Like most cities across China, life in Lanzhou is starting to resemble normality again as COVID-19 controls ease.

Gyms in Gansu's provincial capital are among the many businesses to reopen their doors, much to the relief of fitness enthusiasts. However, returning to pre-lockdown levels of trade is a far from easy task for gyms and sports venues.

"For the sake of the prevention and control of COVID-19, we saw a low turnout in our gym, less than half that of last year. Pressure is mounting on many gyms," said Peng Yidong, who runs a gym in downtown Lanzhou.

"How to rebound from a record low is what every gym, or even the whole sports industry, had better figure out."

When the epidemic first hit and forced the closure of public exercise areas, many gyms in China chose to stream fitness classes in the hope of building customer loyalty via the creation of an online community.

Peng and his colleagues also created a WeChat group for online tutoring.

"At first merely one or two customers clocked in every day. As time went on, the numbers grew. Quite a lot of exercisers would ask questions about the moves, which is nice to see," Peng said. "During the pandemic, the popularity of indoor workouts was a sign of rising professionalism."

One of the positive effects of the virus outbreak, and more specifically life in lockdown, has been a heightened awareness among the public about the importance of physical fitness.

"After the gym reopened, I found myself a personal trainer to guide my anaerobic exercise and diet choices," one Lanzhou gym goer, Zhang Peng, told Xinhua.

Zhang admitted he used to lack discipline to stick with his exercise schedule but is now taking a more customized and systematic approach.

"Hopefully I will have the perfect body shape and be healthier through training," he added.

Peng reckons "professionalism is among the factors that could save gyms from collapsing".

"Good quality equipment, experienced teachers for group fitness classes and highly qualified coaches are the key factors in the recovery of gyms," he added. "We should keep this in mind and take a step further."

Every week, Li Ming, an office worker living near the gym, takes dance fitness class.

"I love dancing in the gym. At home there's not the same relaxing and enjoyable atmosphere as there is during the class. Dance exercise not only strengthens my body, but helps me unwind with music," she said. "It's a healthy, efficient and fun way to exercise."

Since reopening, the gym is offering over 15 different kinds of group fitness classes, including yoga, kickboxing and Pilates, to cater to customers' wide-ranging needs.

"They are of a very high standard," Peng said. "Take the dance fitness class, for example－teachers must be certified. Qualified teachers are few and far between, and much more so for ones with the charm to kindle enthusiasm."

As the industry embraces professionalism, under-qualified coaches may well be weeded out. Personal trainer Xu Qi told Xinhua that, due to higher customer expectation, coaches need to raise their game.

"Now people come to gyms not just for fitness and to slim down. Their goals vary," Xu said.

"Teenagers, for example, long to lose weight while mothers seek to recover from having a baby. It calls for broad knowledge and highly experienced coaches."

Xinhua in Lanzhou