Years of experience have given me the opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills that allow me to work confidently in the field of designing biophilic environments. Because I have spent so many hours working in this realm, I can hardly contain my excitement over the potential of biophilic design in gym spaces. Yes, gyms. Think about it: so many of these facilities can be described as the antithesis of biophilic design—bleak, sterile, artificially lit, metallic, and mirror-covered environments that are anything but inviting. And yet, the irony is that we go to gyms to pursue that which is good for our health as well as our mental, spiritual, and emotional well-being. Biophilic gym design can close the gap that we so often find ourselves in between the health benefits we seek and the environments we inhabit.
How I Learned About the Idea Behind a Biophilic Gym
Several years ago, I began the work of biophilic gym design. My first project was a fitness center that wanted a biophilic approach to really stand out from the competition. And it’s not easy, folks. Most fitness facilities are not well-ventilated, rely heavily on artificial light, and are inundated with unhealthy materials like plastics. Meanwhile, our conversations regarding reconnection with nature often focus on urban architecture or environmental design. Few people think of those topics in relation to the world of fitness. So Heather and I worked hard. We pushed ideas to their limits, and while we were at it, we ignited some really interesting conversations about fitness and “occubation” (working out in a nested environment).
When I started this project, I brought a personal trainer into our early design model to get a sense of how a coach felt about the place.
Introducing Nature Into the Interior: The Biophilic Gym’s Essential Features
Creating a gym that is truly biophilic is an intricate task. It goes far beyond the simple strategies of adding greenery or incorporating wood materials. A biophilic gym is one whose environment promotes not just abundant expressions of the natural world—through greenery, light, and space, for example—but also the immersive essence of nature’s many diverse forms. From my perspective, and from my experience working both as a designer and a consultant, I see several essential elements that compose such a space: natural materials, abundant greenery, light that mimics sunlight, forms that resemble the natural world, and sounds and scents that render the experience complete.
Materials Found in Nature
Natural materials are crucial in making a gym feel biophilic. On one project, we put down reclaimed wood for flooring and used bamboo for partitioning the various workout zones. The warmth and texture of those two materials stood in stark contrast to the cold, industrial feel gyms typically have. In fact, if I had my way, I’d use lots of different kinds of natural materials in every fitness space I designed. I might put stone tiles in the yoga area for a grounding effect, a subtle reminder that nature is beneath our feet while those who participate in yoga are momentarily defying gravity. One of the clients who trained in this gym mentioned how the tactile quality of the wood beneath her feet during her warm-up exercises made her feel more connected to the ground, as if she were literally warming it up for the kinds of moves and the kind of flow that would happen next.
An Opulent Amount of Greenery
One way we can add truly powerful biophilic elements into a fitness center is by adding greenery. Recently, I collaborated on a university fitness center that was built within a historic mansion. Given the building’s constraints and the gym’s need for ventilation, we opted for one of the biophilic design moves that’s easiest to pull off but also yields quite a few benefits: living walls.
Using them as a focal point, we also had the chance to use plants for performing acoustics—because having a wood shop next door wasn’t going to set the stage for a very zen fitness experience. The result is a space where users can see and interact with plants, a much better airspace (great for all that inhaling happening during workouts), and a much less audibly intense room both with and without soundtracks accompanying our moves.
Light from Nature
No other element can change the character of a space quite like natural light. Incorporating sunlight into a biophilic gym elevates it to a whole new level. For a recent project, I teamed up with an architect to install skylights above the free weight section and large, floor-to-ceiling windows in the yoga area. This transformed the biophilic gym into a truly open structure. Not only does all that natural light hit the space, but the rays also come with a view—there’s beautiful landscaping right outside those enormous windows. Now, there used to be a time when I thought the adjacent views were overrated. I used to work out in a space with views of the Punk Rock era holdout known as the Urban Outfitters at the corner of 3rd and Arch. And let me tell you, when the clouds thicken and the sun disappears for the day, that view is about as appealing as a landscape of abandoned real estate.
Creating with consideration for every sense
Biophilic design in gyms is unlike anything else because it gives value to something far beyond just appearance. It attends to the entire sensory experience. And you can’t create a truly biophilic environment while neglecting any of the five senses. Natural sound is our first medium.
In the past, the majority of gyms seemed to depend on loud, high-energy music to keep people motivated and moving during their workouts. For biophilic design projects, though, we have been focusing less on beat-driven, high-decibel tunes and more on the type of sound environment that best supports different kinds of workout activities. For instance, soundscapes with drumming might be good for high-intensity workouts, while ambient nature sounds (birdsong, water, wind, etc.) in a sound system would work well for meditation spaces or for the barely-there background necessary for yoga or tai chi.
Another potent tool for elevating the gym experience is scent. I remember a fitness studio where we put lavender and eucalyptus plants in key spots to boost relaxation and create a spa-like, calming atmosphere. For the high-intensity workouts, we went with energizing scent combinations of straight citrus and minty essential oils. One client was super into the fresh, natural scents and even claimed that they helped him stay (and feel) more alert during workouts and totally unwound him during yoga sessions. And while we’re not scenting the gym just for the heck of it, we’re definitely not apologizing for creating an olfactory experience—it’s a way to enhance the workout with something that feels nice, hopefully making us relax more and work out harder.
Physical fitness and mental wellness are not mutually exclusive; they are inextricably linked. Yet some people may still think of exercise as something confined to the gym, especially since gyms are often not that calming of a space. Eliminate the judgment, create a clear “path of progress,” and help people look at working out as something that can also enhance their mental fitness as well. With that in mind, let’s turn to some concrete examples of how biophilic design might work in a gym.
Once, I had a conversation with a woman who went to one of the biophilic gyms I worked on. She told me that the natural elements made her feel less anxious. It helped her focus on her own progress when she worked out, rather than feeling like she had to keep up with or even outdo other gym-goers. The biophilic design made the gym feel more like a personal space and less like a competitive one. It kind of feedback that keeps me driven to use biophilic principles in fitness spaces as well as other kinds of spaces. These kinds of pleasurable workouts in beautiful spaces can help transform how we experience being fit and healthy.
The future design of biophilic gyms, in my opinion, will hinge on two ideas: adaptability and integration. One can easily envision a gym that integrates seamlessly with gardens. In such a space, people could work out and then spend leisure time working in the gardens and practicing a form of post-workout active recovery. Or think of studios that use seasonal change—adaptation to the elements—as a design concept, where something like a living roof would see the kinds of natural plant growth in gardens that you might expect in spring, summer, or autumn.
Biophilia is already a big part of the equation. Advances we’re seeing in eco-friendly exercise equipment, like energy-harvesting treadmills, are one step toward an even greater harmony between workout tech and workout nature. I can envision screens that simulate candlelight for yoga classes, LED panels that “simulate” sunlight for evening spin sessions, and other technologies (sound, scent, even taste) that keep us ever-more connected to the World Outside.
The biophilic gym design’s primary goal is to forge a new identity for the gym, one that encompasses not just the physical realm but also the mental, emotional, and even spiritual dimensions of human life. It seeks, in other words, to establish the gym as a holistic center in which beings can connect with and experience forms of well-being that transcend the humdrum existence of daily life.
Creating these spaces has taught me that when we dissolve the distinctions between inside and outside, we construct something unique and vital—more than just a room in which to lift weights or alter aneuploidy in the human genome. More than a password-protected place in which to perfect a downward-facing dog. When we design indoors and out as one, we create a retreat, a midnight-blue sanctuary, in our fast-to-the-gym lives. And we prostrate ourselves before wellness here.
