Has COVID-19 changed the way we exercise?

Since the closure of gyms and leisure facilities on March 21st, 2020, many have been finding alternative ways to exercise during quarantine. Although this may have had its ups and downs, those who have been consistent have found a new routine and are fully adjusted three months on.

Despite this, there are many eagerly awaiting the re-opening of gyms and facilities as the limited resources, lack of pool and spa facilities (for the normal people amongst us who don’t have these luxuries in our private homes) and social motivation continue to be absent from our lives. There was hope earlier in the month when it was suggested that gyms and facilities would be open on May 4th 2020, however, the government announced that they will remain closed for the foreseeable future…

Since lockdown, some gyms have designed remote classes and have tried to tailor their services to the current situation… the question now is, how will this affect the fitness world moving forward and how has this lockdown changed our relationship with exercise?

I know from my personal experience that my “quarantine fit” did not have the smoothest of starts. The first few weeks were chilled and filled with eating. You could say that exercise was off the cards with no intention to start! Slowly, slowly I started to do a few home exercises, but as someone who doesn’t like being confined to a small space and with the windows steaming up ridiculously, I wasn’t very consistent with it.

What else was I left to do? I had energy that I wanted to use but the home workouts weren’t enough for me (I said for ME before you come with vim). Do you know what I did? I started running. If you know me, you’ll know that I hate running lmaooo BUT I do like a challenge. Let’s be real… when your mother is a 2 x Olympic runner, the bar becomes ridiculously high to beat. Regardless, I actually started to like running (I just said that) and I still do to this day but the love/hate relationship is still here for now.

My running journey started with stops and starts, to running without water, to running consistently, to running with (lowkey) speed. I even did further lengths and the running buzz I got after was great! There has definitely been growth in my journey. I was pushing my body naturally and doing *real* exercise and it lasted a while… even in the rain. I won’t lie though, I did slow down with consistency because I can’t just do cardio. Phase two of quarantine hit and I got bored and tired from work (and a few injuries) but I’ll try to get back on it.

Back to square one and I was eating food and saying “I’ll do it later”. A small injury and some “self-care” (aka eating and chilling) weeks later, I decided to whip out the bike! A few friends had been cycling for weeks and I kept saying I'd join them but… I didn't. One day I decided to (finally) go. I got the tyres pumped and packed a lil picnic for one (I’m moist I know) and went for a small local ride. DISCLAIMER: I had not been on a ‘real’ bike since I was a kid…The spinners at the gym don’t count!

This time I was cycling on roads (and pavements because allow me) and I was a little anxious. After finally getting to my destination I had really underestimated cycling and how much it worked you out. Damn. I sat with my picnic in the park (something I’d never do as a car lover) and enjoyed my surroundings. It was peaceful. It was nice…

… and then my tyres deflated. Can you imagine!? The actual audacity because I had yet to get back and the rain was trying to come through. Luckily, I was in a good mood so the 30 min walk back wasn’t so bad but I didn’t let this short-lived start ruin it for me. I was invested. It turns out my tyre went bust because it was worn out from years of not being used (lol). The next day I was determined to ride and my friend was cycling to central so I said I was down and after fixing my tyre (again), we were off!

My first big cycle

Day 2, bag packed, snacks packed, and good vibes, we cycled into central and I discovered new roads I would never have access to by car. We hit most of the main landmarks and at one point I was racing a bus!

Lol no joke me and the driver caught eye contact and I was off lmao (these thick legs aren’t just for aesthetics). I had gone from fearing the road to cycling in one of the busiest places and at top speeds (I have a hybrid sport so I can get a decent amount of speed on that). I even realised that navigating was so much quicker and we often beat the cars because we could get through spaces easily (I mean durr, but you just wouldn’t think about it).

We rested in a beautiful park where we stopped off and was lucky to find a restaurant to charge our phones (considering this is a lockdown, it was a blessing). I realised that there are many people willing to help because at one point I was DESPERATE for the loo and a little restaurant owner let me go in even though it was locked off to the public (did someone say finesse queen?).

Anyways back to this… We waited for the phones to charge for maybe 40 mins and we had brought a little bottle of alcohol with us (don’t judge me). I probably shouldn’t admit that but it wasn’t a lot and lowkey made the ride better on the way back and spiced up the experience (literally - it was spiced rum). It rained but it was still fun with the wind slapping against my face and it felt like proper freedom. I can’t explain it but if you’ve been bike riding you’ll know exactly what I mean!

Honestly, I’m not sure if it was just the excitement of being a sick cyclist and pretending that I was professional, but I really started to appreciate cyclist and those on the road, where prior, I was that driver who’d mutter that they “needed to get off the road because they don’t pay tax”. Hhahahaha jealous bish!

Now I was the biker and I couldn’t imagine anything more fun. Walk? You’ll see me turn up on my bike thank-you very much! Oh, link up in Hyde park? Light work, I’ll buck you on my bike! (but real talk the government is taking the piss with the 7 day a week and extended congestion charge! It’s about time I found an alternative). Now I understood the hype and I’m not letting it go so quickly!

Up close and personal! After a long cycle this was a treat to see!

Day 2 completed and I was on a roll. I linked up with my guy friends who happen to cycle weekly in a group and we did a massive ride to RICHMOND PARK and back… mind you, I live in Norf Landan so it wasn’t a light ride and the boys really amped up the pace and intensity (DW, I was repping solid for the girls). In total, we managed to bike 87Km (33 miles) and I managed to burn over 3000 calories according to my heart rate monitor. Impressive I know!

The stats don’t lie! One day I’ll hit 100 km in a day!

I had unlocked the grey area between exercising and fun. Most times it was just a vibe and chilled passing by different sceneries… but you know… also exercising! I kept it up even without company and I don’t mind cycling alone. The days I do cycling alone, I bring some speakers and blast it like I’m in the 90’s standing outside someone’s yard. Yasss it’s an absolute vibe and I’m trying to get a regular group together and gather those who don’t usually exercise(so holla me if you’re down!).

I hear that Liz but back to the point!

Alright alright! Story time over let me stop waffling! What exactly have I learned from all of this? Well, for a start, I’ve really started to appreciate organic exercises outside and it’s made me fall back in love and appreciate London.

The gym is great but you can’t beat being outside and cycling for real real! I’ve realised that as hard as it may be to stay dedicated from your homes, there are loads and loads of people doing things remotely and ways you can stay motivated together through socials so with the right group of people you may not even realise how much you’ve missed out on gyms.

I’ve also saved over £100 a month by not going to the gym (gang gang), and although I know that’s not standard by any means, many will be saving on average £30-£50 a month and they might consider keeping it that way! Now, you don’t have to commute to the gym or stress about finding a locker since you can just log in online and go. I’m sure people could get used to a stress-free experience.

There’s no going back.

Personally, I think there will be hesitation going back. It’s not like there’s been a small break… we’re talking nearly one quarter of the year! By now people will know what they want and whether or not they want to go back or not.

With PT’s adjusting the way they work and operate and with many working from home for the foreseeable future, gyms and facilities will have to find a way to appeal to the new norm. With home prescriptions and classes running at a fraction of the cost, the privacy of your own home and quick accessibility is becoming more and more appealing!

PT’s such as bodybyciara has been killing it this quarantine as people sign up for monthly prescriptions. Many have even vouched that they have seen more progress than ever in quarantine and PT’s have proven that you don’t actually need half the equipment you used in the gym to achieve the ideal body… it seems that some are in no rush to return. I know of a few people who have no plan to renew their gym membership and why would they when they’re seeing better results, getting a trainer AND don’t have to be around weirdoes at the gym?

Investing in equipment

It’s not just the remote training that may sway people to not return, but due to the length of time out, there are people who invested in a home gym and equipment from the start. Are they supposed to just abandon it all when they have all the kit at home? Now that proper money has been spent, it’s easy to get the same work-out with less hassle and friends have started to work out together in groups as a result! It also means you don’t need to be at the same gym or even in the same area to work out together thanks to things like ZOOM, so why stop the routine if you’re encouraging each-other along the way? Surely this means there is less reason to revert to the sweaty hubs we fitness people like to call home.

Connecting with nature

No filter needed! Great cycle around Hyde park exploring the hidden gems and cycle routes!

As I outlined earlier, I’ve since had a better appreciation for nature and natural exercising. I skip more, run more and have picked up the bike. I do more body-weight exercising and I have weights at home and feel like this is better on my body (when I actually train that is). The only thing I feel like I’m missing is the spa and pool but actually, being out in the open (especially during good weather) is the fresh of breath air I didn’t realise I needed.

I’ve noticed that I drive less and walk for longer (which technically means more exercising, no?), I’m doing virtual calorie challenges all the time and I really like to cycle to the point that I’ll consider cycling instead of driving just because…

As someone who has been a member of a fitness club since I was 15, I no longer feel the same enthusiasm I had to walk into a gym. Don’t get it twisted, there are many things I miss about the gym, loads of machines I wish I had and so much more (including the social aspects of it) but I’ve also discovered the things around me that I can use to exercise and it’s not a bad alternative if I do say so myself.

No matter how trendy your gym is, you really can’t beat the authenticity of training in ‘the real world’ and you’d be surprised how inventive you can get when you don’t have access to weights *whispers* there’s weight all around you, you just have to think outside the box!

To conclude, who knows what will happen once gyms can re-open. My gym has an app and has been running free workouts and classes to those and made it available to non-members for a small small fee. It’s helped keep us loyal and I really rated it tbh but I have to admit I’ve not actually done a class (shh). Now they’ve opened the tennis courts and started socially distanced classes outside (at a portion of the membership fee should you re-activate) but again, for me it’s nothing I can’t do outside and I’m really only missing the spa and pool, which isn’t open.

I know there are loads of people (weight-lifters mainly) who are itching to go back and will be back as soon as possible to get back the weight they lost but for many, (especially women) these alternatives have got people reconsidering. This could encourage gyms to run out multiple options (e.g, my gym could continue to offer classes through the app at a small fee) and PT’s may continue to do classes on Zoom, Instagram etc.

Think about it, if people aren’t returning to work any time soon, this will affect their approach to exercising. Many people now train at lunchtime and want to relax in the evenings so class times may also have to be re-evaluated.

I wonder how everything will pan out and I’m interested to monitor the new approach to exercise. Have you decided what you’ll be doing? Let me know if you will be returning to the gym or if quarantine has switched up your mindset!

For now though, I’ll be taking each day as it comes and see what works for me!

Liz x

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