05 January 2021
Integrated Wellness and the Future of Design within Tenant Fitness Centers
If we learned anything from 2020, it was the importance of wellness to the individual and the employer. This includes mental, physical, and emotional health. To differentiate fitness center operations and to successfully re-engage tenants in 2021, it will take much more of a comprehensive wellness strategy that focuses on mindfulness and holistic health. The mental toll of 2020 is clear, so having a well balanced wellness approach to fitness center management will be key as tenants move back into their offices. To optimize the approach, it will be important for an operator to customize their wellness solutions to the tenants and provide individualized wellness experiences while offering an array of health related services. It will also be vital to activate all areas of the fitness center. There will be a focus on small group classes, private training and the use of private spaces for meditations, consultations and other interactive wellness sessions. It will also be more important than ever to have a fitness center management company to decrease liability, enforce COVID protocols, and implement engaging programs.
Here are 5 key takeaways:
- Employers are looking for a partner in wellness and not a vendor
- Tailoring individual wellness experiences will become even more important in 2021
- Fitness center staff will play a critical role in the re-engagement of tenants through outreach, programming, surveying, and in-person communication.
- Smaller, more intimate wellness experiences will gain traction
- Virtual will continue to be part of every solution
Employers will be looking for a partner that values their culture, wellness goals and short/long term needs. Employers and their employees will be looking for much more than just an open gym with equipment. Sophisticated wellness solutions that truly understand the needs of employers will gain traction along with ones that address their concerns. Some tenants may be embracing a hybrid model while others may fully move back into their offices and providing solutions that can engage both situations will be key. Health and safety will continue to be at the forefront of every solution.
Virtual is here to stay, but as a layered on service, just like wearables and at home fitness equipment. Wellness will take on many layers as the fitness industry emerges from 2020. Content will be king, as tenants will want to interact with the highest quality content taught from elite wellness professionals that they can connect with.
As a wellness organization, Kinema Fitness has invested heavily into building a robust virtual wellness platform called Be Well and assigned an internal team dedicated to creating and managing all the content. Kinema created this platform for more than just live streaming fitness classes, but also addressing overall well-being and emotional health. Kinema Fitness offers a wealth of live streaming classes, wellness workshops, family activities, culinary demonstrations, mindfulness sessions, virtual personal training and challenges.
Within development, Kinema is in the midst of designing a large number of new and redeveloped tenant fitness centers within multi and single tenant office buildings. Subtle, yet key trends have emerged over the past few years and the pandemic has only enhanced those trends.
Here are some design activations to keep in mind:
- Movement towards wellness in all areas of the fitness center. Integration of private wellness spaces
- Larger and more spacious locker rooms with more countertop space, variety of locker sizes and an increase of overnight lockers
- Increasing the overall footprint of tenant gyms
- Utilization of digital and virtual fitness equipment
- Leveraging of technology within the equipment, member experience and check-in process
- Full service is encompassing much more than just a staffed gym (juice bar, retail, SPA elements)
- Integration of fitness operations and programming within building experience apps
In an environment where mental and physical health have never been more important, Kinema Fitness is at the forefront of providing customized wellness solutions that can address the needs of the sophisticated tenant.
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