When Grief Wrecks Your Rhythm
You don’t need to be told that loss changes you. But here’s what doesn’t get said enough: it also changes your biology. When you’re grieving, your body experiences a massive surge in stress hormones like cortisol, which affects sleep, appetite, memory and even immune function. According to the World Health Organization, people who have recently experienced the death of a loved one are up to 80% more likely to develop depression. That’s not just an emotional dip, that’s a physiological overload.
So, if you’re forgetting things, struggling to eat, or waking up with your chest already heavy, it’s not just “in your head.” It’s in your nervous system. And when your nervous system is flooded, routines you once found grounding (like training or your favourite class) may now feel unreachable.
But this is also where the slow return begins.
A Gym That Doesn’t Ask Questions
Therapy is one form of healing and processing – and training is another. What makes gym different is that it doesn’t demand a story. You don’t need to explain why you’re here, or why you’re crying mid-rep, or why you left halfway through. You just come as you are and move. That’s it.
And the thing is, movement really does help. In a clinical study led by Dr James Blumenthal at Duke University, structured training (specifically aerobic movement) was found to be as effective as antidepressants in treating mild to moderate depression. The science has caught up to what many people already know in their bones: you don’t always need to talk your way through pain. Sometimes, you can move through it instead.
In South Africa, this is even more significant. Mental health support is critically under-resourced, with just 0.31 psychologists available for every 10,000 people. That means many of us won’t access therapy when we need it most. But the gym? That’s often more accessible. More consistent. Less intimidating. A space where you can exhale, sweat, cry, or just sit in stillness on the mat. And that matters.
You’re Not the Only One Crying Between Reps
You’ve probably seen her. The woman on the treadmill who stares straight ahead, tears quietly streaming. Or the guy who comes in every Sunday and trains like it’s the only thing holding him together. Maybe you’ve been that person – the one holding back a sob during a stretch, just trying to keep it together in a room full of music and mirrors.
There are more of us than you think.
There’s the young woman who trains in the early mornings to avoid seeing reminders of her partner. The father who started HYROX to manage his rage after losing a sibling. The mother who comes in just to walk – slowly, steadily – because it’s the only place she feels like herself again.
Grief doesn’t follow neat timelines, and its presence doesn’t need to be hidden or taboo either. At Planet Fitness, we know that for some people, training isn’t about performance. It’s about staying afloat.
Healing Doesn’t Have to Look Heroic
We’re going to say it: you don’t have to train hard to heal. Some days, healing looks like just showing up. Sitting on a bench. Breathing. Listening to your body instead of pushing through it. Letting your chest open. Letting your breath come back.
And if that’s all you do today? That’s enough.
This isn’t about getting back to who you were before. Grief changes you – but it certainly doesn’t erase you. With time and rhythm, training becomes more than just physical. It becomes a quiet act of return to yourself, your body and your life.
You might always carry the weight of what you’ve lost. But that doesn’t mean you have to carry it alone.
Never mind moving on – let’s talk about moving forward.
Whether it’s your first time back, or your first time ever, your grief is welcome at Planet Fitness. No pressure or performance, just presence.
Join your nearest Planet Fitness today or simply come in and move through it all the way you need to. We’ll hold the space.
