According to Statista, 64 percent of all Americans in 2019 had a gym membership, and that number has doubled since 2000. Now, the pandemic has changed things, of course, since most gyms have been closed across the country for the last several months.
According to another study by TD Ameritrade, 59 percent of Americans say they don’t plan on renewing their gym memberships, saying they’ve found other, more affordable ways to exercise during the pandemic.
Do you have a gym membership? If so, do you use it often? Will you renew it once it’s safe to return to gyms again?
Please tell us in the poll below. Thanks!
I have never understood the allure of a gym, or the allure of the type of exercises a gym offers. I have a rebounder, a little portable home equipment, yoga apps & I’m set. Doing well on this program at twice 37.5 years.
My wife has the gym membership. Since all this started, she has found other ways to work out, and cannot see spending a monthly fee just to be able to walk on a treadmill. She is talking of canceling it.
Cancel and see how well you do on your own.
We dropped our gym membership months before covid19 crept into our world. We live on a lake and created a gym in the boathouse. Nothing fancy, but now we have a beautiful lake view as we exercise. And it’s nice not to have to drive to the gym.
I thought I would never give up the gym. It was more than exercise it was also a place to meet friends and other members. At 6 a.m. it was a good start to my day and I looked forward to it. Now, because I live in a small town, I can power walk 10km every morning without contact with anyone and have basic gym equipment at home that works quite well. I miss the gym, but I know I’m safe at home and still in good shape.
Yes, called Silver Sneakers through my over 65 health plan, but I never use it due to having equipment in my stick and mortar home.
We belong to the Y! Even tho we don’t go during the Pandemic, we want to support the Y mission. Our Y provides essential worker daycare, food support, senior outreach, youth outreach, showers, on line live exercise, and so much more!
Yes, but only because it’s included in my Medicare plan.
Joined “9-Round” last year for a number of reasons:
1) near my house
2) the workout is incredibly intense; great cardio
3) entire workout can be completed in 30 minutes from the time you walk through the door
4) the workout stations change every day, so different muscle groups, variety of exercises touching every muscle in your body in a week, etc.
Then I retired, moved to Arizona, and the nearest 9-Round is 15 miles away. I’m waiting for one to open in a vacant strip mall near my home before I re-join, because it’s the best workout ever
NO
My exercise is a large garden in the summer and heating with wood in the winter. I don’t buy wood so it involves: cutting down trees, hauling them out of the woods on rugged terrain, splitting the wood, stacking it to dry, and several years later moving it to the house every few days.
Free with Medicare supplement. But with COVID, I don’t use it.
I just joined one a month ago. What a surprise… the 12 month commitment came with a free case of Covid 19.
We have been for a while now, but we mostly use it for daily water exercise, but Michigan has shut that off again. It is a real shame because my bad knee does well when I can get there.
My math is usually good, but if membership was 64%, how did it double? We are like many, we have insurance that gives us free membership, but once again our state is closing our gym, which we try to use regularly.
Used to, but now we are full timers so never in one spot long enough. I have a set of adjustable dumbbells that I can use in the RV.
The category I would have checked… Did you have a gym membership “before” Covid-19? Gyms here are closed.
Ditto to Cee’s comment
as others said, Silversneakers comes with Medicad plan, but I do not use it. But I do excercises at home and walk about 5 miles a day
When I lived in Colorado, I had a complete gym in my home
We moved to Arizona and I joined the YMCA. Senior Sneakers or what ever it is called, but since the Pandemic, I have been working out at home again.
I had to say yes, but really a community gym is included in my homeowners’ dues. No, I do not have a specific gym membership.
Did have for over 27 years, started full-timing & traveling 6 years ago. Had to let the membership go.
I don’t need a gym. Just keeping up with things at home is as much of a workout as I can handle.
Nope, no gym membership, don’t like going to most gyms, but I have designed my own exercise regimen, and I do stick to it. It is really varied, so itdoesn’t get to be an “old routine”, that I become bored with.
I have a free “Silver Sneakers” membership through my insurance but haven’t been.
No, we have our own gym in our garage. Weight machine, treadmill and free weights which we use when we aren’t on the road. On the road I walk/run on the parks road and bring adjustable dumbbells to use. Plus plenty of exercises that can be done without weights.