From Small Groups to Structured Experiments
PEERtrainer launched in 2005 as one of the first online health communities. 21 years and 250,000 members later, we’re still the place where real people share what actually happened.
PEERtrainer started in 2005 with a simple idea: most people know what they should do to get healthier, but the hard part is follow-through. So we built small groups of four people who logged their food, workouts, and goals daily - and held each other accountable.
It worked. Within months, the New York Times, USA TODAY, and Fast Company took notice. Forrester Research recognized PEERtrainer alongside WebMD and Yahoo Health. We won the Web 2.0 Award in Health two years running. PEOPLE magazine put one of our community leaders on their cover. Over a million people a month were coming to the site.
Along the way, we earned the trust of physicians, researchers, and bestselling authors who saw something different in what we were building - a community where real outcomes mattered more than marketing claims.
That core insight hasn't changed. But the tools have. Today's PEERtrainer adds structure to what we always believed: real experiments with real protocols, run-level data you can filter by people like you, and communities organized around identity - not just topics.
Key Milestones
2005
PEERtrainer launches as one of the first online health communities - small groups of four, daily logs, peer accountability
2005
Featured in the New York Times, USA TODAY, and Fast Company within months of launch
2006
Recognized alongside WebMD and Yahoo Health by Forrester Research. Featured in ABC News, PC Magazine, and Business Week
2007
Won the Web 2.0 Award in Health. Community leader Kate Smith featured on the cover of PEOPLE magazine. Wall Street Journal profiles the platform
2008
Second consecutive Web 2.0 Health Award. Site reaches over a million monthly visitors
2011
Named one of the best diet support tools by US News & World Report
2012
Featured in O Magazine as part of Dr. Oz's 28-Day Plan. Good Housekeeping profiles member success stories
2014
Partnered with bestselling health authors including Sara Gottfried, MD and Dr. Srini Pillay of Harvard Medical School
2024
Community surpasses 250,000 members
2025
Next-generation platform launches: structured experiments, run-level outcomes, and identity-based communities
Trusted by Leading Experts
Physicians, researchers, and bestselling authors who have endorsed PEERtrainer's approach to community-driven health outcomes.
“PEERtrainer has been successful in reducing obesity because it has utilized classic techniques in behavior modification. The work they are doing can extend people's lives.”
Dr. Benjamin Safirstein
Noted Pulmonologist & Co-Founder, Oxford Health Plans
“Jackie Wicks reveals a food plan that won't perpetuate the tiresome diet-stress-fail pattern. The Cheat System Diet gives you the template to lose weight without sending your hormones in a disastrous death spiral.”
Sara Gottfried, MD
New York Times Bestselling Author, The Hormone Cure
“It works in a real way with how human psychology works. I love that it relates closely to how the brain likes to function - without crazy effort and with significant short-term gains.”
Dr. Srini Pillay
Professor, Harvard Medical School
In the Press
Featured by the publications that matter most - from day one.
Why Now
The health landscape looks nothing like it did in 2005. Hundreds of thousands of products launch every year. Influencers promote whatever pays. AI-generated content floods every search result. It has never been harder to know what actually works.
But the core insight that built PEERtrainer hasn't changed: people trust outcomes from people like them more than any ad, review, or recommendation.
The original PEERtrainer proved that peer accountability changes behavior. The new PEERtrainer adds the structure to prove what works and for whom - real experiments with protocols, run-level outcomes, and results you can filter by age, goals, and lifestyle.
We're not starting from scratch. We're building on 21 years of trust.
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Be part of a 21-year movement that’s changing how health decisions are made.
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