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   With gyms in Ontario now open, the next steps in recovery for our industry are finally here. It has been a long haul for everyone, and as excited as we all are to get operational again, there are still some steps to go to full recovery. 

  Like other businesses, the physical activity industry has turned up the volume on its online program offerings. Experts say that once in-person training is allowed again across the country, the new business model is expected to be a virtual-physical hybrid. 

 The Fitness industry took a hit last year, being one of the first sector to be shutdown during the pandemic.  It has been a rollercoaster for the industry in Ontario where the government has declared three provincial emergencies. 

For obvious reasons, most people who had any sort of fitness routine were forced to change it in 2020. Instead of going to the gym or attending group fitness classes, we set up mats in our living rooms for virtual workouts, went on socially distanced hikes, and frantically scoured the internet for a set of dumbbells.  

Health professionals who sign the “Medical Endorsement of Exercise & Lifestyle Medicine” letter affirm "[health] clubs provide a place for our patients to work on their physical and mental health and experience much-needed socialization in a safe, controlled environment.” 

 Some companies, like gyms and athletic-apparel manufacturers, are struggling. Others, like makers of at-home workout equipment and providers of online fitness services, are thriving. Here are six fitness categories that are taking over or falling apart thanks to pandemic. 

 For Peloton, the pandemic has been profitable. The at-home fitness company announced its first-ever quarterly profit, which was bolstered by a 172 per cent surge in sales and more than 1 million people subscribing to its streaming classes. 

The company offers a mirror that turns into an interactive home gym. When turned off, it acts as a full-length basic mirror. The company offers a mirror that turns into an interactive home gym. When turned off, it acts as a full-length basic mirror.

Boutique outfits have been the fitness industry's biggest driver of growth for much of the past decade. The latest study by the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association found that premium clubs made up the fastest-growing brick-and-mortar exercise category and pushed the industry to an almost $100 billion estimation this year.

The increase in buyers to gym equipment stores comes as gyms like Goodlife Fitness and Fit4Less announced on Monday that they will be closing down their Canadian stores in an attempt to help reduce the local spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With many gyms and studios closing up shop to adhere to social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, trainers and studios around the world are now taking to social media to livestream their workouts (meaning you can access them for up to 24 hours; some gyms are also saving the streams for later viewing)—for free.