Let’s be honest, joining a gym represents a considerable investment – both monetary and that of investing in yourself. No one doubts that increasing your level of fitness is the key to longevity and a healthy life, but do you really need to spend out that monthly fee to benefit?
Well, actually, there’s some pretty strong evidence to support why a gym membership is money well spent. So let’s take a look at the 8 top reasons why signing up to your local health club could be the best move you ever make…
- Dramatically increase the amount of exercise you undertake: 14 times more, to be exact. In a study* carried out by Iowa State University (USA), those who were members of a gym were 14 times more likely to reach recommended weekly physical activity guidelines. In Australia this is defined as 150-300 minutes of moderate exercise or 75-150 minutes of vigorous exercise per week.
- Increased cardiovascular fitness: Regular gym goers (counted as those who kept their membership going for a year or more) tend to have a lower resting heart rate, lower blood pressure, and overall higher cardiovascular fitness. This has multiple benefits, including a considerable reduced chance of disease such as a stroke or myocardial infarction (heart attack).
- Increased levels of energy: It’s true – the more exercise you carry out, the more energy you’ll have. This is down to a combination of point number 2 (as you’ll be fitter) and the release of endorphins during and after exercise that give you a natural high.
- Excellent range of machines and weights: Most people don’t have their own resistance machines or weights at home. These are the ultimate method by which to improve muscle tone, and doing such strength training has numerous benefits, including protecting the joints from injury, maintaining flexibility and balance – especially important as you age – and the increase of muscle-to-fat ratio, meaning the body burns more calories at all times, even at rest.
- Expert advice: No matter where you are on your fitness journey it’s sensible to get professional input to ensure you’re getting the most from your efforts. Joining a gym means there’s always an expert on hand when you need to ask questions about how to best tweak your workouts to continue powering towards your personal goals.
- Access to different fitness options: The gym isn’t only about treadmills and exercise bikes, oh no… A good club offers exercise options to suit everyone, as well as providing the necessary variety to ensure you continually challenge your body. From spin to body pump, boot camps to aqua-based exercise or running clubs, you’re guaranteed exercise choices that mean you’ll never get bored.
- It’s a great motivator: Yes, even if you’re the kind who needs the proverbial kick up the backside to get moving… One great thing about going to the gym is that from the moment you walk through the doors your mind is focused on the task ahead. And once you settle into a routine and start seeing results? Well, that in itself is one of the biggest motivators of all.
- It’s social: Simply being around others who have similar interests and goals is a wonderful way to mingle. Exercising solo can be lonely, not to mention de-motivating. But add other like-minded people into the mix and voila – it’s an occasion! Teaming up with others in classes or as workout buddies is a sure-fire way to light the spark that’ll see you zooming towards those desired results.
Your selection of gym will have a huge bearing on how much you want to visit. It’s essential to make sure your choice fits your needs, plus you’ll want to be confident that the staff are on-hand with advice that’ll progress along with your achievements. Bailey Fitness Gyms in Baldivis, Southern River and Morley pride themselves in being the go-to health club for people of all levels of fitness, not to mention having a second-to-none range of equipment and classes to enjoy.
* https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0170471
