SEATTLE — The first day of 2022 means a chance to jump on new year resolutions, but for those who planned to jump on a treadmill, the COVID-19 omicron variant might have you thinking twice.
It's not good news for the fitness industry, which counts on a surge of new members this month while struggling to recover ever since the pandemic started.
Cathy Kearns runs the HIIT Lab in West Seattle and remains optimistic that this year is going to be better, but she admits it’s getting harder. "Everybody was excited for 2021, and then it was a little bit wah-wah,” she said. “I’m entering into 2022 cautiously hopeful.”
According to the Global Health and Fitness Coalition, 27% of the 40,000 gyms and fitness facilities that were open in 2019 nationwide had closed by the middle of 2021.
Kerns believes physical health is important, but a critical part of staying open is providing a mental outlet for her clients, especially as the pandemic lingers on.
“That's been the most rewarding part of it is people feel like it gives them that mental strength and willingness to keep going forward,” Kerns said.
After getting community support over the last few years, Kerns says she worries less about staying in business. But she admits the emotional exhaustion is more of a struggle than it used to be.
“I'll keep going. It's not easy, but I'll keep going,” she said.