“You are not a New Year’s resolution” – Luxury Gym Slammed For Refusing New Members on Jan 1

With the new year, most of us would often set up and list down our new year’s resolution in hopes of improving several aspects of our lives.

One of the most common resolutions is to either lose weight or get fitter, resulting in gyms being filled to the brim with people in the first week of January.

Although this is good for most gyms as they’d see an increase in sales, some gyms on the other hand don’t believe in this practice.

Recently it was reported that a luxury gym chain had refused to allow new members in its gyms on January 1 as a part of its “We Don’t Speak January” campaign.

In a post on their social media pages, Equinox wrote,

“January is a language we don’t understand. A fantasy, delivered to your door in a pastel colored box. It talks about change.”

“It wants you to start something when you should be in the middle of it. It thinks time is on its side. It needs a new outfit before it can begin. Stalling, short-cutting, giving up. WE DON’T SPEAK JANUARY. EQUINOX IS NOT FITNESS. IT’S LIFE.”

“You are not a New Year’s resolution. Your life doesn’t start at the beginning of the year. And that’s not what being part of Equinox is about,” the club posted on its website on January 1.

They also showcased their advertising materials for this campaign on several bus stop billboards and even posted a TikTok video captioned “Take your resolutions somewhere else”, with the person in the video smirking at the fact that no new people were allowed in their Equinox gym at the start of the new year. 

The video has since been deleted.

Gatekeeping fitness?

Equinox’s bold choice to refuse new members on January 1 backfired among some in the fitness community online.

While the message was meant to be call to action for discipline and long-term change instead of short-lived shortcuts, it didn’t go over well with the majority of people in the fitness community.

“If someone wants to have a goal on January 1 that’s going to make them healthier, stronger and live longer, you should encourage it. Not stomp on them for it.”

One user said, “I don’t want to support a gym that shames people for setting fitness goals during any month of the year.”

On the other hand, a minority of users supported the campaign and said that it works well as it prioritises current members rather than just cater to new members.

“It’s a good idea to prioritise (the) comfort of the current members over resolutioners who will end up not going anyway.”

“Essentially, you want members you can retain,” said another user.

Equinox reopened its membership application pool on January 2, according to its website.

What is your stance on this? Is it fair?

Also read: “If I can, you can too” – M’sian Man Shares His Inspiring 48kg Weight Loss Journey