Banished from the gym? Internet groups are ready to welcome fitness buffs

Isolation wreaks havoc on mood and motivation, but these tools can keep you active

After a wood engraving by Timothy Cole (1852-1931) in the Smithsonian American Art Museum Renwick Gallery. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Celia Storey)
After a wood engraving by Timothy Cole (1852-1931) in the Smithsonian American Art Museum Renwick Gallery. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Celia Storey)

I've spent my career helping people get healthy in one form or another. I have been a personal trainer, fitness center owner, university professor and an executive in the corporate wellness field. I'd seen the fitness industry from pretty much every angle possible — until now.

Today's environment is uncharted territory. As I write this, fitness centers in Arkansas are closed by order of the governor. It's an unprecedented situation affecting so many parts of the human experience, it almost seems trivial to discuss the impact on the fitness industry — until you think about the health of 60 million health club members across the United States.

THE GROUPNESS EFFECT

It would be easy to dismiss the overarching effect of fitness center closures if they were just buildings full of exercise equipment. They are more than that.

People attend fitness centers for all sorts of reasons, but one of them is to share in a social experience with like-minded people. Researchers refer to this phenomenon as "groupness."

Coined by a Polish social psychologist while he was at Oxford University, Henri Tajfel (1919-1982), the term is part of his social identity theory. It refers to the tendency of various animals, including humans, to form "in-groups." Tajfel taught that people's sense of who they are, their personal identity, rests on a sense of social or collective identity: People understand who they are based on the groups they see themselves as belonging to.

Groupness explains why fitness center members are more likely to attend if they participate in the group exercise program. It's why you feel euphoric after walking out of a spin class. It's also why concerts and sporting events are awesome.[CORONAVIRUS: Click here for our complete coverage » arkansasonline.com/coronavirus]

The human experience is elevated in groups, and fitness centers exist — at least in part — because people prefer exercising in groups to exercising alone.

Don't take my word for it. Researchers have discovered that groupness elevates perceived exertion and lifts spirits among group exercise participants. The bottom line is, group exercise motivates people to show up, try harder and come back the next time. It's a wonderful benefit and an experience that has improved dramatically over the 20+ years I've been in the industry.

So, it's not difficult to understand why group dynamics create optimal conditions for exercising for most people. Since we don't have those conditions today, the challenge is to figure out ways we can continue the groupness effect while also adhering to the guidelines for social distancing. It's a daunting problem. But I've got some solutions for you.

LET'S GET DIGITAL

First, jump on the virtual group exercise bandwagon.

Some fitness centers, gyms and individual trainers in Arkansas are livestreaming classes. For instance, Kameelah Harris of WOW Fitness has used the video conferencing service Zoom to lead her students through workouts. The Athletic Clubs of Little Rock posts a daily schedule for livestreaming on its YouTube channel; tapes of the sessions can be viewed for free any time. Conway Regional Health & Fitness Center in Conway is posting free workout videos on its Facebook page. Clubhaus Fitness in Little Rock has online classes on a portal for members only.

Other clubs are marshaling the power of social media to encourage their members. For instance, Mountain Home Athletic Club in Mountain Home posts daily workout instructions on Facebook. CrossFit posts daily works on its website.

There are national companies that stream group-exercise programs for a small monthly fee. Until now, fitness club members would use such services as supplements to their normal gym routine. Companies such as Daily Burn, Les Mills and Beach Body all provide free trial periods ranging from 14 to 60 days. Each of these services is a different workout experience, but all have hundreds of classes, various formats, good music and motivating instructors.

Now, I acknowledge that exercising with an instructor on a screen isn't going to provide the same level of groupness that exists in a live class. That's an obvious shortcoming of this option, but such services do offer good-quality education, instruction and encouragement — and right now we're unable to participate in traditional group classes.

There's another company that has figured out a way to include groupness along with its streaming video. Burnalong is a creative technology that not only has the same type of group class formats as the aforementioned services, it allows you to invite friends and family to participate at the same time — using video. Depending on the class, up to four friends can participate in a class alongside you, and you'll be able to see them on your screen. In terms of the technology, it's sort of like being on a video conference while participating in a group exercise class — but a lot more fun.

THE PELOTON EFFECT

It's almost impossible to be unaware of Peloton, as its advertisements seem to flood social media, television and pretty much everywhere else. Peloton provides a unique service to the home exerciser, as it not only provides a streaming service with live participation from people all over the world — it provides the equipment, too. For a couple of thousand dollars upfront and $58 per month, you can have a spin bike and all the group classes you want.

It's a business model that, until three years ago, no one had really attempted. Peloton has graduated to offering a treadmill, dumbbells and even apparel.

The Peloton "community" consists of anyone who has the service. They can join classes any time, and you can see your own performance (calories, rpm's, etc.) relative to that of others. Competition is one aspect of groupness, and this model allows it to shine.

WEARABLE DEVICES

In the absence of virtual streaming services and home exercise equipment, a wearable activity tracker can be a great tool. These little computers track everything from calories burned to quality of sleep. The amount of data they can collect is staggering.

For analytical types, there's nothing better than a wearable device to really "nerd out" personal health. I know people who actually track their daily steps — every step, every single day.

If this is your cup of tea, then a $100-$300 activity tracker can be a good investment, and there are dozens of options. Some of the better units are produced by Garmin, Whoop and FitBit. All of these companies provide different models, some that look like a regular watch and others that stay out of sight. There's something for everyone.

After a wood engraving by Timothy Cole (1852-1931), in the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Celia Storey- 3/26/20)
After a wood engraving by Timothy Cole (1852-1931), in the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Celia Storey- 3/26/20)

PLAY GOALIE

Fitness technology allows one to continue engaging in group or individual exercise during this challenging period, but whatever form of exercise you choose, set goals.

Setting goals is a tried and true strategy. Goals create a sense of urgency that leads to mobilization of effort and ultimately, accomplishment.

My suggestion is to create daily and weekly activity goals, as opposed to fitness goals.

Creating daily and weekly goals is recommended because we don't know how long Arkansans will need to maintain social distancing. It doesn't make sense to set goals that require months of effort to achieve. Rather, set a goal for minutes of physical activity each day. Physical activity can take many forms; you don't have to buy a streaming service.

Being active is a broad enough goal to be achieved, and that goal could be what keeps one motivated enough to put down the Netflix remote for a half hour.

In my case, I'm setting a daily goal for 60 minutes of activity. I break that down into 30 minutes of vigorous activity (heart rate above 130 beats per minute) and 30 minutes of moderate activity (heart rate 100-129 bpm). I find that I'm able to achieve these goals by performing a 30-minute virtual group exercise class and then a little jog around the neighborhood with my dogs. As a side note, I have two King Charles Cavaliers (Max and Vince). They aren't the most athletic dogs, but they usually do alright for a light 30-minute jog.

KEEP THE FAITH

In my view, the most important factor in maintaining physical activity during social isolation is to stay positive and rely on others for support. We're all feeling anxious and are distracted by the change in our daily routines. Exercise combats anxiety by expending energy that otherwise feeds stress. Exercise conveys a sense of normalcy, elevates mood and provides a sense of personal achievement that could be difficult to find right now.

I encourage everyone to make exercise a priority, keep moving and to keep the faith. We will see our way through this time, and physical activity can play a small, but important role in our ability to do that.

Now, let's get to work.

Matt Parrott has a doctorate in education (sport studies) and a master’s in kinesiology and is certified by the American College of Sports Medicine.

vballtop@aol.com

Style on 03/30/2020

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