It’s a familiar sight for gym-goers and gym owners. While heavy dumbbells are in high demand, many elliptical machines are empty.
Fitness industry experts say the combination of changing habits due to the pandemic and growing awareness of the health benefits of strength training has seen a surge in popularity in recent years.
Bente Smart, director of education at Crunch Fitness, said the global gym chain is shuffling spaces to better serve the interests of its members.
“We have definitely refurbished and increased functional spaces, including more lawn areas for battle ropes, medicine balls, TRX and suspension trainers, and less cardio equipment to accommodate our growing resistance training needs,” Smart said.
Strength training was paramount with ClassPass, which offers members a variety of fitness classes to choose from. Last year’s most popular type of training, bookings for these classes increased 94% year-on-year. According to the company, more than 60% of his ClassPass users now incorporate strength training into their routine.
Experts have put forward various hypotheses as to why people have changed their behavior. exercise therapy. Brad Roy, editor-in-chief of the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health and Fitness Journal, said the home workouts people did during the pandemic may have had an impact, as functional and resistance band exercises can easily be done outside the gym. Many people rely on online fitness videos during the pandemic, which may have made strength training more accessible.
Classpass wellness specialist Lauren McAllister suggested that in the past, misinformation about weight training has led women to believe they would have the physique of a bodybuilder.
But recently she said: She said, “More and more we’re picking ourselves up and saying, ‘No, I want to be strong.'” I want to be competent. I want to be able to experience all the benefits of a strength training program. “
“And I think social media is a really great way to see women do that and give other women permission to say, ‘Oh, let’s do that.'”
McAllister, co-owner of the fitness studio, said its classes have shifted to focus on weight-bearing movements in response to customer requests. She said strength training may appeal to some as a way to chill out in the gym after the pandemic’s hardships.
“We’ve all been really stressed out for a long time,” McAllister said. “So we’re trying to take things a little slower and focus more on form and focus on things like basic movement patterns. That’s why I think people are leaning towards it.”
according to Annual survey published in the journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, Strength training with free weights ranks as the second most popular fitness trend in 2023, behind wearable fitness technology. Bodyweight training took third place, but the two top-ranked forms in 2021 and 2022 — online training and home exercise gyms — dropped to 21st and 13th respectively.
Strength training is characterized by muscle contraction, in contrast to aerobic and strength training. cardiovascular training The goal is to get your heart rate up. Weightlifting, resistance band work, Pilates, and yoga are all examples.
Numerous studies have shown that strength training can provide certain health benefits.
“There are a number of different positive health benefits associated with strength-building activities and weightlifting,” said Dakchul Lee, professor of kinesiology at Iowa State University. The list includes diabetes prevention, bone health, and improving functional capacity in the elderly.
a A study of over 400,000 people A paper published last year found that people who regularly did strength training alongside cardio had a lower risk of death than those who did only cardio.and Analysis of 16 previous studies It suggests that regular strength training is associated with a 10% to 17% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, lung cancer, and overall mortality.
Dr. Jacob Erickson, a sports medicine physician at the Mayo Clinic, said resistance training is a smart option for people trying to lose weight because it raises your metabolic rate and encourages your body to keep burning calories for up to three days afterwards.
“Walking, jogging, and using the treadmill make everyday things easier, like walking upstairs, taking the dog for a walk, or chasing the kids, while resistance training actually builds muscle,” Erickson says. “Generally, as we age, we lose strength and muscle mass more quickly in the lower body, making strength training even more important.”
