{"id":613540,"date":"2026-09-03T21:54:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T21:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/613540\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T21:54:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T21:54:10","slug":"dubai-gym-launches-workout-class-in-complete-darkness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/613540\/","title":{"rendered":"Dubai gym launches workout class in complete darkness"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"dropcap\">Dubai residents can now take part in a workout class held entirely in the dark, with no mirrors, screens, phones or other visual distractions.<\/p>\n<p>GymNation has launched Dans le Noir: Class in the Dark, a 45-minute fitness experience designed to shift participants\u2019 attention away from their appearance and towards how their bodies move.<\/p>\n<p>Before the lights are switched off, participants complete a short grounding sequence featuring balance exercises, joint mobilisation and proprioceptive activation. This prepares them to move safely and confidently once they can no longer rely on their vision.<\/p>\n<p>During the class, participants wear weighted vests and wrist weights while completing a sequence of functional movements, strength exercises and breathwork. Instructions and music are delivered through wireless headphones.<\/p>\n<p>The instructor is the only person able to see inside the room, using night vision goggles to move around the space and monitor participants throughout the session.<\/p>\n<p>According to GymNation\u2019s 2026 Fitness Report, 47 per cent of respondents cited fear of judgement as the main barrier preventing them from joining or returning to a gym.<\/p>\n<p>The company said the new format aims to remove some of that pressure by creating an environment where participants cannot see or compare themselves with others.<\/p>\n<p>Sports scientist Aderito Manuel said removing visual input forces the body to rely more heavily on proprioception, which is the internal sense of position, balance and movement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen we remove visual input, the body is forced to rely on proprioception, our internal sense of position, balance and movement,\u201d Manuel said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis activates stabiliser muscles that are routinely underused in conventional training environments. The mind-muscle connection that athletes spend years trying to develop becomes almost involuntary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rory McEntee, chief marketing officer at GymNation, said the class was created in response to the visual culture surrounding fitness.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re obsessed with the visual in fitness, mirrors, cameras, content,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve turned working out into a performance, and for a lot of people, that performance is terrifying before they\u2019ve even picked up a weight.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDans le Noir removes all of that. It is, genuinely, the best workout you\u2019ve never seen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Dubai sessions will take place at GymNation MotorCity at 8.30am on September 6, 13, 20 and 27. Each session has limited capacity and requires advance registration.<\/p>\n<p>Participants will be provided with weighted equipment, dumbbells and wireless headphones. Phones, cameras and photography will not be permitted inside the class.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/IMG_1710_JPG.jpeg\" alt=\"Waad Barakat\" height=\"124\" width=\"124\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dubai residents can now take part in a workout class held entirely in the dark, with no mirrors,&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":613541,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[499,103,61,60],"class_list":["post-613540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=613540"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613540\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/613541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=613540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=613540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=613540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}