There’s a particular kind of space many of us return to again and again — not because we have to, but because it feels good to be there. For some, it’s a coffee shop. For others, it’s a friend’s kitchen table. And for a lot of people, it’s the pub.
Not necessarily the one with the best drinks or the nicest loos, but the one where someone nods as you walk in. Where you don’t need to explain your order. Where there’s a rhythm, a sense of familiarity, and a low-level comfort in the background that makes everything else feel a little easier.
That kind of place does something quite important. It meets you where you are — not where you think you’re supposed to be.
And honestly, we think more gyms could take a leaf out of that book.
Training should feel like something you get to do
The fitness industry is full of pressure. Track your macros. Smash your PBs. Work harder. Sweat more. Make it count. There’s a constant edge of self-optimisation — a sense that if you’re not pushing, you’re falling behind.
But most people don’t need more pressure. They need consistency, structure, and an environment they actually want to return to.
That’s what a good pub gets right — and what most gyms miss entirely.
It’s not about comfort for the sake of complacency. It’s about familiarity, community, and that subtle sense of being known. In the best gyms — and the best pubs — you’re not anonymous. You’re not just passing through. You’re part of it.
Fitness that’s designed around people, not performance
At Foundry, we run personal training in small groups. Sessions are booking only, and we have maximum 300 members at each of our gyms. That means you’re coached by someone who knows your name, knows your history, and knows how to adapt a session if you’re not feeling 100%. It means you’re training alongside other people, but you’re not all doing the same thing. It’s structured, not standardised.
We follow a central programme, designed by our Heads of Product and Programming, that gives every member progressive, intelligent training — and we personalise it where needed. There’s no guesswork. No generic circuits. No one being left to figure it out alone.
It’s still proper training. You’ll lift heavy, work hard, and get stronger over time. But it’s not performative. No one’s showing off. No one’s shouting. It’s purposeful, respectful, and focused.
Like a good pub, the culture is built on connection, not competition.
And like a good pub, people come back — not because they’re told to, but because they want to.
A gym you don’t dread going to
We’ve all known the other kind. The gyms where you feel like you’re being watched. The ones that are all mirrors and Bluetooth headphones and people hogging the squat rack to film themselves. The ones that leave you wondering whether you’re even doing it right.
That’s not what we’re trying to be.
We want our gyms to feel like a place you can walk into at the end of a long day (or at the beginning of a tough one) and feel better just for being there.
A place where the coaching is thoughtful, the community is welcoming, and the outcomes — strength, fitness, confidence — come as a result of showing up, not chasing perfection.
So no, we’re not installing taps or beer gardens. But the comparison still holds.
Because training works best when it’s embedded in something real: a rhythm, a place, a community. And if your gym feels more like a pub than a performance arena — somewhere you actually want to return to, week after week — we’d argue that’s a very good thing indeed.
Want to try Foundry for yourself? Challenge us for 21 days, no strings attached: get started here.
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