This captured image shows a fitness channel on YouTube. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 5 (Korea Bizwire) — Government restrictions on outdoor activities and gatherings due to the pandemic are resulting a spike in the popularity of exercise videos on YouTube.
One of the most popular fitness channels on YouTube is Gym Jong Kook, a channel run by South Korean singer Kim Jong-kook. The channel reached 1 million followers just five days after it first opened, and now has 1.34 million followers.
Kim, a long-time fitness enthusiast, offers guidance and tips on physical exercise for each part of the body, gaining massive support from fitness fans.
Among similar channels run by female celebrities, Soyougi, a channel run by singer Soyou, stands out as it is followed by 197,000 people.
The former member of disbanded K-pop girl group Sistar shares diet recipes and tips on beauty and exercise, largely welcomed by women.
Fitness channels run by non-celebrities, too, are gaining massive popularity.
Thankyou BUBU, a fitness channel on YouTube run by a married couple in their mid-30s, has attracted more than 2.87 million followers by sharing tips on diet, exercise and stretching.
Experts expect that the popularity of fitness channels on YouTube will continue.
“In the pre-coronavirus era, staying indoors was seen as a bad thing. Now, staying indoors, and even exercising at home is seen as an ideal lifestyle for many. Our values and viewpoints have surely changed,” culture critic Kim Heon-shik said.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
