Who will go back to gyms?
In pre-Covid times, my fitness routine basically revolved around group classes — a lot of spinning, the occasional pilates or barre. I thought I thrived on external accountability (according to Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies, I’m an obliger) and signing up for a class in advance made me show up out of fear of cancellation penalties. I was certain that working out at home or by myself, without the system of a class signup holding me accountable, would never work for me. I can’t hold myself accountable; that’s impossible!
So gyms shut down in March, and for the first couple weeks of lockdown I didn’t exercise at all, period. Working out at home never even occurred to me: it would never work, I told myself. I needed a class, an instructor, the invisible social peer pressure of worried about being judged by your classmates to motivate you to keep working harder.
But I could only be a couch potato for so long before I started needing a place to channel all my excess coronavirus anxieties, and Netflix marathons and baking binges weren’t doing it for me anymore.
So I decided to reluctantly dipped a toe into the world of fitness YouTube. I regret to inform you that over the past six months, I have now become one of those annoying “I have to work out every day or I don’t feel good” people. It is truly an evolution for me, a person who despised gym class as a kid, still refuses to play sports, and hates running, to suddenly find myself saying things like “my obliques are sore!” and “I did a lot of tricep work today!” (Clearly only person I say this stuff to is Renan, since I barely see anyone else, so instead he has to listen to all of my dumb workout revelations). I started doing at-home Barre videos on the Classpass app (turns out a bookshelf works just fine as a makeshift barre!). I started doing HIIT and pilates and yoga all from the comfort of my living room. I now work out almost everyday, and have since sometime in April. I’ve tried all kinds of new workouts: Physique57! Modelfit! CorePower yoga! Kickboxing!
Along the way I realized working out at home was a lot more appealing than I had ever realized. Yes, it takes motivation to make yourself do it everyday without the accountability of a cancellation penalty or an instructor expecting you to show up. But there are pros: you never have to worry about whether you look crazy or are doing it wrong — there’s no classmates to peek at to see how you’re doing compared to them. Do you look silly? Who cares, no one can see you! I’ve found that without the daily commute anymore, it’s a lot easier to find time to work out. And I’m no longer beholden to someone else’s class schedules: instead of having to get up at 6 to make the 6:30 classes at the gym, I can get up and workout on my own time (and now that I save so much time I previously spent commuting, that means I can get up a little later and still have time to work out before work). You don’t really need much equipment: tons of Youtube workout videos note that they are “no equipment” workouts, and I’ve found that all I have really needed is a yoga mat and occasionally a pair of light weights (I bought mine early on in lockdown, but good luck finding any these days). I realized maybe I don’t need the external accountability as much as I thought I did — I actually kind of look forward to my workouts now??? (There’s a sentence I never thought I would ever type!)
New York City just announced that gyms can start reopening on September 2. I got an email from my gym this week, announcing that they would be reopening that day, listing out all the new coronavirus safety measures they were taking, and of course a chirpy note that they would turn autopay billing back on immediately whether I planned to return or not.
But the question is: should we even go back to gyms? They can implement all the cleaning measures in the world, but gyms still feel pretty high-risk for coronavirus transmission. They’re indoors, where we know it’s much easier to spread, and they’re still a cesspool of sweat and germs. Working out at home has been sort of a revelation for me; almost anything I did in a class previously, I can do at home (the one and only thing I miss is spin classes!). When it’s this easy to work out at home, why take the risk of going back to gyms while the coronavirus is still raging out there? I know I won’t be going back anytime soon.
For those interested, here are some of the Youtube channels I love the most for home workouts: PopSugar Fitness, Blogilates, Kit Rich, and of course, Yoga with Adriene.
What I’m reading
A reminder to enfold yourself in small comforts, NYT.
Burning out on America, and my “perfect” wellness routine, Healthyish/Bon Appetit.
What should a museum look like in 2020?, Vanity Fair.
The many uphill battles bars are facing right now, Eater.
Finally organize those photos, NYT. When I tell you this article inspired me to organize 13 years worth of photos this week, I am not kidding — I must have spent at least 5 hours on it.
Preparing your mind for uncertain times, The Atlantic.
The anxiety of being a wedding guest, NYT.
Telfar bags are now in the pandemic fashion cannon, GQ. I needed someone to explain the Telfar hype to me and now I think I sort of get it?
Is lockdown making you depressed or are you just bored?, NYT.
What I’m cooking
I’ve been all about that late summer produce, so this week I made BLT tacos, summer shrimp scampi with corn and tomatoes, and this incredible eggplant dish.
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