The in-gym fitness world is an extremely traditional industry, however Les Mills continues to cement its positioning at the forefront of innovation with new offerings for its members nationwide. 

The TRIP is a concept created by Les Mills’ International Innovation Lab in response to research that proved gamification and immersive visual and audio environments drove fitness intensity for novice exercisers. 

Chris Richardson, the Immersive Product Manager explains that The TRIP concept is a “fully immersive hyper-real cycling experience”. 

Explained by Richardson, The TRIP is an immersive journey that is heavily inspired by aspects of real life such as the cinema, live concert experiences and interactive gaming. 

By using technology through big screens and graphics, Les Mills is able to create cycling experiences that have never been seen in the industry before. 

“Cycling studios aren’t new, but they haven’t been reinvented for a while. So we saw an opportunity there,” he says. 

“Effectively, it’s a 40-minute animated movie and it’s completely bespoke.” 

He adds that The TRIP includes bespoke multi-peak cycling workouts through visual digital worlds. 

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Richardson says the process of creating The TRIP includes designing, mood boarding, story boarding, creating a narrative and working with animators to create a “marriage of visuals and music”. 

Unlike existing cycling classes, Les Mills’The  TRIP is a concept that focuses on the experience, with the visuals and music being the hero to really drive the workout. 

To create a TRIP ‘release’ in their growing range of 30, which often takes between 25 to 30 weeks, Richardson says it usually starts with the music, choosing nine to 10 songs from hundreds or thousands. 

“Then often we will drive the visual aspect from elements in the music,” he adds. 

“The other direction we can take is that we will sometimes choose a theme or a look or a particular type of work out design that we want to work within and then look to match music to that.” 

When it comes to The TRIP, music is chosen to “sonically” match the environment created in the visuals. 

He also adds that there is science to creating The TRIP, ensuring users are engaged and fully taking the potential of the class. 

By gamifying and creating an immersive experience, The TRIP ensures it is accessible for all users, whether they are new or a seasoned athlete. 

“For us, we take the approach of less strain, same gain,” he says, explaining that the gamification and immersion, the perceived exertion is a lot lower compared to a traditional cycle class. 

“I think there’s this whole power to attract people, but then also to distract people when they’re in the experience. I remember having times where I would play games and before you know it, the time’s gone. It’s like, ‘Well, where did those two hours go?’. And the same kind of thing applies for us when you step into these workouts that we often hear from riders that time passes so quickly, the 40 minutes is gone just like that.”

Les Mills has continued to be innovative when it comes to the art of working out and are always keen to “stretch the boundaries” for the future of the fitness industry. 

“I think further in the future, [we’ll] probably see more AR type [fitness] experiences,” Richardson says. 

Overall, Richardson says this is only the beginning of more gamification in the fitness space to combat the traditional experiences and continue to take on innovative approaches to fitness. 

THE TRIP is currently available in the following Les Mills clubs; Auckland City, Takapuna, Britomart, Howick, Newmarket and Taranaki Street. Coming in 2023 to Lambton Quay, Christchurch and Dunedin.