Surge in Pilates and yoga facilities runs counter to tech workout craze
The U.S. fitness boom has grown even as the obesity epidemic has also surged over the past decade or so. The popularity of adding high-tech twists to the American workout - i.e. with attachable exercise monitors (" wearables ") or stationary bikes with apps - seems to run counter to an exploding yoga craze. The high-tech versus low-tech yogis or Pilates practitioners would, nevertheless, appear to show that exercise is more important than showy and techy ways of doing it. Here in Connecticut, the state is not only peppered with yoga facilities but one is more apt to run into someone with a yoga mat than a set of weights these days. According to a joint 2016 Yoga Journal and Yoga Alliance study , 34 percent of Americans say they are "somewhat or very likely" to practice yoga in the coming year, equal to more than 80 million Americans; and 37 percent of practitioners have kids under age 18 who also practice yoga. - The study also shows that yoga students spend $1...