Japan’s Convenience Gyms: Discovering the Allure of This Cultural Craze
Convenience gyms can be used at any time you like. (Photo courtesy of RIZAP GROUP, Inc., chocoZAP)
In the past few years, an increasing number of people have become more health-conscious and focused on their physical fitness due to the growing amount of time spent at home. While it has become common to see people walking and running daily, it is also true that many people can’t get into the habit of exercise, or don’t know where to start when it comes to exercising.
Amidst this, convenience gyms have been garnering attention in Japan. A convenience gym is a gym that can be used whenever you want, making for a space where people can exercise with the same easy access as a convenience store. So why have convenience gyms soared in popularity in Japan? Let’s take a look at what makes them so appealing.
A Gym You Can Go to Whenever it Crosses Your Mind
Convenience gyms, many of which operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, are popular for allowing patrons to drop in whenever the thought crosses their mind. Gyms that don’t require one to change into workout clothes or shoes are common, allowing gym-goers to start training within 5 seconds of walking through the door. Each day the gyms are bustling with office workers in business attire and people heading home from shopping, all of them trying to make the most of their spare time.
Convenience gyms can easily be used during lunch breaks.
Many people probably think of training gyms to be a place for athletes to seriously train. Because of this, many find them intimidating to use just for the purpose of maintaining one’s health. With the invention of convenience gyms, people are now able to exercise as an extension of their daily life.
There are even gyms where members can use a smartphone app to do entry and exit procedures and even log their training. This ease-of-use has earned them quick acceptance across generations, particularly younger generations of people in their 20s and 30s. Since daily training logs can be managed with a smartphone, it’s easy to create a training schedule just for you.
Left: Everything, including entry and exit procedures, can be managed with a smartphone. (Photo courtesy of RIZAP GROUP, Inc., chocoZAP)
Right: Gym members can have a trainer attend their workouts as an optional extra. (Photo courtesy of This is Gym)
One merit of the convenience gym is that it allows members to train at their own pace, however people not used to training at a gym may want someone to teach them at first. In order to meet those kinds of requests, one gym provides a personal training service, free for the first session. Following that session, members who find they feel more peace of mind with a trainer can have one assist with their workouts as an optional extra.
What are the Benefits That Make People Want to Go to the Gym?
Not only a place for exercise, the gym can be a place for self-improvement too.
There are many reasons people begin to want to go to the gym.
For example, if it weren’t just to strengthen one’s body, but to make improve one’s appearance, that desire to go to the gym might become even stronger. For those focused on the self-improvement aspect, self-beauty-salon and self-hair-removal services have been incorporated within some gyms.
Some people are more determined to go to the gym knowing they can not just exercise, but use self-beauty-salon and self-hair-removal services to improve their appearance too. Even more recently, self-teeth-whitening is being incorporated as a new service, making Japan’s convenience gyms unique in that they not only feature equipment for improving one’s health, but beauty as well.
Left: For those wanting to whiten their teeth, new self-teeth-whitening services are being rolled out.
Right: Self-beauty-salon services can be used freely and easily. (Photo courtesy of RIZAP GROUP, Inc., chocoZAP)
Families Can Use the Gym for the Same Price as an Individual Membership!
Relatively low membership fees are another unique feature of convenience gyms. Compared to traditional sports gyms, prices 30% to 50% lower are a common sight. As a result, the ever-important element of consistency can be incorporated into one’s physical fitness routine. Combining this with an exercise environment that can be used freely and easily has made convenience gym quite popular.
Many convenience gyms are chains too, featuring gyms that can be used throughout Japan, allowing one to use a gym close to their job on weekdays and closer to home on weekends. Continuing such a lifestyle can naturally lead to the development of healthy exercise habits.
At certain gyms, with one individual membership, up to three family members can be registered to use the gym at no further cost. By going to the gym as a family, it could create a common topic of conversation, leading to a change in family dynamic.
Left: There are plans for whole families to attend a gym. (Photo courtesy of Yamauchi Co., Ltd.)
Right: Convenience gyms are used by people of all ages.
With the introduction of convenience gyms, it’s now possible to go running or do strength training conveniently and easily. Positive changes to physical health from this have led many people to be highly satisfied with them. It seems people who previously found exercise to be a daunting task discover how much daily exercise benefits their mental and physical health, making continued exercise even more fun. These convenience gyms, which allow people to efficiently make use of gaps in their day, will surely continue to be an invaluable partner to the people of Japan going forward.