Research

Adherence

During pandemic lockdown, individuals previously engaged in resistance training maintained participation rates (82.8%) but adapted their training location to home, shifted to bodyweight exercises, and reduced perceived effort, resulting in lower perceived effectiveness and enjoyment.

If you are used to training in a gym, do not stop training when you cannot access it. Shift to bodyweight exercises or home equipment, and accept that your perceived effort and enjoyment might drop temporarily. Focus on maintaining the habit of training 2-3 times per week rather than perfecting the routine or intensity. Your body will adapt, and you can gradually reintroduce complexity as access allows.

ModerateQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
A majority of individuals (82.8%) maintained participation in RT during-lockdown... There was reduced probability of training in privately owned gyms (~ 59% to ~ 7%) and increased probability of training at home (~ 18% to ~ 89%)... reduced probability of resistance machines (~ 66% to ~ 13%) and free weight use (~ 96% to ~ 81%), and increased probability of bodyweight training (~ 62% to ~ 82%)... moderate reduction in the perception of effort experienced during-training (r = 0.31)... perceived effectiveness, enjoyment, and likelihood of continuing current training were all lower during-lockdown.
James Steele et al. · Sports Medicine · 2021

Why this rating

Large sample size (n=5389) and robust statistical modeling (GEE), but relies on self-reported data which introduces recall and social desirability bias.

Source

The Impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Related Public-Health Measures on Training Behaviours of Individuals Previously Participating in Resistance Training: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study

James Steele et al. · Sports Medicine · 2021

DOI 10.1007/s40279-021-01438-5

cross_sectional · n=5389Cited 37×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →