April 3, 2021

Serious Online Fitness at Home

Simultaneous strength training and aerobic exercise in spare moments at home

The Covid-19 crisis has spread the use of remote work, increasing the numbers of people exercising seriously for fitness at home. Buying dedicated equipment and taking lessons online, their setup puts normal gyms to shame. This trend is getting attention as a way to make good use of spare moments while working from home, and for other advantages.

Tokyo resident “M” sweats through workouts with Sixpad Home Gym, in sessions of about 20 minutes two or three days a week. The location is his home, not a sports club. In two weeks since he started, he says he has “tightened his belt by one hole”.

M bought a body suit that uses electrical stimulation to efficiently build muscle, and an indoor exercise bike, launched by training gear seller MTG last fall. An instructor guides his exercise through a tablet on the exercise bike, so “you feel like you’re exercising with someone”.

The context is that the Covid-19 crisis has made working from home the new normal, so people are more open to using online services.