Every Friday at 6pm, Antonia Fantasia goes to Solidcore class. Sometimes she will meet friends for dinner or go shopping after class, then she will go home to take a shower, put on a face mask and watch a movie with her roommate before she goes to bed early.
Fantasia, a 26-year-old marketing manager in Boston who has been sober for a year, said this routine is new to her. She started taking group fitness classes a few years ago and scheduled her classes in the morning so she would have an excuse not to drink. Slowly, he stopped making excuses, stopped drinking altogether and made a new routine.
Young people like Fantasia are moving from “barstools to barbells,” according to a recent study by Bank of America. Spending on alcohol is at its lowest level in 40 years, while spending on fitness is on the rise.
For Gen Z and millennials, healthcare is on the rise. The $2 trillion global industry is growing and expanding beyond its core categories, according to a report by consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Nearly 30% of Gen Z and millennials in the United States prioritized fitness more than a year ago, which is higher than older generations.
With the demand to work later in the day, the fitness studio remains open later. SoulCycle, the high-intensity indoor cycling experience, just started offering classes at 10pm at various locations in New York City. Group fitness classes use bright, flashing and loud music, bringing a nightlife atmosphere to it.
“It’s like a party over there,” Fantasia said.
Some studios even cooperate with local bars. Loco Taqueria & Oyster Bar in South Boston has hosted several Pilates classes during the day, before the evening rush.
At Barre Groove, a Boston-based group fitness studio that offers trampoline-based cardio classes, some sessions include a free drink at The Bosworth afterward. Alanna Perry, 36, owner and founder of Barre Groove, started teaching group fitness classes at her local restaurant and bar after hours.
“We’ll teach classes in the room and slide drinks to everyone, and we’ll be the social aspect,” Perry said.
That collaboration forms a connection with the community, Perry said. The brand will partner with fitness studios and offer free gifts before or after class.
“We don’t want it to be just about class,” Perry said. “You have where you live, you have where you work and then you have where you build your community.”
Emily Smith said she first noticed the trend of exercise classes mimicking nightlife five years ago in group fitness classes that use yoga mats such as pilates, sculpture or heated yoga.
Smith, 30, is a sculpt instructor at The Handle Bar, a Boston-based fitness studio that offers cycle, Pilates, sculpt, strength and flow classes across its nine locations. Sculpt Class is a full body workout class using dumbbells, Bala bangles, resistance bands and heated with infrared heat.
Smith has been teaching group fitness classes for nine years and has been taking them since 2013. She describes creating sequences for her classes as “drawing a dance.” He deliberately chooses exercises that match the beat of the music.
“The highest intensity point of the sequence in that highest intensity point of the music helps everything feel really in sync,” said Smith. “It feels powerful.”
Kara Lennon, 36, a Boston-based fitness instructor and content creator, went to group fitness classes because of the friendships and community she formed with like-minded people.
“As someone who has also taught and taken [them] over the years, that’s how I made some of my friends,” Lennon said.
Lennon also fostered connections in other ways. She started a women’s small group exercise program based in Boston called “Hot Girls Lift Weights” in hopes of teaching women how to lift weights safely.
Changing nightlife and work like that will stay, said Carly Picarelli, 30, a social media manager from Boston. People are more health conscious and want to track it with Oura rings and Apple Watches, which wasn’t around 10 years ago, Picarelli said.
“I’ve had my fair share of drinks, so I’m definitely at a stage in my life where I’d rather go to practice than go to a bar,” Picarelli said. “It seems like a cultural shift where fitness is definitely on the rise, and this party lifestyle seems to be going down fast.”
This story is part of a partnership between WBUR and Boston University’s Department of Journalism.
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