt Insider and Wellworthy revolve around providing high-quality content, highlighting excellent products, and helping people discover valuable resources in the health and wellness sector. He aims to shift the industry’s focus from being primarily profit-driven to genuinely promoting health and wellness. Vennare poses the following questions: 

“How are we helping others with resources instead of everything being pay-to-play? And “How do we reach consumers without affiliate revenue being the main driver?” Using creativity derived from his past as a word-of-mouth entrepreneur, he and his brother Joe Vennare set out to shift their role in the health and fitness industry towards one that focused on reach and access instead of profit first. By making it to as many people and businesses as possible, Anthony strives to spread the right quality information, products, services, and events, ensuring that both consumers and industry operators can access the best tools and knowledge to support their health and fitness goals.

Like many of us who started in the fitness industry with our personal stories and experience, Anthony’s reasons for being a part of the fitness ecosystem stem from his time as a youth who found outlets to be more active in sports. Later, when Anthony joined the Marines, his father was diagnosed with terminal cancer, which profoundly impacted his perspective on health. This experience exposed him to the importance of health and wellness beyond performance and the aesthetic, inspiring him to build businesses that address these critical areas. Motivated by a desire to expand his reasons for being well, Anthony aimed to reach people by promoting health, activity, and equitable access to wellness resources. His focus on word-of-mouth communication and community-building has been central to his approach, emphasizing the importance of creating a supportive and informed community dedicated to health and wellness.

A Personal Health Journey: The Turning Point that Inspired a New Direction

In 2020, Anthony faced his own daunting health challenge when a brain tumor was discovered just a week before the COVID-19 pandemic began. This diagnosis came amidst a known family history of similar health issues with other members who battled cancer. Over a 16-month journey of chemotherapy and radiation, Anthony embraced the belief that “if you don’t have your health, nothing else matters.” During this time, Fitt Insider served as a crucial distraction and a source of purpose with impending launches scheduled around the same time. By 2022, he was declared clear of the tumor, only for it to return in the summer of 2023. Armed with more information and better resources, Anthony navigated an even more harsh treatment regimen, losing an immense amount of body weight and struggling to eat. Still, he used all he learned to aid his recovery process. Despite his challenges, he remained committed to launching even more new products and staying active to represent his brand. By May 2024, the tumor was gone again. So, now Anthony’s primary goal is to maintain his health, with his training focused on walking and building strength, understanding the vital correlation between muscle mass and the effectiveness of cancer treatment.

Anthony’s journey informs all he does with his businesses, enabling him to educate others on what truly matters in life from clients to the general public. He emphasizes that health and well-being go beyond simply “working out and being active.” By sharing his story, he hopes to help people understand how to navigate life’s challenges and maintain their health through adversity. He moves day-to-day with the mantra of “Just be healthy, just be active,” which underscores a focus on movement and lifestyle rather than rigid routines and conventional reasons for focusing on fitness. Anthony’s approach serves as an encouragement to others to adapt to their circumstances and prioritize their overall well-being, highlighting the importance of resilience and sustainable health practices. This approach also informs what components are integrated into resources on both the Fitt Insider and Wellworthy respectfully.

Anthony envisions the future of the fitness and health industry shifting from a narrow focus on “health and fitness” to a broader emphasis on an “active lifestyle.” He believes that activities like pickleball, kayaking, and simply moving will become central to how people approach their well-being. This perspective encourages individuals to enjoy life while staying active so that their overall health is benefitted, rather than adhering to rigid fitness routines or notions of what healthy used to mean. Looking ahead, Fitt Insider has exciting plans that include partnering with health organizations to explore the big picture of how various factors impact health. By fostering these collaborations, Anthony aims to create a more holistic approach to wellness that integrates active living with overall health improvement.

Katrina is a global educator and Certified Wellness Specialist dedicated to bridging gaps through equitable access and collaborative coaching. With over 20 years of experience, she leads diverse teams, creates support groups, and mentors future leaders. Katrina specializes in Bias Unearthing, Neurodiversity Inclusion, and Intersectional Inclusion. She holds a Master of Science in Exercise Science and Health Promotion, certificates in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell and USF, and an Associate of Science in Graphic Design. Katrina’s mission is to foster unity through self-care and compassion, making healing a path to deeper purpose and inclusivity.