Over half of the nation still prefer the cost-savings, convenience and comfort of home workouts

Sports and fitness equipment specialists www.sweatband.com have conducted research to find out how many people in the UK prefer to workout from the comfort of their own home as opposed to the gym, and their reasons for doing so.

The team at Sweatband.com first asked UK residents whether they prefer to workout from their own home rather than in a public gym. Just over half (52%) of respondents said that they prefer to workout from home, with over a third admitting that they feel uncomfortable in public gyms (39%).

The top reasons for people preferring to workout from home are:

  1. Gym memberships are too expensive (47% of respondents said that this was the reason that they prefer to workout at home)
  2. Feeling uncomfortable in public gyms (39%)
  3. Not enough time to go to the gym (26%)
  4. Not knowing how to use commercial gym equipment (22%)
  5. Having some fitness equipment at home (18%)

Of those who said that they felt uncomfortable in public gyms, 62% said that this was mainly because public gyms were ‘too busy’. Following this, 22% of people said that the reason they prefer to workout from home is because they don’t feel fully competent in how to use the gym equipment. In addition, 28% of female respondents said that they find the equipment ‘intimidating’ and therefore prefer to use equipment they understand, at home.

Further to this, over two thirds of those who said that they prefer working out at home said that they first started working out over lockdown (62%), with just under half of these respondents following live workouts on Instagram (48%). Of those who said that they had equipment at home and therefore prefer to workout from home, over half of these people had bought their fitness equipment over the course of lockdown (54%).

Almost half (48%) of those surveyed said that they do prefer to workout in a public gym, with 72% of these saying that this is due to full access to all the equipment they need at a gym, which they don’t have at home.

Commenting on the research, Ruth Stone, qualified Personal Trainer and spokesperson for www.Sweatband.com, said:

“It’s not surprising to see that so many people prefer working out at home, rather than in a gym. Over the last year or so, we’ve all become accustomed to staying within the comfort of our own homes for many of the things we previously did elsewhere – working, exercising and eating.

“Many people have invested in home fitness equipment and committed to effective exercise regimes which now means that despite a number of gym groups heavily discounting their memberships to entice people back, the established home exercisers have realised it’s cheaper and more convenient to workout at home.

“With fitness equipment being so easy to purchase, and exercise content easy to access online, we’ve seen many people converting areas of their homes and gardens into new home-gyms. Those who have made the investment are staying away from the commercial gyms. I’m confident the trend of home workouts will continue.”

About Lisa Baker, Editor, Wellbeing News 4185 Articles
Editor Lisa Baker is passionate about the benefits of a holistic approach to healing. Lisa is a qualified Vibrational Therapist and has qualifications in Auricular Therapy, Massage, Kinesiology, Crystal Healing, Seichem and is a Reiki Master.