Posted January 7, 2013

My Morning Cup of "What the Eff??" New Year’s Resolutions and Fitness Elitism

 

As with any morning, I wake up at around quarter to 5, stagger into the bathroom and let steaming hot water cascade down upon me whilst I soap and scrub various parts in a futile effort to wake up in a non-caffeinated manner. I make some breakfast and coffee of the coconut milk latte variety. From there I proceed to check through all the junk email (Viagra prescriptions through the interwebz? A long lost aunt from Ghana is leaving me six million Ghana dollars and only needs my banking information to send it to me? Updates from Lolcats.com?), The Facebook and the Twitters, and occasionally what’s going on in daily news outlets.

Now recently a lot of my social media feed has seemed to revolve around this concept of New Year’s Resolutions and how futile they are to make one, some saying they wish those resolutioners would just give up now and save the gym for the people who want to be there, and some even condemning those for trying but not knowing exactly what to do.

In some ways I can understand the frustration. When the gym is packed and there’s a line-up for the squat rack because 5 people are doing their back-throw biceps curls in there, it can be a little annoying. That being said, I can find a way to do other stuff that will produce as good of a workout and as specific of an outcome 9 times out of 10. Plus, I tend to not like crowds in the first place, so I get it. I understand the desire to have the place to ones’ self.

On the same token, these are people who are at least attempting to take control of their health and lead a more positive active lifestyle. If this was occurring in July they would be applauded. Do we simply decry them because of their choice of timing on the calendar or because of the concept of “herd mentality” that comes with setting New Years’ resolutions like so many other people?

Maybe the idea of a New Year’s resolution was the small tipping point to make someone decide to walk into a gym and go there on a regular basis. We can look at the research to show that most people who set a New Year’s resolution won’t be still continuing their determined activity after 6 weeks, but we could probably say that of anyone regardless of the time of the year. The busy-ness in January is a welcoming thought as people are taking control, compared to August, where the silence screams at you across the health club, hitting you like an avalanche, and the tumbleweeds are on full effect.

Those who show up to a gym in the New Year face a daunting task. First, a lot of people are in there, increasing the intimidation factor that may be a major deterrent for them to be there in the first place. Second, they may have limited exposure to working out int he past, meaning they are trying to pick it up by observing others, hoping, or sticking to what may seems safe and not a daunting task to understand, which is mainly cardio machines and machine-based resistance training.

Will walking on a treadmill for an hour be a “great workout” in the minds of most fitness professionals? Absolutely not. The kicker is that it’s a form of physical activity that may be more than what that person is used to, which will in turn increase their physical capability, reduce their risk of disease, improve their overall health and help kick-start any possible metabolic benefits for weight loss. Above all, the workout will show them that they can actually do this, that it isn’t difficult, and that they can continue to do it, which will encourage them to return again.

The best results for fitness of any kind come from consistency over time. Someone who wants to go to the gym or who doesn’t see it as scary or intimidating will be more likely to continuously go, meaning they have a greater exposure and capacity to improve their health than someone who is dreading going to the gym or who has a workout program they may not like, even if it’s providing them their desired results.

Isn’t that the goal? To get people active, and keep them active for life?

North America is in the grip of an obesity epidemic, one which is threatening to make the current generation the first one to out-live their children and threatening to spike health care costs into the stratosphere and potentially bankrupt everyone except the doctors who specialize in treating obesity. With more than 60% of the population (and in some locations closer to 85%) accumulating less than 30 minutes of physical activity in a day (physical activity classified as simply walking or doing anything of a greater intensity than that), we as an industry need to do a better job of getting people moving, and motivating them to continue to move on a consistent basis.

This is the market a lot of large multi-chain health clubs are trying to target as it’s a massive segment of the population that can be tapped into. In most communities the average penetration of a health club is less than 10%, meaning that less than 10% of the neighbourhood will be a member at a gym and will go there on a regular basis. This means 90% of the population isn’t going, and they want to try to make it easier for them to want to go.

As a result of this, a lot of clubs are adopting policies to soften the image of a gym from the age of Arnold and make it less intimidating so they can get more people moving. Some have banned deadlifts, the dropping of weights, loud grunting, barefoot training, and other fun restrictions. As a result of this, many people say they hate training at these facilities and call them inferior.

I’ll let you in on a little secret. I work at a commercial facility in a large multi-chain corporation of health clubs. My facility is an executive club in downtown Edmonton that caters to a lot of business people and executives. As a result, we have to keep the place looking good, functioning relatively efficiently, and try to respect the happiness of everyone who might walk in the door, ranging from the seasoned bodybuilder to the 60 year old lawyer/grandma who wants to lose some weight and help get her knee feeling better to chase her grandkids around. These are people who were scared silly merely walking through the front door, and seeing guys dropping weights and clapping chalk dust clouds that would make LeBron envious would send them right back out the front door again.

We have rules such as no chalk (for cleanliness and to ensure those with skin sensitivities don’t get effected), no dropping weights (so we aren’t scaring members or damaging equipment), no sandals or barefeet (for hygeine), and wiping down equipment after you use it. This isn’t to piss on any one person, but to give the best experience to everyone.

One company that has taken to catering towards everyone is Planet Fitness. They have a unique method of marketing to their potential members where they say they are a fully inclusive environment, but they just aren’t keen on bodybuilders, whom they like to call “Lunks.” Their tongue-in-cheek commercials feature their membership consultants touring stereotypical bodybuilders through their facilities, and then eventually showing them the door.

[youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOSeOieLh7s’]

Now while this may not seem like the best marketing ploy to attract bodybuilders and others of the sort, the big take home is they’re not trying to attract those individuals at all. They’re trying to attract the people who are scared of those people and want to work out in a facility that doesn’t have them. Remember less than 10% of a community will work out, meaning that 10% is composed of the bodybuilders, powerlifters, and others that are already working out on a regular basis. They’re the people who are already sold on fitness and don’t need to be sold any more. They want to capture the other 90% of the population who aren’t working out.

And it’s working.

Planet Fitness has a lower membership cost, offers fewer training devices and toys, yet boasts double and triple the membership of most large chain health clubs, which typically dwarf the number of enrolments a typical private studio will ever see, and substantially out-number any individual trainers clientele. This means they are affecting change on a large scale by catering to those who want what they offer.

John Romaniello made a fantastic counter-argument against all the Planet Fitness hate out there here:

[youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcH5UYa6WoM’]

Concepts like the “Lunk Alarm” for dropping weights or grunting too loudly, or pizza parties for members may send shockwaves of repulsion through most fitness industry veterans out there, but they’re still getting more people active than would otherwise choose to workout on their own by joining a gym where they didn’t feel comfortable.

I’ve tried for years to get my mom and dad to go to their local community center to begin doing some sort of workouts, whether it be swimming, biking, weightlifting, or anything like that. My mom isn’t keen on the idea, because she doesn’t want to feel like everyone is looking at her, a very common deterrent among people in commercial facilities. As a result they bought an elliptical (the horror!!!) and some bands to use in the basement. If there was a Planet Fitness in Trail, BC, I would have no problem recommending my own parents go there, as I am sure they would feel more comfortable there than at the local community center. Like Roman said in his video, “Planet Fitness doesn’t want (bodybuilders), they want your mom.”

Bodybuilders will train where they feel they will get the best workouts, which would be more bodybuilder-centric facilities. Someone looking to improve powerlifting would benefit from training in a powerlifting facility. Someone trying to be a competitive powerlifter in a commercial facility won’t get too far, nor would someone trying to train their deadlift at a Planet Fitness. The people who go there aren’t looking to compete in any meets or shows, but want to look good for their spouse and feel good about themselves at the same time. There’s no way a typical office worker would feel as comfortable walking into a hardcore powerlifting or strongman facility as they would walking into a stereotypical commercial facility, so they will invariably go to the commercial facility and do what they feel comfortable doing.

Globo Gyms set their rules based on the members they wish to acquire. It’s no different from golf clubs that have strict dress codes, stores that don’t allow you in without a shirt, womens’ only facilities that don’t accept male members, and me not wanting you to walk around in my living room with your shoes on. Their house, their rules so their guests feel comfortable. They cater to a niche market of the population that isn’t focused on elite fitness, but a place to workout with like-minded members and staff.

The solution to ending the obesity epidemic may involve a lot of different facets, but an easy one to glean is that if more people are moving and actively engaged in their health the greater the chances of success. I’m not alone in this thought, as evident by the reaction of a recent Facebook post about my thoughts on the influx of people working out in January:

 

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By taking on an air of superiority and elitism about how your workout is so much better than someone else’s can only help them to feel worse about themselves and not want to start in the first place. Fitness should be for everyone, regardless of how or where they choose to do it. By choosing to celebrate someone’s victories instead of berating them for trying, we can help elevate those members of society who need to support and help them succeed. By getting them off the couch and moving, no matter what manner used, it’s a success.

I would rather see 1000 people try poorly than see anyone fail successfully. – Tweet That

Let me know what you think. Drop a comment below

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