24 Time March 15/March 22, 2021
$52
Average monthly
price for a health-
club membership in
the U.S. in 2019$5.80
Average per-visit
cost to a U.S.
fitness facility
in 20198. 2
million
Number of
Americans who
paid more than
$100 a month for a
health club in 2019Like many oThers in The U.s., ron GUmUcio and his
wife stopped going to the gym in 2020 as a precaution against
COVID-19. To fill the void, Gumucio’s wife eventually pur-
chased a stationary bike, joining the club of people who
have splurged on pricey at-home exercise equipment. But
Gumucio, 44, has gone in a different direction. Until he feels
safe returning to the gym, he’s sticking to distinctly low-tech
forms of fitness. He takes a daily walk around his New Jersey
neighborhood. He jogs. He
bought cheap resistance
bands to sneak in a little
strength training. Occasion-
ally he uses the jungle gym
in his local park to do pull-
ups. His routine is nothing
fancy, he says, but “it keeps
my sanity.”
During the pandemic, lots
of people have rediscovered
the sanity- (and cash-)saving
joy of back-to-basics fitness.
The Peloton effect is impos-
sible to deny—over 1 million
people worldwide now pay
to stream in-home classes for
the company’s four-figure
treadmills and stationary
bikes—but at the same time,
many people are returning
to the simple pleasures of low-cost, low-equipment forms of
physical activity. Body-weight training (i.e., training with min-
imal or no equipment) and outdoor activities were two of the
five top fitness trends for 2021, according to the American Col-
lege of Sports Medicine. YouTube has become America’s free
gym, likely contributing to many retailers’ selling out of equip-
ment like dumbbells and yoga mats during the pandemic. The
running app Runkeeper also saw a 252% increase in global reg-
istrations last spring.
And many people are realizing they don’t miss the
eucalyptus- scented towels and designer toiletries they used to
pay for at the gym. In a recent survey by consumer- spending
experts the New Consumer and Coefficient Capital, 76% of
respondents said they’ve tried working out at home during
the pandemic, and 66% said they preferred it to the gym. In a
July 2020 poll by financial- services firm TD Ameritrade, 59%
of Americans said they don’t plan to renew their gym member-
ships postpandemic, with 56% citing the appeal of more af-
fordable ways to stay active. Many gyms are scrambling to add
cheaper online options to retain members.
The U.S. health-club industry took in $35 billion in 2019.
Pre pandemic, many fitness fans didn’t bat an eye at spending
EXERCISE
Free weights
The pandemic has spurred a
return to low-cost fitness activities
By Jamie Ducharme
$200-plus a month on a luxury gym
membership or more than $30 for a
single class at a boutique studio. Plenty
of people will return to fitness centers
of all cost levels after the pandemic.
But it’s significant that as the wellness
industry—long about status as much as
about health—is idled by lockdowns,
many are realizing they don’t miss fancy
gyms much at all.Nor do most people need them,
research suggests. Gyms have some obvi-
ous benefits: they’re dedicated to exer-
cise, stocked with a variety of equipment
and can promote valuable
social interaction. But
numerous studies have
shown that virtually any
amount of physical activ-
ity, done at any intensity,
can help prevent chronic
disease, boost longev-
ity and improve mental
health. (A stroll around
the block or a 15-minute
YouTube yoga class really
does make a difference.)
Outdoor physical activ-
ity seems to be especially
good for both the mind
and the body.
Cedric Bryant, presi-
dent and chief science
officer at the nonprofit
American Council on Ex-
ercise, thinks the changes to the wellness
industry will outlast the pandemic. Many
of the 20% of Americans who were gym-
goers before the pandemic will likely re-
turn, he says. But the renaissance of sim-
pler fitness approaches—the booming
popularity of timeless activities like run-
ning, biking, yoga and hiking, as well as
online programs that are far cheaper than
their IRL counterparts—may usher in an
era of increased affordability and accessi-
bility in the wellness world, like the gym
that cost Gumucio just $25 a month.
“People are going to return to the
gym, but people will also look to mix
in some of the old-school experi-
ences,” Bryant predicts. “It won’t be so
compartmentalized—[it’ll feel more
like] ‘I’m just going out and doing what
is naturally available to me.’ ” When the
world reopens, we may find that our gym
can be anywhere. •TheBrief Health