January is always the busiest month of the year at the gym. Why? New Year’s resolutions, of course.

Jeff Loats, manager of Ames Racquet and Fitness, said it only takes three weeks to a month before the trend slows down and things begin to return to normal. After about two months, only gym regulars are frequently seen in the gym.

January is not the only time when people make a resolution to head to the gym more often.

Many students hope to get beach-body ready in time for their tropical adventures, sparking gym attendance the week prior to Spring Break.

“You can see a huge increase one week before Spring Break in the number of people coming to the gym,” Loats said. 

The beginning of the week, primarily Monday and Tuesday nights after 5 p.m., are the busiest for both Ames Racquet and Fitness Centers and Lied Recreation Athletic Center, Loats said. Many students choose to get in a workout after classes.

“We have four really busy times throughout the year,” said Michael Cox, sophomore in mathematics and a manager at Lied. “Right at the beginning in August, and then between Thanksgiving and Winter Break, and then New Years, and finally right before Spring Break.”

Cox agreed with Loats, saying the numbers at Lied start to die down about three weeks into January.

Although Cox did not make a New Year’s resolution this year, he agreed that many newcomers are motivated by a resolution to get in shape.

“There’s probably a lot of things, I know New Year’s resolutions is a big one,” Cox said. “We also have all the people that are trying to work off weight from Winter Break.”

Cox said there are multiple reasons people don’t stick with their resolutions.

“People who go to the gym regularly tend to have a better physique and some people get discouraged from that, which they shouldn’t be. And also, people just get busy and don’t prioritize it,” he said.

Kassidy Barth, junior in materials engineering, and Camille Hoffey, sophomore in biology, both noticed the spike in gym attendance in January. Barth is more of a newcomer, whereas Hoffey is a regular. Both Barth and Hoffey head to the gym at night after class.

Barth hopes to workout more than she did last semester.

“This semester is going to change,” she said. “We’re going to try and go every day.”