As Fitness Gets Smarter, People are Getting Fatter. Why?

With all these advances, you would think Americans must be losing weight and obesity rates are going down.

Sadly, the reverse is true.  Recent studies show that American obesity trends are holding steady for men, while obesity trends are actually growing for women.

The million or billion dollar question obviously is WHY? How can there be so many advances in fitness and fitness technology yet the collective results are worse?

As with most research you have to look at it with a critical eye. The major issue - as always - is that most people are simply still sedentary. They aren’t using the advances and therefore are not getting the results.

So much of the fitness industry is dedicated to chasing the minority percentage of people that actually enjoy exercise, enjoy sweating and really are motivated to obtain results. These people are the ones drawn to the HIIT Training, fitness wearables and the latest forms of group training.

What about the beginners, those that feel uncomfortable or self conscious in an exercise setting? What is being done to help these people. Far too often fitness facilities don’t treat them any differently than the seasoned exerciser. They show them the same equipment, or worse yet , the same classes and training routines.  Research from the ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) clearly shows that when beginners are exposed to HIIT type training, the majority quit within 3 months. Why? Quite simply it wasn’t enjoyable and in most cases it was just too difficult.

Another solution that is popular today is the growing trend of Small Group Training. This is evident in the explosive growth of the fitness studio market. Whether it be strength training, group cycling, or yoga, you can find a new studio on virtually every street corner. Many health clubs are also starting to put separate studios within their facilities. There is strong evidence that the group dynamics can lead to increased adherence but there is no getting around the fact that if a person doesn’t feel comfortable within the group, they won’t stay.

At the end of the day fitness professionals need to decide what business they want to be in. Are they in it to help all people change lives through fitness? Or do they want to specialize in the ultra fit and highly motivated? There is nothing wrong with either approach but the evidence is clear that trying to live in both worlds with no distinction is failing!

At The Abs Company our purpose is to Change Lives From the Core and we firmly believe that Fitness Changes Lives. In order to accomplish this we offer solutions that are appealing to the beginner and advanced exerciser alike. It is important to give all exercisers the chance to ‘win’ and be successful regardless of fitness level and allow them to progress along the lifelong journey to fitness. By doing this we hope to play our small part in reversing the obesity trend. We’d love to show you how our solutions can help your facility or you personally. Reach out and we’d be happy to discuss your needs!