The future of gym membership.
Discussion
Just watching BBC breakfast news and they ran a feature on a survey conducted by Men's Health that suggests 50% of readers polled will not be renewing their gym memberships.
Judging by the marketing I am seeing from gyms and PTs, I sense that there is some nervousness out there.
What are people's thoughts on this?
Seems likely it will be less after many people have realised they can do the same exercise without the gym or have invested in their own equipment.
There’s obviously loads of others though who prefer the gym or don’t want to buy the same equipment or like the social aspect or don’t have their own 25m or 50m pool at home etc.
I’ll likely keep my gym membership as my son does some classes there and I can nip in and swim or do some treadmill intervals whist he’s there, I prefer swimming outside in the sea or lakes and running outside though. It’s more a pubic/council type gym though so it’s pretty cheap.
I’ve got mates who like going to the gym and have friends there etc who can’t wait to get back in.
As ever It depends doesn’t it on why you go and what you do there and whether you still feel you need to use it.
There’s obviously loads of others though who prefer the gym or don’t want to buy the same equipment or like the social aspect or don’t have their own 25m or 50m pool at home etc.
I’ll likely keep my gym membership as my son does some classes there and I can nip in and swim or do some treadmill intervals whist he’s there, I prefer swimming outside in the sea or lakes and running outside though. It’s more a pubic/council type gym though so it’s pretty cheap.
I’ve got mates who like going to the gym and have friends there etc who can’t wait to get back in.
As ever It depends doesn’t it on why you go and what you do there and whether you still feel you need to use it.
I cancelled my gym membership when it reopened with restrictions such as having to pre book a time and can only work out for 1 hour.
When/if those restrictions can be removed so I can get there when I want and stay for as long as I want I may re join. It’s easy for me to exercise outside in summer, harder come winter.
When/if those restrictions can be removed so I can get there when I want and stay for as long as I want I may re join. It’s easy for me to exercise outside in summer, harder come winter.
I think this is probably true.
My wife is a PT so when covid started she started buying more home equipment so she could teach people in the garden/parks etc.
My son and daughter were regular gym goers and myself less regularly. As the lockdown went on we all started to buy various bits of kit and ended converting a room into a 'proper' gym set up.
Was fairly expensive to get the equipment (covid tax) but we now have a room we can use anytime and so even i now use it everyday as its so much more convenient than trekking to the gym.
None of us plan on going back to a 'normal' gym.
My wife is a PT so when covid started she started buying more home equipment so she could teach people in the garden/parks etc.
My son and daughter were regular gym goers and myself less regularly. As the lockdown went on we all started to buy various bits of kit and ended converting a room into a 'proper' gym set up.
Was fairly expensive to get the equipment (covid tax) but we now have a room we can use anytime and so even i now use it everyday as its so much more convenient than trekking to the gym.
None of us plan on going back to a 'normal' gym.
My gym didn't charge monthly subs when they were unable to open. Now they've reopened and installed necessary safety measures, limited numbers per area, etc., and we have to book time slots for each area of the gym,
E.g., 30m in cardio area, max 4 people. (There are >20 machines in there!)
45m on e-flex / circuit
30m slots in free weights, etc.
30m core
However, it works quite well, IMO.
It's easier for me to find suitable times as I've not been working, so I can go during the day, avoid early mornings, weekends and evenings for those that work.
I will start work again next month, but I can adjust my calendar to how I need it to work for me, so I don't need to go to the gym at 7am if 9am is quieter.
TLDR; I'll keep my gym membership going.
E.g., 30m in cardio area, max 4 people. (There are >20 machines in there!)
45m on e-flex / circuit
30m slots in free weights, etc.
30m core
However, it works quite well, IMO.
It's easier for me to find suitable times as I've not been working, so I can go during the day, avoid early mornings, weekends and evenings for those that work.
I will start work again next month, but I can adjust my calendar to how I need it to work for me, so I don't need to go to the gym at 7am if 9am is quieter.
TLDR; I'll keep my gym membership going.
RC1807 said:
My gym didn't charge monthly subs when they were unable to open. Now they've reopened and installed necessary safety measures, limited numbers per area, etc., and we have to book time slots for each area of the gym,
E.g., 30m in cardio area, max 4 people. (There are >20 machines in there!)
45m on e-flex / circuit
30m slots in free weights, etc.
30m core
However, it works quite well, IMO.
It's easier for me to find suitable times as I've not been working, so I can go during the day, avoid early mornings, weekends and evenings for those that work.
I will start work again next month, but I can adjust my calendar to how I need it to work for me, so I don't need to go to the gym at 7am if 9am is quieter.
TLDR; I'll keep my gym membership going.
Couldn't be doing with that at all. Looks like some good gold plating of rules etc.E.g., 30m in cardio area, max 4 people. (There are >20 machines in there!)
45m on e-flex / circuit
30m slots in free weights, etc.
30m core
However, it works quite well, IMO.
It's easier for me to find suitable times as I've not been working, so I can go during the day, avoid early mornings, weekends and evenings for those that work.
I will start work again next month, but I can adjust my calendar to how I need it to work for me, so I don't need to go to the gym at 7am if 9am is quieter.
TLDR; I'll keep my gym membership going.
Mine is 'book hour slot, book more than one if you want to stay longer'. Always plenty of slots based on last year etc.
Gym goers are now broadly used to the great outdoors and virtual gyms which explains why many won't be returning to physical gyms including myself especially as summer is beckoning.
Steam rooms pool jacuzzis and saunas now risky areas these were a major attraction of the whole leisure gym experience pre Covid.
Maybe a few will rejoin into the Auumn as the weather deteriorates but for now the great outdoors is the better healthier and cheaper obvious choice.
Steam rooms pool jacuzzis and saunas now risky areas these were a major attraction of the whole leisure gym experience pre Covid.
Maybe a few will rejoin into the Auumn as the weather deteriorates but for now the great outdoors is the better healthier and cheaper obvious choice.
I, obviously, had to cancel.
I had a mat at home, and some 5kg dumbells and the idea was to go for walks and use what I'd got for a while. I'd see what else I wanted - I thought it would go on for a while, but not this long, and all I bought was a step.
I now do a bit more than what I used to, without needing to wipe down machines, and disinfect them, or to work out next to someone who hasn't washed the gear for a week, or to have to wait for a particular machine. It's great. It was lucky, I think, that I had steadily warming weather for the start. Winter, what we had of it, was quite mild.
I keep looking at gym equipment online. I've converted part of the garage, but really don't need either.
I'll return to the centre, if only for the occasional swim, when things settle, but I can't see myself forking out the fees, for me and my wife, each month for no real advantage.
I had a mat at home, and some 5kg dumbells and the idea was to go for walks and use what I'd got for a while. I'd see what else I wanted - I thought it would go on for a while, but not this long, and all I bought was a step.
I now do a bit more than what I used to, without needing to wipe down machines, and disinfect them, or to work out next to someone who hasn't washed the gear for a week, or to have to wait for a particular machine. It's great. It was lucky, I think, that I had steadily warming weather for the start. Winter, what we had of it, was quite mild.
I keep looking at gym equipment online. I've converted part of the garage, but really don't need either.
I'll return to the centre, if only for the occasional swim, when things settle, but I can't see myself forking out the fees, for me and my wife, each month for no real advantage.
bad company said:
I cancelled my gym membership when it reopened with restrictions such as having to pre book a time and can only work out for 1 hour.
When/if those restrictions can be removed so I can get there when I want and stay for as long as I want I may re join. It’s easy for me to exercise outside in summer, harder come winter.
This is me.When/if those restrictions can be removed so I can get there when I want and stay for as long as I want I may re join. It’s easy for me to exercise outside in summer, harder come winter.
Gyms are another business that I'll continue to let suffer from Government Covid policies while these stupid restrictions are still in place.
The rules will never be removed if we continue to faciliate them and businesses/business groups have a more influential voice over government policy than the individual.
I think gyms are in a tough spot. All the people who only barely used the gym but kept their membership because they were 'going to start again next week' have had a year of not paying for it, then there are people who bought home gyms, and people whose routine has changed due to WFH etc.
I didn't go when mine was open last summer because I couldn't be bothered dealing with booking slots etc.
Having said that my old gym has just expanded into a huge new warehouse type space from it's town centre location.
I didn't go when mine was open last summer because I couldn't be bothered dealing with booking slots etc.
Having said that my old gym has just expanded into a huge new warehouse type space from it's town centre location.
I built a home gym during the lockdowns. I have a bench, 2 bars, a lifting platform, squat rack and 120kg of weight. I will keep my membership so I can go heavier than 120kg but the idea of walking into the gym and having to wait for a free rack pisses me off. I would be so annoyed that I didnt just stay home.
There will undoubtedly be a reset in the Gym sector. The passive members that paid their monthly subs but only attended twice a year have all gone. Many regulars have purchased home equipment and are enjoying outdoor activities, whilst others have made the transition to Zoom. There will be a much smaller hard core of regular gym goers.
Factor in the loss of earnings through the shutdowns and it is very likely that not all the current gyms are going to survive. Expect a major shake up over the next few months.
Factor in the loss of earnings through the shutdowns and it is very likely that not all the current gyms are going to survive. Expect a major shake up over the next few months.
I was back in this morning too - it was great to be back.
I don’t bleat on about the gym being key for mental health and all that... but there is something about lifting weights/working out in a gym with a good atmosphere that can’t be replicated at home, definitely lifts the mood and encourages a productive workout. Familiar faces, loud music and people bigger/faster/stronger than you to keep you going!
I don’t bleat on about the gym being key for mental health and all that... but there is something about lifting weights/working out in a gym with a good atmosphere that can’t be replicated at home, definitely lifts the mood and encourages a productive workout. Familiar faces, loud music and people bigger/faster/stronger than you to keep you going!
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