Your camera never leaves the dojo
Pointing a camera at yourself on the floor is a big ask. This page is the specific, checkable answer to what happens to those frames. Not a reassurance, a description.
- Frames are analysed in real time on the phone, then dropped
- Nothing is recorded to disk, so there is no video file to leak
- Only the rep count and session metadata are submitted
- Deny camera permission and the app still works
The short answer
Workout Samurai processes every camera frame on your device and then discards it. No video, still image or individual frame is transmitted, uploaded to any server, or stored anywhere. The only thing that leaves your phone from a training session is the resulting rep count and basic session metadata, which the server validates so leaderboard rank stays earned.
What happens to a camera frame, step by step
When you start a set, the app opens the camera and runs a pose-detection model over the live feed on your phone. Each frame is analysed to locate your body's joints, those coordinates feed the rep counter, and the frame itself is released. It is never written to storage, never queued for upload, and never held longer than the moment it takes to process.
The frame arrives from the camera
It exists in memory, on your device, exactly as it would for any camera app.
A pose model reads joint positions from it
Apple's Vision framework on iOS, ML Kit on Android. Both run locally on the phone's own hardware. No network call is involved.
The counter uses the coordinates, not the picture
From that point onward the app is working with numbers, joint positions and confidences, not with an image.
The frame is discarded
It is not saved to your photo library, not cached, not written to a temporary file, and not uploaded. There is no video artefact of your session anywhere.
Only the count is submitted
At the end of the set, the number of verified reps and session metadata go to the server so progression and ranking can be recorded and checked.
What is submitted, precisely
| Data | Processed on device | Leaves your phone |
|---|---|---|
| Camera video stream | Yes | No |
| Individual camera frames | Yes | No |
| Still images of you | Not created at all | No |
| Joint / pose coordinates | Yes | No |
| Rep count for the set | Yes | Yes |
| Session metadata (duration, validity signals) | Yes | Yes |
The reason session metadata is submitted alongside the count is anti-cheat. A number with no context cannot be validated, so the server needs enough information to reject physically impossible input such as 200 reps in twelve seconds, and to flag odd sessions for review. That is what makes the ranked leaderboard worth anything, and it is deliberately the *least* information that makes validation possible.
Why on-device is a stronger promise than a policy
Plenty of apps promise not to misuse your video. That promise depends entirely on the company keeping it, on their vendors keeping it, and on nobody breaching the bucket it is sitting in. On-device processing is a different class of assurance: there is no bucket. If frames are never transmitted, there is no server-side copy to leak, subpoena, or accidentally leave publicly readable.
You can refuse the camera entirely
Camera access is optional. If you decline the permission, or revoke it later in your device settings, Workout Samurai keeps working. You claim your reps manually instead of having them counted automatically. You give up the hands-free convenience, not the dojo, not your samurai title, and not your clan.
That fallback exists because the alternative is coercive. An app that becomes useless without a camera permission is not really asking.
What the app does collect
Being precise about the camera means being equally precise about everything else. Workout Samurai stores the data the game genuinely needs: your display name and cosmetics, coins and gems, level and season reps, current stage, clan membership, push-up records, and, only if you choose to enter them, age, sex and bodyweight. It uses product analytics to understand how the app is used.
The privacy policy is the authoritative account, including the third-party processors involved, retention periods, and how to exercise your access, correction, portability and deletion rights. If something on this page and something in that policy ever disagree, the policy governs, and we would want to know, at the address on the support page.
The same promise in the live app
None of this is a plan. Workout Samurai: Push-Ups is out on iOS and Android, and the counter described here is the one that ships. You can check the central claim yourself in about a minute: turn the network off, open the push-up game, and count a set. It counts, because the model is on the phone.
The push-up counter app page covers what the counting feels like in practice, and how to count push-ups with your phone camera covers the setup that makes it accurate. If you would rather start with the app itself, it is free to download and free to play: get it here.
Frequently asked questions
Does the push-up counter app record video of me?
No. Workout Samurai never records video. Camera frames are analysed in memory on your device to count reps and are then discarded. No video file is created, nothing is written to your photo library, and nothing is uploaded. The only thing submitted from a session is the rep count and session metadata.
Is my workout video sent to a server?
No camera data of any kind is sent to a server. Pose detection runs entirely on your phone using the operating system's own on-device vision framework. The network is used to submit the resulting rep count for validation and to sync your progress, never to transmit imagery.
Can anyone see my push-up video?
There is no video to see. Because frames are processed and discarded on the device, no recording of your session exists: not on your phone, not on our servers, and not with any third party. Other players see your display name, samurai title and verified rep totals, and nothing else.
What does on-device processing actually mean?
It means the machine-learning model that finds your body's joints runs on your phone's own hardware rather than on a remote server. The camera data never leaves the device to be analysed, so there is no upload step in which imagery could be intercepted, stored or repurposed.
Can I use the app without giving camera permission?
Yes. If you decline or later revoke camera access, Workout Samurai still works. You claim your reps manually rather than having them counted automatically. You lose automatic counting, not access to the dojo campaign, your samurai title, your clan or the leaderboard.
Does the push-up counter work with the internet off?
Counting works completely offline, because the pose model and rep logic are local. A ranked session does require a connection, since the server issues and verifies it. That is the anti-cheat requirement, not a counting one.
What data does the app actually send about my workout?
The number of verified reps in the set, plus session metadata such as duration and validity signals that let the server reject physically impossible input. No imagery, no pose coordinates, and no raw sensor stream. The privacy policy lists every category in full.
Is a camera-based fitness app safe for teenagers?
The specific risk people have in mind, footage of a minor being uploaded or stored, does not exist here, because no footage is created or transmitted at all. Workout Samurai is intended for a general audience of teens and adults, with a minimum age of 13 or higher where local law requires it.
Where can I read exactly what data the app handles?
In the privacy policy, which is the authoritative and current account of every category of data collected, the processors involved, and how to exercise your rights. Please read it there rather than relying on a summary on a marketing page. What this page can add is that no camera imagery is part of any of it.
How do I delete my account and data?
You can request deletion in the app or by emailing support. Deleting your account removes or anonymises your profile, gameplay and progression data. Because camera frames are never stored, there is no imagery to delete. There never was any.
Is the private push-up counter app free?
Yes. Workout Samurai is free to download and free to play on iOS and Android, and on-device counting is not a paid feature. Dojo Premium is an optional subscription that lets you train without waiting, adds weekly rest insurance and allows back-to-back clan boss raids. It changes nothing about what the camera does or what leaves your phone.