Gains App is the first fitness platform where competition is a service you can summon. Available on iOS and Android, the app turns workouts into live competitions with real stakes and performance based payouts in real time. Creators host challenges. Athletes compete. Top performers earn performance based payouts via Stripe in 1-2 minutes.
Three roles inside the app:
Creator / Judge — Host and judge fitness challenges. Earn 15% of every entry-fee pot as a guaranteed judge fee.
Competitor — Join challenges. Compete live. Win cash from the 65% prize pool.
Spectator — Watch live competitions. Chat with the community. Customize your profile.
Challenges run 1-10 minutes. Anyone can compete — no followers needed. The platform takes 20%; the remaining 80% stays with the creators and athletes doing the work. Launched April 28, 2026. Bootstrapped, no VC.
Hayes Kanyike is the founder and CEO of Gains App — the first fitness platform where competition is a service you can summon. Launched on iOS and Android on April 28, 2026 under the tagline "Bank on Fitness," Gains App turns workouts into live competitions with real stakes and performance based payouts in real time. Creators host and judge challenges to earn; athletes compete live and earn performance based payouts when they win — fastest payout clocked at 1-2 minutes.
Born in Kampala, Uganda, Kanyike came to the United States as a refugee at age 11. He earned his personal trainer certification in 2010 and founded Hayes4Fitness in 2014 — a Poughkeepsie, NY studio offering one-on-one personal training and holistic living resources. Membership included access to registered nutritionists, chiropractors, and mental wellness counseling by psychotherapists, guiding clients to improved health both inside and out. The studio earned its following by serving members focused on whole-self improvement rather than the overpriced amenities common in the fitness club industry.
Kanyike later partnered with a Brooklyn-based high-rise real estate developer to launch Culture Health Club — the exclusive provider of gym and wellness amenities in residential buildings across multiple New York boroughs. The fitness centers offered the latest in IoT (Internet of Things) technology, allowing members to track all aspects of their fitness journeys through real-time monitoring. As with Hayes4Fitness, all members had full access to a registered nutritionist, chiropractor, and psychotherapist as part of a holistic approach to managing their health. Both businesses closed during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Over the next four years, Kanyike spent more than $250,000 working with outsourced development shops trying to build Gains App. None delivered. After running out of funding, he taught himself to code from scratch and built and launched the platform on his own in under a year. The company is bootstrapped, with no external funding raised to date.
Earlier in his career, Kanyike was sought out as a fitness expert serving the U.S. Army Reserves, the New York State Department of Corrections, Marist College, the City of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County Tourism, and multiple New York school districts. He volunteered a two-year term on the City of Poughkeepsie Common Council's Waterfront Advisory Committee, contributing to local economic development. His volunteer work has also included Wappingers School, Brother to Brother, the U.S. Army Reserves, and the Dutchess County Chamber of Commerce.
Kanyike epitomizes what it means to be an entrepreneur, having forged his own path in business and life by leaning on a strong work ethic, proficiency in technology, and financial acumen. He continues to develop technologies that improve all aspects of the human condition — physical, mental, and emotional wellness.
Kanyike currently resides in Bergen County, New Jersey.
