Row Your Way To Health And Fitness
Aquil Abdullah, an employee of the Hydrow rowing fitness company, demonstrates a rowing machine at … [+] the CES technology show in Las Vegas on January 7, 2022. – Interactive comment sections and virtual reality headsets: internet-connected fitness gear and services have boomed during the pandemic as at-home athletes seek a proxy for gym life. While home workouts long predate the coronavirus, they have taken on a social aspect that looks set to become the standard in a world reshaped by the pandemic. (Photo by Joshua MELVIN / AFP) (Photo by JOSHUA MELVIN/AFP via Getty Images)
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It’s a new year—a fresh start for the new you. It’s the time of year when a large percentage of people press the mental “reset” button and commit to better health and fitness. They start diets, join a local health or fitness center, take up CrossFit or kickboxing, or purchase fitness equipment to exercise in the privacy of their own home.
There is typically a spike in new memberships at gyms in January, but half of the people who join a gym cancel their memberships within 6 months. There are a variety of reasons one might cancel a gym membership, but one of the biggest is that it is challenging to find both the time and motivation to actually visit the gym. It is much easier to have the discipline—or at least to overcome apathy or laziness—when you have the convenience of exercising at home.
Fitness and Technology
Increasingly, people want the privacy and convenience of working out at home, but they still want the coaching and connection they would get going to a fitness center in-person. Peloton tapped into this cross-section, merging fitness with technology to stream live, interactive sessions across the internet, and creating a sense of community and friendly competitiveness with a gamifying element.
Peloton built its brand on its exercise bike—which makes perfect sense if you are familiar with the word “peloton.” It is the term used to describe the main pack or group of cyclists in a race. Other fitness brands emerged or jumped on the bandwagon to expand the range of options. Now you can…
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