After more than a year and a half of living with COVID-19, the health and fitness craze is going strong all around the world.

The same goes for Korea, and today we will learn about Korea's fitness culture.

Coronavirus And Fitness Culture

If you search for the 헬스타그램 (health+Instagram) hashtag on Instagram, you will see 8.38 million related posts alone. Even before COVID-19, interest in self-care and well-being was increasing, so interest in fitness was high.

Meanwhile, the outbreak of COVID-19 has raised awareness of the importance of health and led to restrictions on leisure activities, which caused the number of people turning to fitness as a hobby to increase.

These people who entered the world of fitness became more and more motivated and passionate once they saw their steadily improving bodies and health conditions, and before they knew it, working out became a part of their daily lives.

Many people have become serious about the gym, to the point where the a popular question on Internet communities was, "Can you exercise on the day you get the COVID-19 vaccine?"

Situation At Gyms

Source: Yonhap News

Sales at gyms have fallen by more than half due to restrictions on indoor activities, the inconvenience of exercising with masks on, and fear of mass infection.

At gyms in particular, business regulations due to social distancing rules were applied more strictly than in other industries, raising the issue of equity in distancing rules and demands to ease them.

To put it simply, gyms have more restrictions due to COVID-19 than restaurants and cafes. That's why gym owners are complaining that the system is unfair and are demanding that the restrictions on gym operations be eased.

As the restrictions at the gym have become stricter, more customers have demanded refunds for their memberships.

This is because after the implementation of the Level 4 social distancing rules, the use of shower facilities was prohibited and to prevent the spread of saliva in the gym, treadmill speed was limited to less than 6km/h and gyms were not allowed to play fast music over 120bpm.

According to the regulations, BTS's 'Butter', which is 110bpm, can be played, but Psy's 'Gangnam Style' is 132bpm, so it cannot be played. These ambiguous standards have been criticized not only by Korean gym owners but also by international news. In addition, a list of songs that cannot be played at the gym became a meme on the Internet.

As public criticism intensifies, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the guidelines do not apply to regular gym use, but only to music played in high-intensity group classes, such as group aerobics.

They also said that these regulations were decided to minimize the limitation of working days at the gym and that they will strive to create more realistic and fluid rules in the future.

New Types Of Gyms

1) Sanseujang (산스장)

Source: Segye Ilbo

As it became difficult to exercise at the gym, many people headed to outdoor exercise facilities at mountains near their neighborhoods. It became called 'sanseujang' as a combination of san (mountain) and healthjang (fitness center).

People couldn't go to they gym but still wanted to get a workout in, so they started exercising with the equipment in the mountains.

2) Homteujang (홈트장)

Source: Instagram Screenshot

A new, emerging gym is none other than at homes. Hometeu, a new term short for home training, has 1.81 million posts uploaded under its hashtag on Instagram.

Unlike public facilities such as fitness centers, you can safely exercise alone without the risk of spreading COVID-19.

There are also people who put fitness machines in their homes to make it really look like a gym.

In recent years, exercise equipment at gyms that have been closed due to operational difficulties have been sold at low prices on platforms for selling used goods.

Exercise With A Professional

At the gym, you can work out with a professional trainer who'll make sure you're exercising safely with correct form, but this is not possible at home. Therefore, many new services have been created that allow you to work out with professionals at home.

1) Fitness YouTube Channels

Source: YouTube Screenshot

There have always been lots of YouTube videos related to fitness, but the demand for it has increased further as more people do home workouts. As a result, actual trainers, pilates instructors, and rehabilitation treatment experts are producing a lot of content on YouTube.

The number of views on popular health videos usually hit 1 million views and can even get up to 10 million views, showing Koreans' passion for fitness.

2) Paid Gym Classes

Source: CLASS101 Screenshot

Unlike free YouTube videos, more and more people actually pay tuition and take fitness courses online. You can exercise more efficiently by watching high-quality home workout courses conducted by professional trainers.

Body Profile

Body profile shots, which are taken once you've reached your ideal body through high-intensity exercise and diet control, are a big trend among young people.

Now, 2.35 million posts are posted on Instagram, but originally, people viewed body profile pictures as something only celebrities could take. This is because it was difficult for ordinary people to take these profile shots by controlling their exercise and diet as much as celebrities.

However, after the COVID-19 pandemic led to increased time at home and opportunities for health training, and as more and more people began post body profile photos on social media, additional people were motivated and challenged to try it out.

It requires three to six months of preparation and the filming cost is at least 300,000 to 400,000 won (approx. 255 to 340 USD), but more people are making efforts to leave records of their fit bodies while still young.

Fitness-Related Culture

The fitness craze has also created big changes in the content production industry.

In addition to the aforementioned fitness YouTube channels and classes, lots of fitness-related content is being created. In line with this trend, some famous celebrities work as health YouTubers.

1) Content About Fitness

Source: Naver Webtoon [여성전용헬스장 진달래짐 1화]

"Athletic Fat From Today" is a series of videos from the Tasty Guys YouTube channel starring comedian Kim Min-kyung working out to lose weight. However, when she unexpectedly showed excellent talent for working out, she challenged herself to try other sports as well.

Naver webtoon Women's Gym" (여성 전용 헬스장) deals with the main character, who is a fitness beginner, working with a personal trainer to improve her fitness skills and regain a healthy life.

2) Celebrity Fitness YouTubers

Kim Jong-kook is a Korean celebrity who can never be left out when talking about working out. Thanks to his continuous exercise, he is a powerful ace in the Running Man program and is also very famous for his repetitive life of just going between filming and the gym. 

In June this year, he opened a YouTube channel cleverly called GYM JONG KOOK and set a record of achieving 1 million subscribers within five days of its opening.

It is gaining popularity by producing interesting videos, such as filming himself exercising to give exercise tips, interviewing Running Man costar Song Ji-hyo about exercise, and exercising with famous actors.

3) Slang Related To Exercise

As more and more people enjoy working out, new slang naturally emerged. Even fitness-related words made a few years ago in the Internet community pages are still actively used.

Hellini (헬린이)

A combination of health (헬스) and child (어린이), it means someone who is new to working out.

Heljjang / Helchang (헬짱 / 헬창)

It refers to a person who is so immersed in exercise that they are crazy about it. 

3:500 (3대 500)

This means that the sum of the weights that can be lifted in the main 3 strength exercises (deadlift, bench press, squat) is 500kg.

You can change the number depending on how many kg you can lift, and people say they can determine your fitness level according to how much you can lift.

On the Internet, people said you had to reach 3 to 500 to be a true gym enthusiast, and it became a slang term. In reality, it is said to actually be a suitable standard for bodybuilders and power lifters.

Geunsosil (근손실)

People who work out are most afraid of muscle mass reduction and muscle loss.

This word is a combination of muscle (근육) and loss (소실) and became frequently used by people who exercise and are very sensitive to things that cause muscle loss, such as alcohol and unhealthy food.

Fitness Products

1) Smartwatch

As exercise has become a daily routine for many, smartwatches that can track health have become very popular. Many people buy them for convenience and fashion, but others also buy them for health functions, like counting steps and taking measurements as they exercise.

2) Healthy Food

Source: Maeil Kyungjae

According to TMON, demand for chicken breast increased by 70% compared to last year as the amount of people dieting and doing home workouts increased.

In addition, as the demand for healthy foods increased, CU convenience stores launched instant foods with high protein. Various brands are releasing healthy instant foods, such as oatmeal and healthy lunch box meals.

3) Training Wear

Gym clothes and leggings, which are comfortable to wear when exercising, are now easy to find outside in daily life.

Previously, there were many views that leggings were embarrassing to wear because they're form fitting and that gym clothes weren't suitable for fashion purposes.

However, as the era of fitness began, people became more open to athleisure and these clothes became acceptable as fashion items.

Side Effects Of The Fitness Craze

Exercise should be carried out safely and appropriately. However, as many do home workouts alone without an expert, more and more people are suffering damage to their wrists or muscles by exercising with incorrect form.

Also, many people regain weight after body profile shoots because they excessively overworked their bodies in a short period of time.

It's important to work out and get in a great shape, but don't forget that your health is your top priority!