Is Boutique Fitness Right for Me?

321go • December 3, 2018

If you’re ready for results it’s time to ditch the health club…

There was a time when we got all the exercise we require from our daily activities. But as hunting and gathering lead to farming and eventually the industrialized world we live in today the need for human “labor” has been nearly eradicated. Now that we work desk jobs, eat our meals from the hot bar at Whole Foods, and enjoy a generally sedentary lifestyle we are required to reintroduce this missing physical activity. For some reason, the question of how to add physical activity, or work, back into our lives is one that has proven to be puzzling, controversial, and difficult terrain to navigate.

In response to the demands of the market the fitness industry has grown tremendously, particularly in North America where an estimated $28 billion was spent in 2015. Much of this industry is dominated by health clubs and large gym franchises that offer a sampling of strength equipment, cardio machines, TV’s, massage chairs and minimal staffing. Granted how many staff members do you need when your members don’t actually attend the club? In a study done by students at UC Berkeley found 67% of gym memberships are never used in the population they surveyed.

“If you are not going to the gym, you are actually the gym’s best customer.” -Stacey Vanek Smith, NPR

The savvy marketers at big box gyms know how to target their marketing towards individuals who won’t actually come to the facility. As humans we often get a rush of excitement by a new fitness undertaking. “This is it, the time I actually change, no looking back,” you say. The challenge is that the health club has made zero commitment to you. They don’t care if you show up or not. Luckily there is someone out there who does.

Boutique fitness is the alternative to the traditional health club model. Boutique gyms offer specialized classes based on the expertise of the owners, teachers, or coaches. CrossFit boxes, Barre studios, Bikram yoga, parkour facilities, spin classes are all great examples of the boutique fitness model.

These communities succeed when the all parts are working together; the owner, staff, and clientele all succeed when they each meet their goals. This synergistic effect leads to faster results and more satisfaction from all parties. As a client you have a team of coaches and fellow members who are all rooting for you, teaching you, and most importantly holding you accountable. Becoming fit doesn’t have to be a chore, a challenge, or a pain point. In fact, it can even be fun

Boutique gyms have been seen rapid growth in the past decade as clients recognize that when it comes to fitness, not all gyms are created equal. Some of the most common excuses sound like:

“I have a hard time sticking to a routine”
“I’m just too busy to exercise”
“I get bored with going to the gym, it always feels like work”
“I don’t know how to lift weights/choose a routine/eat the right food”

These are great excuses, but since you’re ready to make a change it’s time to ditch the excuses and focus on RESULTS. By implementing a system that counters your excuses you’ll be left with the only option, the results that you want to achieve.

If you struggle with sticking to a routine you will benefit from the coaches, friends, and community members that you’ll meet at each class. A group of people that will ask you about your day, learn about your goals and life, and most importantly encourage you to show up consistently to your workouts.

If you claim to be too busy then you should sign up for classes ahead of time. The wide variety of classes that are available each day at time frames that are consistent with your schedule make it easy to squeeze in an hour long workout.

If boredom is your challenge then a workout that changes every day is exactly what you need. Not only that but the different coaching styles and friends you’ll make at different times of the day make each class a totally unique experience.

If information is the enemy then relax, because that’s already been taken care of for you. Your coach has put a lot of thought into a training program that will improve your fitness and will be by your side to instruct you on form, breathing, and what weights to use. Keep an eye out for group nutrition challenges to boot!

To get the results you want sometimes you need to try a new approach. If that trip to the gym feels more daunting than Frodo walking the ring to Mordor then it’s time to see what a boutique gym has in store for you!

The post Is Boutique Fitness Right for Me? appeared first on EA Fitness and Performance.

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Don't Focus on Just Calories for Weightloss

February 11, 2025

The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and deleteI preach this all the time about how we need to shift our focus from just looking for the amount of calories in the foods that we are deciding to eat to evaluating the nutrient profile and the amount of ingredients instead. Now, it's not inherently a bad idea to know how many calories you are consuming when you are trying to lose weight HOWEVER, when you look at the foods that are very nutrient dense and don't have many ingredients, usually those foods naturally have a lot less calories than the ultra processed foods you see in the grocery store(chips, cereals, etc.) with a few exceptions like olive oil(120 calories per tablespoon). It's not even just about the calories though. You want your body to function optimally right? You want energy. You want to maintain muscle mass. You don't want to suffer from indigestion. You want a strong immune system. You want to optimize the way your body burns body fat. The fact of the matter is that whole foods naturally will help with all of these because in order for your body to be in the best possible place, it needs the resources to do so. It needs a certain amount of macronutrients and micronutrients in order to function the way that it needs to so you can feel your best! This is what whole foods eating does! So long story short, focus on the QUALITY of the calories. Not just the calories. Consume single ingredient foods that are high in nutrients and you will not just see changes on the weight scale, but you will also feel better!

Meaningful Goals = Meaningful Results

By EA Fitness & Performance • January 3, 2025

It’s that time of year again. New Year’s resolutions. Packed gyms. New Year, New me. Lot’s of people have really good intentions of using the New Year as a way to refocus and reshape what they are doing in their lives within their health, career, and just overall personal development. A couple of issues that lead to north of 90% of failure of resolutions within the first three weeks of the New Year include: 1)Not enough meaning behind the goal. -Let me give you an example. The person that just says I want to lose 20lbs with no other reason probably will fail. You need a strong WHY. WHY is it important for you to lose that 20lbs? The why is what is going to get you through the days when you feel tired and unmotivated to take action required to reach the goal. In this case, not losing the 20lbs. Reality is that your extreme feeling of motivation in the beginning of the year will wear off. It’s human nature to stop doing something if there isn’t a good reason for it, which is why finding the deep meaning of your goal is extremely important to long term success. 2)No daily habits established -You need to know clearly what you are going to do and create a path that will lead to the success of your goal. It won’t go perfectly all the time but having a clear understanding of what you need to do is crucial for success on your journey! 3)Not embracing the process -You should embrace the actions you are taking to reach your goal. You should embrace all the things you are going to learn about yourself during this journey. This doesn’t mean you will enjoy every minute of it. What it does mean is that you get some joy out of the daily things you are doing to reach your goal instead of just focusing on the result(which you will get if you learn to embrace the process first). If you are thinking about your fitness goals, thats okay. Start with creating a meaningful goal, then establish daily habits, then when you are on your fitness journey, embrace the process and the results will follow! If you are struggling at any point of your fitness journey, feel free to reach out to us and we would be happy to get you on track! Evan