To Gym Or Not To Gym? That Is The Question

The gyms have been open for over a month now; have you embraced it with open arms or continued working out at home?

As with anything covid-related, there seems to be a lot of uncertainty around how to view the gym.

Is it safe? Should we go back, get stronger and healthier? Or should we avoid it and stay at home?

There’s no right or wrong answer but it is interesting to see how people have been reacting.

A recent survey announced that just 31% of gym members have returned to their gym since the lockdown ended, and 59% of the 5,055 surveyed have cancelled or are considering cancelling their memberships.

Interestingly, this goes alongside Boris’s emphasis on the importance of staying fit and healthy to help fight the virus.

Statistics from Run Repeat

So why is it that almost 70% of people haven’t returned to the gym?

Here are some of the reasons why some people have stayed at home...

  • Realisation that you can achieve just as much at home, without the commute and cost
  • Uncertainty around if the gym will be clean Lack of fresh and circulating air
  • Sharing weights with others
  • Concern that other members won’t socially distance properly

But of course, there’s something to be said for the energy and atmosphere which comes from going to the gym. You might feel encouraged by the others around you. Paying a monthly subscription might encourage you to use it more. Or you might like the variety of equipment & heavy weights which it can offer.

Is it worth it though?

Don’t forget- if you want to build out your own gym-at-home, we’ve got lots of premium equipment that you can use and have confidence that you won’t be sharing with anyone else.

We’ve got new dumbbells available (up to 20kg), as well as a bench press, multi-gym, suspension trainer, and more.

To check out the latest equipment, just click here

We’d love to hear from you - which route have you chosen?

Tips To Build Your Own Home Gym

For some people, heading to the gym is quite the chore. You have to bring an extra bag with your workout clothes. You have to spend extra time commuting if your gym is far from your home. The monthly membership can be mind-blowingly expensive. These are enough to put some people off of working out completely.

Pair this with the COVID-19 pandemic, and it would seem like all the odds are stacked against working out. Gyms are closed, people are stuck at home. We don’t know how gyms will figure out in this “new normal” that everyone is talking about.

However, we have to remember that keeping healthy and working out is important, especially during times like these.

Since we don’t know how long this pandemic is going to take, maybe we have to take matters into our own hands. Now is the perfect time to invest in exercise equipment to do your workouts at home. An at-home workout could be as effective as a workout in a studio, as long as you know what you’re doing and you have the right equipment for it.

Don’t think you have enough space? Don’t know where to start with even considering what to buy? Don’t worry, it’s easy – here are a few tips on building your home gym!

Set a dedicated space in your house

A good starting point is to figure out how much space you have in your house that you can dedicate as your “workout space”. This will, of course, influence what type of exercises you can do, and how much equipment you get. But the biggest benefit here is that you condition your mind for fitness, as you associate that space with working out.

Do you have a garage that you just use as a storage space? That’s perfect then – with a little bit of tidying up, this can actually be your "Home Gym". You can then invest in the big equipment, like squat racks, rowing machines, or even a treadmill. You’re set for a full life of fitness after that.

But, the truth is you don’t need a lot of space. You can make do with what you have.

When you think of “Home Gym”, you think of the fancy equipment and the vinyl flooring. While it’s great to have that, for some, that’s really just not an option. Here’s where the power of dedicating space in your house comes in. You don’t really need a “Home Gym” – all you need is the right mindset for fitness. And a little bit of space.

Maybe the spot in front of the TV would do, if you just move the coffee table a little bit. Maybe you have that extra space at the foot of your bed where you can lay out an exercise mat. It’s time to be creative!

Plan out what you can and want to do, with the space you have

A little planning goes a long way. If you dedicate a “workout space” in your house, you might even start to see your 'Home Gym' as your 'Gym At Home'. It's a minor shift in the mind which will help you stay focused for exercise and want to workout.

So now you've got your area sorted, it's time to think of exercises you can do in it.

Those who have had sessions in a cramped yoga studio would know that you don’t need that much space in order to break a sweat. Really, it’s just a matter of knowing what you can do to target the different muscle groups of your body.

Make sure that you cover all the basics – chest, legs, back, core, shoulder, biceps, triceps. Try yoga, or pilates, or maybe some high-intensity interval training (HIIT). There are a ton of resources online on routines that you can do. Just be sure that your form is okay so you don’t injure yourself!

Sometimes, bodyweight exercises are enough. You can actually do a lot of exercises with just an exercise mat. But, if you feel like you need that extra boost, it’s time to invest in a little equipment.