The more people we speak to about fitness, the more we’re hearing the same thing: the days of the ubiquitous gym membership are over. What’s here instead? Convenience, variety and ad-hoc retreats. Let’s look at the new players.
Members’ clubs have been raising the stakes in fitness for a few years (we’re looking at you, Soho House), with the idea being that if your workspace can double as a gym, you’re saving on travel time, membership fees, and more likely to fit in that lunchtime spin class between meetings. Now with White City House (Soho House’s largest gym to date), Mortimer House and 3 St James’ Square all bridging the gap between socialising and working out, we say choosing a members’ club that also suits your fitness regime is the way forward.
It’s also about making sure fitness schedules are flexible. We loved ClassPass when it first arrived, and Move GB is a new favourite, especially as it’s entirely unlimited and includes access to personal trainers. And we’re also fans of Third Space’s Another Space, thanks to their no membership, no joining fee approach. With both state of the art and independent studios now able to reach a much wider audience, we’re loving the variety of workouts – why commit to one when you can have them all?
And then there’s the feel-good factor of working out when we’re away. Ad-hoc retreats have been on the rise for a while now, with Ibiza being home to some of the most popular (Pop-Up Fitness, 38ºN, The Body Camp), but new for 2018 comes Wildfitness in Menorca – think kayaking in the sea or cycling through Balearic olive groves. Then there’s Surf Maroc, with daily surf lessons sandwiched by yoga at sunrise and sunset, and Maderas Village for more laid-back yogascapes in Nicaragua. Skip town and the gym, and head out on the waves instead.
Memberships that tie us down are out. For 2018 we’re loving flexi-time workouts, anywhere, anyway.
