How the pandemic put an end to one size fits all training.
Your clients aren't going to want what used to be "normal". They’re going to expect new kinds of spaces, coaches, and training post-pandemic.
Pre-pandemic, people would file into big box gyms by the thousands—hoping to craft the perfect summer body in the always-too-short 6 months between January and June.
Now, they actually expect a lot from their workout spaces. They want to focus on mental health–not just looking good. Finally, they want trainers that serve their unique needs.
Are you going to meet them where they’re going?
The home-factor.
For a lot of people, the gym is a trade-off. They exchange peering eyes and a general feeling of discomfort, for the opportunity to train. Home workouts have gotten rid of that trade-off. They’ve loved at-home workouts so much that, despite 37% of respondents planning to work out more post-COVID, 20% of fitness club members don’t plan to come back to the gym.
People have had the experience of working out in total (mental and physical) comfort—they’re not going to go back.
On the other hand, market trends are showing that people are still willing to spend on fitness. The answer isn’t giving up on the gym—it’s fixing the gym so you can harness an expanded interest in getting (and staying) healthy.
Our answer? More tailored gym experiences. We’re a small gym—meaning that when you step into the space, it’s truly yours and your customers. We think it’s time to create more market-specific fitness practices that let people work out amongst people that make them feel comfortable, in a space that’s just for them.
Let’s invest in training everyone in a way that serves them. Consumers don’t want a one size fits all approach—so don’t put on that big-box gym t-shirt and try to push that on them.
The movement to mindfulness.
Last July, 60% of Men said that their top reason for working out was to sustain their mental health. And, of the 37% of people that were planning to work out more post-COVID, 50% said that it was because of a “renewed appreciation for their health”.
The era of the beach-bod training plan is (for some) coming to an end. Whether it’s the new dynamics of work, the stress of the pandemic, or simply the reflection that people have done with so much time alone—it’s clear that people are thinking about their bodies in a more holistic way.
This is showing up meaningfully in the market, to the point that services like Equinox are seeing ~25% week-over-week growth in demand for meditation classes.
What can trainers do about this? Well, firstly, reflect on our first point and invest in spaces that put your clients’ minds at ease. Secondly, it’s time for us to approach personal training with a focus on meeting unique customer needs. Integrate mindfulness and strength training if necessary. Get outside occasionally if that’s what your customer wants.
Customers becoming more holistic in their mindset means that trainers need more flexibility and diversity in their approach.
Online, there’s an option just for me.
The thing about pre-pandemic training is that it was if we’re being honest, a bit corporate. A bit uniform. In fact, we all had to wear uniforms. The era of big-box gyms handing an approach to every one of their trainers is coming to an end.
Instead, training is following in the footsteps of most cultural and service industries: we’re beginning to more heavily center customer choice.
The pandemic enabled this big time. There were thousands of options for our clients to choose from online over the last 18 months. They didn’t have to sacrifice. If they wanted a trainer with their body type, they could find that person. If they wanted a trainer that mixed yoga with skull-crushers, they could find it.
We doubt that customers are going to be willing to walk back on the choice that the online training marketplace offered them. More importantly, they’re not going to be willing to make sacrifices around personalization that almost no other industry is asking them to make.
The emergence of personal(ized) training is about to become a market phenomenon—so get ahead of it. Build something market-specific, identity specific, and honest.
The future of training is entrepreneurship in service of specific markets.
So, as you decide in this crucial (almost) post-COVID moment how to move back into the training landscape—you’ve got to make a bit of a decision.
Do you want to go back to how it was? Do you want to go back to being an employee? To put the same big box fitness t-shirt on as everybody else, and champion a pre-approved approach?
Or do you want to move forward? Be independent? Print your own t-shirts, and champion an approach that you know will actually work well for your market?
Customers want you to go with the second option. So does Motus. If you want a home base to get started—full of affordable space, support, and like-minded people—get in touch.