Three reasons why you need to fit the gym into your fitness schedule

Abhishek Shah
Aug 31, 2018 · 4 min read

The 10sec version: Fitness classes are great. Gyms are seen as boring and intimidating. Gym time is frankly, underrated. Gym workouts are crucial to long-term health and vitality. I must ______________ [fill in the conclusion]


It’s been a few years now that fitness trends (in London especially) have pivoted away from the gym floor and (mainly, but not entirely) towards fitness classes which sell convenience, variety, quick results and of course, fun.

These outcomes are gold to those juggling a busy lifestyle: from the corporate high flier working long hours in the office, the business traveller taking 8 flights, 16 hotel nights and over 40 taxi rides a month, to the young mom looking to get the most impact from a 45 minute window.

We have all been spectators and contributors of the rise of the fitness class. You know what I’m talking about: circuits, HIIT, CrossFit, barre, yoga, spinning and so on. The hot themes for 2018 were predicted to be among others, trampolining, yoga-wheeling, LIIT and boxing.

Slight digression: fitness class evolution is important and a necessity, although this can also take some unexpected turns which does make one pause and have an eye-brow raising moment. I’m talking about creations like beer yoga, chicken nugget yoga, 420 yoga (I am surprised yoga can take so many twists and turns, pun intended).

Back to topic: Whilst we all get swayed by the buffet of classes on offer, it is imperative that we don’t forget about the gym floor. The gym has got a rep for being boring and intimidating due to “passionate” exercisers and confusing equipment. Before you write the gym off completely and switch to other forms of exercise, here are three reasons why the gym remains relevant today and why you should incorporate some gym time in your fitness schedule.

1. Unlock the incredible benefits of strength training

Endless hours in front of our screens — poor form... poor form | Photo by Clarisa Guerra on Unsplash

Strength training is a broad description of an exercise type that focuses on building lean muscle tissue, structural strength and endurance. So much has been researched and documented about the benefits of strength training that this probably needs its own series to flesh out.

Here’s a snippet of the positive effects of strength training:

2. Enjoy mindfulness and flow

Hypnotic: the interchange between bubbles and breath | Photo by Jeff Dunham on Unsplash

As more and more people become ‘woke’ about the benefits of mindfulness, it is worth noting that the gym is well equipped to cultivate an environment that makes it easy for you to live in the present and enter a state of flow, a term coined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi as:

A state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience is so enjoyable that people will continue to do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it.

I’m sure you know the feeling of getting onto a treadmill, switching off from the outside world and bashing out 30 minutes. Personally, there’s nothing quite so hypnotic as experiencing the oscillating change between listening to exhaling bubbles and inhaling.

This vibe is completely different to the setup of group fitness classes (except yoga, of course) where you’d expect pumping music, a loud motivating coach and other fitness enthusiasts that you just can’t help competing against. Both setups have their merits.

3. Customise and focus training

Developing proper weight training form in the gym — not in a fitness class | Photo by Alora Griffiths on Unsplash

You probably do enjoy the convenience of having someone else plan your workout. This is why fitness classes appeal to so many people.

However, look to the gym if you want to target your focus with customised training. This is made possible due to the sheer variety of equipment on a typical gym floor. There are several scenarios where you would want to customise and focus your training:

  • Target a specific muscle group
  • Build endurance and stamina for an upcoming challenge
  • Boost your fitness class performance if you have plateaued (of course, diet is something else to consider here as well)
  • Develop proper form with weight training, important if you attend high velocity weights-based classes
  • Improve your game in other sports e.g. taking your golf game to the next level like Tiger Woods did back in the day
  • Recover from an injury e.g. lower back pain, pulled hamstring

Keen on the gym? Here’s how you can hit the gym floor without committing to monthly membership

At Zym, we’re changing the way people juggling a busy lifestyle can access the gym. Users can workout at any of our partner gyms and pay only for the time spent on their fitness. No contracts. No day passes.

In addition, we make it more affordable by dropping our prices during quieter periods of the day. Isn’t that sweet?

To find out more, visit zym.rocks. Now in London.


If you like what you red and have further thoughts, feel free to drop a line at the bottom.

Zym buzz

Fitness, nutrition and thoughts from the team

Abhishek Shah

Written by

Founder of Zym - we're redefining on-demand fitness, starting with London

Zym buzz

Zym buzz

Fitness, nutrition and thoughts from the team

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