Exercise equipment
Annabel investigates…
The latest exercise equipment, does it work?
With many people working from the comfort of their home, home gyms have become a largely popular investment over the past two years. The home fitness premium quality equipment market has needed to keep up with the demand. This market has given exercise enthusiasts all they need to perform a professional personal training session, within the four walls of their home.
Today, Annabel and the Longevity Exercise Physiology teams at Drummoyne, Edgecliff, Marrickville, Bella Vista, Randwick, Pymble, Balmain and Neutral Bay discuss the latest exercise equipment and the best gear to use for the greatest workout.
To ensure that you are building the best home gym set up, we are here to look through the latest exercise equipment that is on the market and see compare it with others. You can easily set up a home gym that doesn’t cost a lot of money and doesn’t take up a large amount of space. The great thing about the home exercise equipment market is that there are many great options for all types of workouts, at all prices. The home gym industry is witnessing the launch of fitness devices, which are digitally advanced and technologically innovative. Let’s delve into the fitness equipment domain and understand if it is effective for individuals performing fitness activities at home.
“In 2021, The Australian Institute of Fitness leading professionals, rated technology and fitness trends and identified that wearable technology such as smart watches were the greatest trend in the fitness world.”
Other categories and trends that made the top 10 list included, mind and body training i.e., yoga and Pilates and Virtual Fitness and High Intensity Interval Training etc. During a time of uncertainty, due to COVID-19, this allows the fitness industry to shift its focus to these necessary products, as fitness businesses, professionals and consumers have adapted how and where they train (“Australian Institute of Fitness predicts top industry trends for 2021 – Australasian Leisure Management”, 2022).
Smart watches have made their mark in the exercise industry, aiming to motivate individuals across the world to move more, sit less and exercise. Smart watches can track your activity, for example, going for a run around the neighbourhood, swimming in the ocean, or doing a dance class. These watches allow the wearer to track how many steps they take to ensure they meet their daily goal. A sports watch can be specially programmed to track your workout progress, and some can give detailed information, like heart rate and calories burnt. These wearable technologies can be used for many population groups from everyday fitness and leisure consumers, through to gym junkies and fitness professionals in areas of programming, training and recovery.
“You can easily set up a home gym that doesn’t cost a lot of money and doesn’t need a lot of space”
Online on-demand workout libraries and virtual training has expanded tremendously over the last two years and will continue to be popular and broaden our horizons. From dance classes that have been running online, to HIIT training sessions and Pilates classes being streamed online, the last two years has posed a new era for fitness trainers. A new and upcoming piece of fitness equipment that has hit the US market but is becoming largely popular is the ‘Peloton’ exercise bike. Peloton is both a fitness platform and a stationary indoor exercise bike (Wollerton & Mitroff, 2022). It comes with a large screen attached where you have access to an enormous catalogue of content. This includes spin and treadmill workouts along with HIIT and strength sessions. There is also yoga, Pilates, and dance classes. Smart gym equipment is pricey — typically costing a few thousand dollars — so it’s not accessible to everyone, but online workouts are going to become bigger than ever, with fitness instructors running workouts from across the globe, it will become increasingly easier to perform an exercise session from the comfort of your own home.
There is a large catalogue of new fitness equipment out there for individuals to buy and purchase. From smart watches, to subscribing to online fitness workouts, there are many options to try and understand what works for you. However, understanding that these devices and subscriptions won’t give you the most individualised approach to exercise is an essential to consider. Without the right guidance and knowledge of a health professional such as an Exercise Physiologist, the maximum benefits will not be achieved.
If you are working from home and would like some advice about what exercise equipment to buy give Longevity Exercise Physiology Edgecliff, Pymble, Marrickville, Randwick, Drummoyne, Balmain, Bella Vista, and Neutral Bay a call on 1300 964 002 to book in a session today.
Written by Annabel Bergman
References:
Australian Institute of Fitness predicts top industry trends for 2021 – Australasian Leisure Management. (2022). Retrieved 17 February 2022, from https://www.ausleisure.com.au/news/australian-institute-of-fitness-predicts-top-industry-trends-for-2021/
Wollerton, M., & Mitroff, S. (2022). he best smart home gym workouts of 2022.