- After spending much of lockdown exercising alone at home, I wanted to approach things differently.
- I joined a gym and enrolled in a fitness class. Again and again I was the only man in the room.
- I wasn’t sure if it was right for me at first, but it’s the most challenging workout I’ve ever done.
When you reach your late 40s, it becomes difficult to maintain your figure and health. So when a new gym opened in my neighborhood late last year with a hugely discounted opening deal, I decided to become a member.
I have attended several gyms in my life, but it was very boring to work out on my own all the time and that was affecting my motivation. So I decided to try something new. I decided to join a group fitness class.
In college, I stuck with weightlifting, only to discover it wasn’t fun
My college gym was a testosterone festival. It was full of young men showing off and showing off their huge muscles. I was certainly no Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, but I lifted weights every day to fit the bench press bros.
The exercises I was doing helped develop some muscles on my previously small frame, but it wasn’t a fun experience for me and I stopped going to the gym as soon as I graduated college.
My wallet had trained over the years, but my body hadn’t
After college, I seemed to follow the same cycle every few years.
After buying a 12-month gym membership and lifting weights for a few months, I became apathetic and stopped going. This is very common. In fact, that’s what Jim depends on. A study by the Global Health and Fitness Association found that only about 18% of people with a gym membership attend the gym consistently.
Having an unused gym membership is like throwing money down the drain and it’s a cycle I’ve decided to break. I knew there was
Missed Social Interaction After Early Pandemic Lockdown, Decided To Try New Fitness Strategies
I live in Melbourne, Australia, and reluctantly earned the title of the longest lockdown in the world early in the pandemic. To be exact he is 262 days. This meant I spent a lot of time at home, much of it working out on my own at home. came back. That was attending a group fitness class.
During the prolonged lockdown, I missed seeing other people, so I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone to get some physical exercise and social interaction. I figured working out with a group of like-minded people would be more motivating.
I almost left my first class because I felt like a fish out of water
The first class I signed up for was called “Body Sculpting” and I wasn’t sure what to expect.
I walked into the fitness studio and walked almost straight back in. Salsa music was playing and the room was full of women with expensive yoga mats wearing trendy lululemon activewear. I, on the other hand, was wearing a baggy old T-girlfriend shirt and shorts and had no mat, let alone a water bottle. I felt like everyone was staring at me, like I was an unwelcome stranger.
My instructor, Milan, introduced himself and told me to borrow a gym mat from reception. Loaner in hand, I walked to the corner of the room, trying to make myself as little as possible. As I moved around, the whole room moved in unison, with a beat or two behind each step.
Jurberg and friends after taking a group fitness class at the gym.
Courtesy Ash Jarberg
I regretted my decision to stay because I had two left legs and lacked coordination. Dancing isn’t a skill to list on the social version of your resume, but with the encouragement of Milan and others in her class, she continued.
Attending group fitness classes made me feel less masculine, and I knew I needed to challenge that mindset.
After 45 minutes, I was exhausted and most of my body ached. This class is cardio, part weight training, and he’s one of the most challenging workouts I’ve ever done. However, it was awkward to have a man alone. Did my choice of this style of workout somehow make me less masculine? If not, why were there no other men in the class?
I felt great after the first class, but I was still unsure if it was right for me. I still have visions of spandex-clad instructors like the incomparable Jane Fonda and Richard Simmons leading a group of women in sync with the music of Olivia Newton-John, inspiring people to move their bodies. I’m here.
That may be why nearly 80% of the 1,500 group fitness participants Statista surveyed between 2016 and 2018 were women. If you do a Google image search for “group exercise,” you’ll find pictures of women’s groups one after another. These images remain, but I couldn’t ignore the fact that I really enjoyed my time on “Body Sculpt.”
You can turn off the music – there are a wide variety of group fitness classes
As I walked out, Milan asked if I would come back. I looked a little unsure, so he suggested I try a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) class later that week. As an incentive he told me no music. I was determined to break my old habits, so I agreed.
Two days later, as Milan said, there was no dancing in class. However, many of the participants were also in my first class and welcomed me warmly. With a shy smile on my face, we warmed up together.
The HIIT class was an hour long and incredibly exhausting. But Milan provided encouragement and good structure, ensuring I worked on all parts of my body while maintaining form, and I was stronger in 60 minutes. I never remember working so hard when I was a bench press buddy!
A rewarding workout that improved my mindset about exercise and made me feel part of a team
Over the next few weeks, I added more and more group fitness classes to my exercise schedule. Some involved music, others were on the gym floor. In all of them I was still the only man present.
I always thought working alone was boring. It’s easy to find excuses to sleep or watch Netflix instead of going to the gym alone. But having group classes in my schedule gives me motivation and anticipation. And thanks to the variety of group classes, it’s never as boring as it was when I was lifting weights. Additional motivations I had have psychological reasons. Studies show that exercising with others can provide intrinsic motivation.
As I attended several weeks of classes, I began to get used to the routines, the choreography, and the team mentality. I learned that Now that he’s almost a year old, he’s looking forward to seeing his members of his fellow group. There is no competition focused on lifting or doing more reps, just a supportive environment. I feel like I have a group of personal trainers pushing me.
I never thought I would be the kind of person who would look forward to going to the gym six days a week, but group classes made me that way. Live classes are the most popular gym activity for him, according to the 2021 Global Fitness Report, and it’s a shame so many men miss this one.
I may be the only guy in a group fitness class, but it’s better than working out alone or not at all. I am healthier and more motivated than ever before. Now all that’s left is to practice the dance steps.
