Streamlining Cult Class Booking with AWS Automation

Introduction to Automating Class Bookings on Cult

In today’s fast-paced world, efficiency and automation are essential. Fitness enthusiasts who frequent platforms like Cult (formerly known as CureFit) often find themselves competing for slots in popular fitness classes. Automating class bookings saves time and ensures you never miss out on your favorite sessions. This post will explore leveraging AWS services to automate class bookings on Cult, streamlining the process through API calls, Lambda functions, and EventBridge for scheduling.

Background and Motivation for Automation

Class booking on Cult requires manual effort—checking available slots, selecting the desired class, and completing the booking. While this process might not seem overwhelming for occasional users, it becomes cumbersome for frequent visitors. Automating this process provides several benefits:

Saves time by bypassing manual booking processes.
Ensures booking at peak times when slots fill up quickly.
Simplifies the process for users with busy schedules.

This project will tackle the above challenges by setting up an automated class booking system using AWS services.

Project Overview and Goals

This project aims to create an automated system that monitors class availability on Cult and books a class once a spot opens up. The automation will handle the following tasks:

Monitor user-selected class schedules and availability.
Book the class automatically when conditions are met.
Schedule tasks efficiently using AWS EventBridge.

Tools and Technologies Utilized

We’ll leverage a combination of AWS services and external APIs to bring this automation to life:

AWS Lambda: A serverless computing service executes the booking logic.
AWS EventBridge: To schedule and trigger the booking automation at specific times.
AWS API Gateway: To create an endpoint for the API calls.
Cult API: To retrieve class information and complete the booking.
Python is the programming language used to write the Lambda function for automation.

Prerequisites for API Calls

Before starting the implementation, ensure you have the following:

Cult Account and API Access: You’ll need to be a Cult member and have access to their API to retrieve class schedules and availability.
AWS Account: Ensure you have an AWS account with permission to use services like Lambda, API Gateway, and EventBridge.
Basic Python Knowledge: The implementation uses Python for scripting, so familiarity with API requests and response handling is essential.

Implementation Details

Here’s a breakdown of the implementation process:

Step 1: Fetching Class Availability

Using the Cult API, retrieve class schedules and check for available slots at the user’s preferred time. This involves sending API requests and parsing responses to determine whether the desired class is available.

import requests

def get_class_schedule():

url = “https://api.cult.fit/v2/classes”

headers = {“Authorization”: “Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN”}

response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)

classes = response.json()

return classes

Step 2: Booking the Class

Once availability is confirmed, initiate a booking request using Cult’s API.

def book_class(class_id):

url = f”https://api.cult.fit/v2/classes/{class_id}/book”

headers = {“Authorization”: “Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN”}

response = requests.post(url, headers=headers)

if response.status_code == 200:

print(“Class booked successfully!”)

else:

print(“Booking failed. Try again later.”)

Setting Up AWS Lambda Function

AWS Lambda will be the backbone of the automation process, running the Python script to check availability and book classes.

Create a Lambda Function: Go to the AWS Lambda console and create a new function.
Upload Python Code: Copy and paste the Python script to check availability and booking into the Lambda function.
Environment Variables: Store sensitive information like API tokens as environment variables in the Lambda function.

import os

import requests

def lambda_handler(event, context):

access_token = os.environ[‘ACCESS_TOKEN’]

# Logic for fetching and booking the class

Automating the Booking Process with AWS EventBridge

AWS EventBridge allows you to schedule the Lambda function to run regularly, ensuring that class availability is checked automatically. You can configure EventBridge to trigger the Lambda function every hour, day, or even at specific times based on your preference.

Create an EventBridge Rule: In the AWS console, create a new rule in EventBridge.
Set a Schedule: Choose a cron expression to determine when the Lambda function should be triggered.
Link the Lambda Function: Set the target of the EventBridge rule to your Lambda function.

For example, to trigger the function every day at 6:00 AM:

cron(0 6 * * ? *)

Conclusion and Future Enhancements

Automating the class booking process on Cult using AWS services provides a seamless and time-saving solution for regular fitness enthusiasts. With AWS Lambda and EventBridge, the system runs autonomously, checking for available slots and booking classes without user intervention.

Future enhancements could include:

Adding Notifications: Send an email or SMS when a class is successfully booked.
Advanced Error Handling: Implement better error detection and retries in case of API failures.
User Preferences: Allow users to customize their preferred time slots and class types via a simple web interface.

By implementing this solution, you’ll streamline your fitness routine and showcase the power of automation using AWS.