What you learn from 500 fitness classes

It’s not how to make burpees fun. That’s impossible. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

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Welcome back to Pursuits Weekly, our look at the world’s biggest culture stories, as well as ideas and recommendations around travel, dining, style and art. Sign up here to get this newsletter every Saturday in your inbox. I’m Chris Rovzar, Pursuits editor-at-large, stepping in for our usual newsletter scribe Felix Salmon while he’s on vacation. I may not be as good with numbers as Felix, an economic journalist with years of finance writing under his belt — but what I do know, after decades of fitness classes, is how to sweat. Time to exercise Clients exercise in a Butt & Legs class at a Barry’s Bootcamp studio in Manhattan. If that looks exhausting, you might consider a lil cheat instead. Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg The other day one of my good friends, Lee Vish, a lawyer in Manhattan, texted me with some news: He was about to hit 700 classes at Barry’s Bootcamp. That may seem like a high number — I’m at 521 myself — but we’ve spent many years taking classes together. For a long time we would meet once a week for class, and it cemented our friendship; we would catch up and gossip while also feeling like we were accomplishing something. In short, we bonded. So it made sense to celebrate this milestone together. The two of us are in our 40s, which, as I recently reported, is the prime time to start panicking about being in shape since men are feeling increasing pressure to remain hot into our 50s and 60s. But as Sarah Rappaport pointed out this week, another age demographic is really driving business at high-end gyms and boutique fitness centers: Generation Z. And it’s not just about looking good — or even about getting strong. As young people increasingly turn away from drinking alcohol, they’re spending more on gym memberships and classes: 30% more than just a year ago, according to market intelligence firm Mintel. These sweaty spaces are beginning to replace bars as places to meet friends and grow relationships. According to doctors and longevity scientists, it’s time to retire the idea that you should give up on your body when you reach middle age. Illustration by Derek Abella for Bloomberg “It reminds me of being in school and sitting next to someone in class and becoming friends because you’re in close proximity,” says Nicolette Brewer, a 25-year-old technology consultant in New York City. Brewer missed a lot of that classroom experience herself, as she attended college during the pandemic. “People are more comfortable living digitally now because of Covid,” she tells Rappaport. “So it’s nice to have a space where we can go out and it’s OK to socialize and start conversations.” Brewer spends about $800 a month on fitness: $300 for her membership at the elite gym chain Equinox, and $500 on studio classes like SoulCycle and the Silhouette Method. She met her boyfriend in a run club, and made many friends by showing up and returning over and over. Sound like a lot of money? It is! Single sessions at boutique fitness outfits in New York like Barry’s or the group workout chain F45 cost $40 or more, and in London, memberships at fancy gyms like Third Space can exceed £3,400 ($4,576) a year. Ultra-elite training programs like Surrenne or the new Tramp Health can cost as much as £15,000. Tiffany Ap, in the green shorts, cheers on her friend at a Hyrox competition in Osaka. The photos captured of you and your friends kicking butt, she writes, is part of the fun. Source: Hyrox Entering a grueling Hyrox competition only costs $180, as Bloomberg Weekend’s Tiffany Ap writes, and it fulfilled the same paired goals of socializing and feeling good. (Or, more precisely, feeling very bad and then feeling great later.) A millennial herself, Ap viewed becoming one of the estimated 2.4 million people to sign up for one of the intensive fitness challenges in 2026 as “the least unpalatable option in the thirties pick-your-personality lineup — the alternatives being pickleball or cold plunging.” “I barely drink, so bars have never really been my scene,” Ap writes. “But getting faster and stronger, and possibly jetting off to a new city for a weekend race, with other people? That I could get behind.” Personally, I know I may not look like I’ve taken 521 Barry’s Bootcamp classes. But what I can absolutely vouch for is the positive effect they’ve had on my community life. I have dozens of friends I’ve made in those red rooms, and some of my favorite mornings are the ones when I manage to make it to my neighborhood studio and hang out with everyone as we get ready for work feeling strong. I’m in my 40s, and I think Brewer and Ap are absolutely on the right track by investing in fitness for the social benefits. After all, can you really put a price on 700 chances to hang out with your friends? By the numbers White ceramic watches from IWC, Zenith, Omega, Swatch, and Hublot are all the rage right now. Source: Companies 36 million The numbers of viewers for Prime Video’s smash-hit Off Campus, the romantic drama about college hockey players, over the course of just 12 days. $78,759 The list price of a single ticket in the fourth row for a Knicks playoffs game on June 8, a price SeatGeek describes as an “Amazing Deal.” $18,900 The retail price of the Zenith Defy Skyline Skeleton watch in white ceramic. Not everyone likes them, but the unusual style is this summer’s timepiece status symbol. It’s after Memorial Day! Wear all the white you can. $1,200 The price per person for a sushi dinner in New York at Masa Takayama’s eponymous restaurant. Kat Odell argues that those big ticket prices are sometimes worth it. Hate the new electric Ferrari? It doesn’t matter The electric Ferrari Luce, writes Bloomberg Opinion’s Chris Bryant, is “quite a stretch.” Source: Ferrari NV Car columnist Hannah Elliott writes: There was much gnashing of teeth this week as Ferrari fans and investors reacted to the brand’s first electric vehicle, the $640,000 Ferrari Luce. Social media ignited with disparaging comparisons to household appliances. Former Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo called for the company’s prancing pony logo to be removed from the car in disgrace. Ferrari’s stock dropped 8% in the hours after the debut.   Conceived by Jony Ive and his LoveFrom firm in collaboration with Ferrari, the Luce evokes the Apple Pro Mouse Ive introduced in 2000. Girded by a monolithic body seemingly suspended around the five-seat cabin, its interior returns some buttons where screens had once reigned.  The grocery-getter will offer supercar-like performance, with 1,035 horsepower and a top speed of nearly 200 mph. But that’s not enough to soothe outrage among the Tifosi (Ferrari superfans) at the look of this shell. If Tesla or Lucid, pure-EV firms, had debuted the Luce, I suspect reactions would have been far more muted. But for Ferrari, the embodiment of beauty, style and sophistication since 1939? A car this mid is an abomination. (Ferrari declined to comment.) But! So long as the stock bounces back, the online hate is irrelevant to the company’s goals. Luce helps Ferrari meet strict environmental regulations across its lineup, which frees the company to continue making the other very profitable machines like the 12Cilindri, 296 GTS and Amalfi that fans dearly love. It just has to sell Luce to a (relative) few new customers in Asia and Europe and move on to more rewarding pursuits.  “Obviously Ferrari can do better than Luce,” says Kevin Tynan, director of research at automotive investment firm the Presidio Group. “But the last thing that matters is what it looks like. It doesn’t have to appeal to anyone.” One Very Specific Recommendation: Swimming headphones ... for running OK, so this is obviously not me, your author Chris Rovzar, but I do love a beachy trail run. And a high pony. You’ll note that the headphones don’t get in the way of either. Source: H20Audio For those athletes who may not like group exercise so much as solo sporty pursuits, I’ve been loving my Tri 2 Multi-Sport headphones from H20Audio. They use bone conduction technology, vibrating your songs and podcasts directly into your skull rather than plugging your ear canal. They’re designed to be worn swimming, so they’re waterproof and can even be loaded with songs via an onboard MP3 player. But I use them for running in the city, so I can listen to my rousing Broadway running mix, “You Can’t Stop the Comfort and Joy.” I don’t worry about them falling out, which sometimes happens with my Apple AirPods, or getting damaged in the rain — and they don’t utilize noise cancellation, a technical innovation that always makes me nervous when I’m running near so many cars and crazy people. Yes, when Andrew Rannells hits the high notes in “I Believe” from The Book of Mormon, I can feel the buzzing on my cheekbones. But it’s a small price to pay for comfort. (And joy.) —CR Go here now: Sardinia You could swim in the aquamarine waters around Sardinia using your H20Audio headphones, just sayin’. Source: Scott Dunn via Shutterstock Don’t be surprised to see Sardinia over your social media feed this summer. Our Where to Go in 2026 pick is now accessible via direct service from New York on Delta, which launches its first nonstop flights there this season. The beloved Italian summer vacation island is experiencing a renaissance as White Lotus-inspired crowds take over the similarly craggy Sicily to the southeast. Sardinia offers megayacht marinas, white sand beaches and a hot new crop of five-star hotels. On our radar: La Tiara di Cervo, a 26-room property on the Costa Smeralda from Alfonso Dolce (of Dolce & Gabbana) and hotelier Aldo Melpignano, the creative mind behind Puglia’s beloved Borgo Egnazia retreat. Another spot ideal for a villeggiatura — the traditional Italian concept of an extended summer break in one location — is the newly renovated Romazzino, a Belmond Hotel. The sensually whitewashed hotel sits in the island’s chic northeast, in an area full of tiny golden coves, and offers cooking classes where guests can try their hands at ancient Sardinian recipes. The area is a designated “blue zone,” where many people live past 100. So, as you sip on the Cannonau di Sardegna wine and reward yourself for all those fitness classes back home, you can remain smug in the knowledge that you’re still investing in your longevity. —Sarah Rappoport More from Bloomberg Ideas & Culture Bloomberg Weekend for big ideas and open questions in the fascinating places where finance, life and culture meet Watch Club for exclusive horology news, access to launch parties, collector meet-ups and brand showcases On Books for reviews and recommendations to expand your thinking The Forecast for thinking about what’s ahead CityLab Weekly for thought-provoking stories, ideas and analysis New for subscribers: Free article gifting. Bloomberg.com subscribers can now gift up to five free articles a month to anyone you want. Just look for the “Gift this article” button on stories. (Not a subscriber? Unlock unlimited access and sign up here.) 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