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 She had her heart set on an exercise bike from Peloton, known for
its high-tech equipment and virtual classes, but they were
temporarily sold out. However, she was able to find a Schwinn
equivalent from Amazon.
"I was afraid to, one, get out of shape, and, two, I'm staying
inside and working on my computer all day," Osaka said. "I needed a
change, and I needed structure to my life."
With millions of Americans staying home, demand has soared for
fitness equipment to create home gyms - both as a way to stay fit
and to relieve stress.
The NPD Group reported fitness equipment sales rose 130% in March
from a year ago. Sales of exercise bikes were up 170%, free weights
up 181%, and benches up 259%, according to the market research
company.
Freelance journalist Hoda Emam in San Francisco bought a trampoline
to keep her three kids under the age of five occupied.
"The kids were waking up in the morning with a ton of energy," Emam
said. "Under normal circumstances, they would go to school or
preschool, and we did not have a way to get out all this pent-up
energy."
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Now, she and her husband can focus on work.
In the coronavirus era, companies are shifting gears, said Ryan McGrotty,
co-founder of Rep Fitness, a fitness equipment supplier in Denver.
"A lot of the companies that had previously specialized in commercial equipment
are now starting to market things towards the home gym market," McGrotty said.
"I think a lot of companies, if they want to survive, that's honestly going to
be the way that they have to go, at least for the next year or so."
McGrotty declined to give numbers, but said his company was seeing demand that
"exceeds Black Friday levels, every day since March 13."
(Reporting by Aleksandra Michalska in New York; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and
Rosalba O'Brien)
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