5 reasons to quit the gym
1. Gym memberships are really expensive
A recent study in the American Economic Review (appropriately titled Paying Not To Go to the Gym) found that, given a choice of contracts, most gym users will pick a monthly contract over a yearly or per-use contract. Over a year, paying $71 per month on average, users only went to the gym about 4.7 times per month. That's $15 per visit, and $852 per year! You could buy a really sweet bike with $852, which would last longer and be far more rewarding.
2. The gym requires exercise
By definition, exercise is an activity that requires physical or mental exertion. The term implies strenuous effort, like paying attention to a boring lecture or solving a difficult math problem. In effect, physical fitness is no longer a fundamental right of existence, but something we have to earn by performing repetitive tasks that we don't enjoy very much. Instead of exercise, wouldn't it be better to simply be active in our every day life? Life is full of boring obligations like lectures and tax forms; physical fitness shouldn't be among them.
3. The gym woos us into a lifetime of gym dependence!
Binding contracts aside, as an effect of the above, the gym fools us into believing we need it in order to stay fit. Thus begins a hideous cycle where it's okay to drive the car half a mile to pick up a gallon or milk, or stay glued to our seats in front of a computer 8 hours a day - we can simply make up for inactivity (not to mention the ills of the food industry) at the gym.
It seems a pity to spend the day engaged in sub-par activities, only to have to make up for it with another sub-par activity. The gym is an easy way out, so we stop challenging ourself to be active in other ways. It's a strange paradox: has the gym actually made us lazier?
4. The gym distorts our fitness goals
"Summer shape up"; "Get yourself a beach bum"; "Get huge".
The gym offers two extremes, get big or get small, then reminds us that we're not big or small enough. So we exercise with the aim of burning more calories or lifting more weight. Spend a few minutes in the weight room and you'll inevitably see people sacrifice form (and their back) in order to lift more pounds than they can correctly manage.
When progress is measured in numbers, it's easy to forget the the point. We desire fitness in order to feel confident and comfortable in our own skin. But instead of confidence, the gym sends the message that we are not bootylicious. Through that negative feedback, we forget our goals. Remove goals and you remove the challenge, and suddenly, the gym just goto a whole lot worse.
5. The gym burns "empty" calories.
One of the most dominant features Fitness First is a row of TVs facing the cardio machines. Here's a typical line-up: "Pimp My Ride", "My Super Sweet 16", music videos, Sky News, and sports.
With the possible exception of sports, the television is predominantly crap. But people watch it! Grown-ups, bankers, educated types, watch "Celebrity Big Brother"! Sure, you're burning calories, but what are you gaining?
I tried podcasts as a way around the television. But even though i couldn't hear the TV, I was still bombarded by distracting images of people and things I don't care about. Sometimes I tried reading, which only worked if the book's binding allowed it to stay open on its own. Then I realized: wouldn't it be nicer to just read on the couch with a cup of tea and a comfy blanket then go for a long walk in the park? Why take two otherwise good things (reading and activity) and make them less good by putting them together?
Fitness needn't be as 1-dimensional as burning calories. Why not pair physical activity with some mental motion? If I go for a walk, I can listen to a podcast (or brainstorm reasons why the gym sucks) with only the trees and puppies and turtles to distract me*.
Admittedly, not every gym-goer is a zombie on a treadmill. So I give you
A few good reasons stick with the gym
- You have a gym buddy
- You like to swim and your gym has a pool
- You use your gym's group exercise courses (yoga, pilates, etc)
- You live in a shitty climate
- You're new to exercise and require the help of a personal trainer
- You're training for something cool (marathon, triathalon, iron man, spam toss)
- Weight lifting is your thing
- Your work doesn't have a shower
* Admittedly, a walk in London involves the added distraction of dog poop. I maintain that the crap on TV is much harder to get off of shoes.
