According to the survey of more than 10,000 consumers across five continents, 52% of respondents leaned human-first, with 31% strongly preferring a real trainer and another 21% leaning that way. Importantly, Gen Z and Millennials strongly preferred human coaches \u2014 Les Mills<\/a> found that just 11% of 16-27-year-olds and 9% of 28-40-year-olds prefer AI-generated content.<\/p>\n Gyms are also pushing new tech in other ways, but many consumers aren\u2019t on board. Since taking over for Blink Fitness, PureGym<\/a> has brought its automated entry pods over from the U.K. to New York City. The problem? Many Big Apple gymgoers don\u2019t like the tech<\/a>, with some complaining on social media that they find the pods dangerous and claustrophobic. Others, meanwhile, don\u2019t like that there\u2019s no human staff at the front desk.<\/p>\n PureGym, for its part, has maintained that its pods are in compliance with all relevant fire codes and the Americans with Disabilities Act. But the uproar underscores a wider trend: fitness consumers want to maintain the human element when they go to the gym.<\/p>\n Peloton Reiterates Strategy Around Strength, Wellness Content<\/p>\n In a letter to shareholders earlier this month<\/a>, Peloton CEO Peter Stern doubled down on the idea that the connected fitness giant doesn\u2019t want to be known as a bike company. In the letter, Stern identified more strength training content and more holistic wellness content as the keys to Peloton\u2019s future.<\/p>\n Amid the rise of GLP-1s, Stern called pairing cardio with strength training a \u201cnew and growing member acquisition opportunity,\u201d and hinted that Peloton could be working on new hardware<\/a> along those lines.<\/p>\n![\"Connected](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/March-report-connected-fitness-Peloton-FEATURE-768x512.webp.webp\")
credit: Peloton<\/p>\n