After my last Tales from the Glitter Gym, Stuart gave me an idea for this post.
It’s a shame that more gym members weren’t / aren’t even a fraction as conscientious as these two were. The one thing good about the old, smaller, “private” gyms was that there was a “code” of behaviour, often strictly enforced by the owner and regular members.
Now people often leave weights discarded anywhere, and it could take a good portion of your workout to find the dumbbells that you wanted to use.
He is correct, but how did we get here? And where will we go from here? I’m not an economist, but I have a guess.
I’m using the term “messy” in this post to cover 3 things:
- actual messiness (trash, dust, dirt)
- not putting shared equipment back in its proper space (racking weights)
- equipment maintenance (machines, fountains, saunas, pools)
Demographics and Low Interest Rates
I started lifting weights at the tail end of the “Rust Gym” era. Lifting weights had always been a sport dominated by young men. Although weightlifting was gaining popularity in the 1990s, Generation X was a smaller demographic than the Boomers or the Millennials.
For many of us, this is how we ended up at Rust Gyms. We were using the old “hand me down” equipment from serious Boomers. There wasn’t much money to build fancy Glitter Gyms yet.
That day was fast approaching though.
From the late 1990s to just before COVID, many Glitter Gyms were built. The Rust gyms disappeared. This was all possible for a few reasons:
- Low interest rates fueled construction.
- Lots of customers. A large number of Millennials were in peak muscle-building years.
- Gyms employ younger workers - of which there were now many.
- Women embraced weightlifting.
Children raised by helicopter parents with their anti-bacterial wipes were never destined to join Rust Gyms. Glitter wins.
The 2000s were the era of the “Customer is always right”. Why? Because it was easy to hire cheap labor because there were so many Millennial workers. The customer was more valuable than the employee. What does this mean for gyms? This means that while we Gen X lifters got scolded by staff or other lifters for not racking our weights, Millennials didn’t. The customer is always right.
This all worked fine until recent times. Now Gen Z is the dominant demographic for gym workers. Their numbers are far fewer and they want to be paid more due to scarcity. Today the employee is more valuable than the customer. Many gyms are understaffed and the glitter is starting to fade.
A generation of lifters never had the experience of a big guy getting in their face for not putting the dumbbells back in the correct spot. Now their gym is a mess and the “now hiring” sign has been up for months with a growing list of open positions.
Return to Rust?
Today interest rates are much higher and there are fewer young people of weight lifting age. Why invest in new gyms? A better option would be to squeeze the life out of the existing Glitter Gyms. If you can’t reduce labor costs, maybe cut back on maintenance.
Return to rust.
After decades of low birth rates and neglect, this Glitter Gym has been absorbed by nature like a temple at Angkor Wat.
Comments
Stuart
August 18 at 2024 at 8:17 AM
MAS, Not being an economist myself, I am sure that you are correct in your analysis from that side of the fence. However from a societal point of view, I think we have changed tremendously. Social media has made us self absorbed. People scroll on their phones between sets, rather than look at they chaos around them ( probably much of it which they have created, and which they ignore, unless it affects them directly). Also the norms of gym behaviour have changed. Look at all the uproar surrounding people filming themselves in the gym. Some of the new behaviour conventions may be for the better, as more women in the gym have certainly reduced the “jock” mentality / behaviour of most of the male patrons, but not all the changes are good. Finally thank you for the credit at the start of this post. It’s the first time I’ve ever been quoted in such a way on a social media post. So I’m honoured.
MAS
August 18 at 2024 at 1:44 PM
@Stuart - Your points are valid and certainly have provided to the lack of concern in maintaining a shared environment.
Although I have my own code of conduct for racking weights that I learned in the Rust Gyms of South Tampa, I get that experience is now a rarity.
Today’s gym members see broken equipment around them and no accountability for not “putting their toys away”. They see the gym more like a spa where they are to be pampered. Just like their mom used to do for them. Us Gen X latchkey kids knew there was no one there to make our beds or clean the kitchen counter. We did it ourselves.
Jim
August 18 at 2024 at 3:28 PM
@ MAS. Interesting post. It’s hard for me to relate though. I’m in NJ and have belonged to two gyms over the last 10 years. One for $25/month and one for $230/month. In both gyms, everyone always re-racks their weights, and wipes down machines and benches with alcohol wipes. And a rarely see any broken equipment.
I don’t know why my experience was different? Maybe it’s a regional thing? Or maybe because I live in an upper middle class area?
MAS
August 18 at 2024 at 3:50 PM
@Jim - The change has been subtle and things aren’t bad yet. I hope I’m wrong, but I see far fewer under 25 year old members than ever. And I see the gyms are having trouble hiring. Service requests are taking longer too.
Geoff
August 19 at 2024 at 4:47 PM
“The gym” isn’t the clear cut concept it once was. There are more options/competition in the marketplace right now. Back when they were called “Health Clubs,” Glitter Gyms were the only option aside from Rust Gyms. These days, going to “the gym” might mean a Glitter Gym or a Rust Gym, but it might also be CrossFit, or a spin class, or a “boxing style” cardio workout.
Could it be the inability to attract and retain staff is in part, be due to the entrepreneurial spirit of people who want to own a gym, not staff it? Those other fitness models might seem more accessible for aspiring fitness professionals. People don’t become taxi drivers or bus drivers anymore, they work for ride-shares. So why work at a Glitter Gym someone else owns when you can have a “Thousand Dollar Weekend”, get a CrossFit certification and launch your own business?
When people have lots of options, like they do now, it’s also harder to build a community. Glitter Gyms want to cater to everyone, but without “a big guy getting in their face for not putting the dumbbells back in the correct spot” there won’t be standards. Without shared standards, there is no community.
Fitness trends rise and fall. Standards are timeless. Whether it’s a Glitter Gym, a Rust Gym, a CrossFit franchise, or something else, the places that survive long term seem like the ones that can build a community that enforces its own norms. Glitter Gyms seem to be making the mistake of thinking that to be accessible to everyone, they have to compromise on standards.
MAS
August 19 at 2024 at 5:16 PM
@Geoff - Great point.
Your comment made me think about how Glitter gyms are now the budget option. Those other gyms have higher monthly costs. When the drinking fountain breaks at my gym, my grandfathered $12/month isn’t going to go far when the repair guy wants to be paid.
Jim
August 22 at 2024 at 6:11 PM
@MAS Re: Glitter gym being budget. I recall visiting a CrossFit “box” years ago when it first became a thing. The owner was bragging about how they didn’t have any expensive machines or equipment like a Planet Fitness. Just an unpainted empty warehouse with some barbells, pullup bars and medicine balls. But then they wanted $250/month to join. :-)
MAS
August 22 at 2024 at 9:33 PM
@Jim - CrossFit is more like a religion, so the $250 is more like a tithe. :)
Julia
September 10 at 2024 at 1:40 AM
In Canada, I’ve noticed a trend with young women (I’m the tail end of Gen-X, btw). One woman will “hog” ONE weight-lifting machine for close to half an hour to get her 3 sets of 10 reps in.
And this wasn’t the culture that I was brought up in: I’ve always just done one set of 10, and then walked away (i.e., let other people use it) - not just sat in the chair for 25 mins, waiting to get the use for 3 sets.
When did this culture start of “I get one machine for 25 minutes” No one else can do their workout then. Such narcissism!
It’s only the young women who do this (Gen Z,I believe), I’ve noticed. Are they aware that some people have like an hour to do their entire workout? Rant over!
MAS
September 10 at 2024 at 8:43 PM
@Julia - I recently saw a 20 year old woman sit down on the leg press machine with a book and read between sets.
Julia
September 12 at 2024 at 5:59 PM
@MAS, I know. It’s so annoying.
Follow-up question: what do you think of Vinnie Tortorich? NSNG (“no sugar, no grain”) diet. although I know that’s not your philosophy at all.
I stumbled upon a very interesting podcast on Eric Westman MD’s youtube channel “Adapt your Life” The name of the podcast was “The Dark Side of Keto: Hollywood’s Secret Weight Loss Exposed! with Vinnie Tortorich” Basically, Vinnie Tortorich was a personal trainer in Hollywood decades ago, and he would use high fat (basically Keto) to help actors lose weight. He made the documentary called “Fat.”
edit: I think the above podcast is fascinating b/c he talks about how he came to Hollywood to try to pitch a kid’s show b/c he noticed the next generation of children were getting chubbier. However, the networks he went to (like Nickelodeon, or what not) were like “we can’t tell kids not to eat carbs or sugar. Those are all of our sponsors!” so he couldn’t get a T.V. show, so then he started personal training in Hollywood. It was interesting.
edit 2: Also, he has three other documentaries. “Fat 2: the sequel,” “Beyond Impossible” about the fake meat industry, and one recent doc about how Big Food distorting the Keto diet called, “Dirty Keto.”
MAS
September 12 at 2024 at 6:18 PM
@Julia - Never heard of him.
If I were a celebrity trainer and my clients needed fast results - I’d use low carb. A lot of the weight loss will be water, but who cares? The actor will look leaner on camera. As for longevity, I’m highly skeptical, which I’ve covered in other posts.
Avoiding sugar and processed grains is solid advice.
Lumping whole grains in with processed grains is a common tactic low-carbers use. Whole grains are great.
Julia
September 12 at 2024 at 7:05 PM
@MAS, well, I realize now I’m basically doing NSNG diet following Autumn Elle Nutrition. https://vinnietortorich.com/what-is-nsng/ They’re both the same, only a few things are slightly different between these two diets.