For many women, losing the ‘Quarantine 15’ goes beyond diet and exercise. BeBalanced Natural Weight Loss Centers address the underlying cause of pandemic weight gain through natural hormone balancing.
Article by Chris LaMorte 1851 Franchise Editor
Last year while people were sheltering in place, learning to bake bread and indulging in comfort cuisine, the weight loss industry struggled. What had grown to a staggering $78 billion industry in 2019 lost 21% of its value in 2020.
Today, however, the weight loss and fitness industries are already starting to return to fighting shape. Health Clubs are nearing 2019 numbers, and for specialized studios, the outlook is even better, as Americans attempt to shed those extra pounds they added since the beginning of the pandemic.
But for women, particularly those over 35, it’s going to take more than a few extra minutes on the treadmill to shed their so-called “Quarantine 15.” According to David Cutillo, CEO of BeBalanced Natural Weight Loss Centers, a growing franchise chain of wellness centers that addresses weight gain through natural hormone rebalancing, the root cause of weight gain was pandemic stress.
“Women over the age of 35 think it’s a bad diet and lack of exercise that’s causing them to gain weight,” he said. “It’s not about the exercise. It’s about the additional stress, which can cause hormone imbalances, which in turn cause these women to gain unwanted weight more easily. This is the plight of women as they age, adding stubborn weight because of added stress.”
And women certainly have felt additional stress, according to researchers. A study commissioned by McKinsey & Company, “The Pandemic’s Gender Effect,” concluded that women were disproportionately affected by the stressors of the COVID-19 crisis.
In addition to their concerns about the virus, mothers were more likely to oversee their children’s virtual schooling and took on additional caregiving responsibilities for the family. That was in addition to managing their careers. All told, the McKinsey report said that mothers added 15 more hours of household duties per week, nearly twice as much as fathers.
The study said the impact was particularly strong for three groups of women: working mothers, women in senior management positions and Black women.
According to Cutillo, BeBalanced is seeing large growth as women over the age of 35, seek to address the negative effects that stress hormones can have on their weight.
“Sales are up, and new centers are opening at a faster pace,” said Cutillo. “In addition to a major businessman developing 18-20 BeBalanced Centers in Dallas, Houston, and Austin, we have a couple adding three centers in San Antonio, another couple developing in Abilene, Texas, and another franchisee building a center in Hartford, Connecticut – with way more coming.”
“We are seeing the surges in new clients that we normally see in January and February in May and in June,” he said. “We think it’s going to continue as more women find they are not getting weight loss results through typical diet and exercise, particularly women in their mid-thirties and older, including those nearing or past menopause.”
“The two biggest issues that women face as they age are stubborn weight and menopausal symptoms, and those can’t be addressed by just physical exercise,” Cutillo said. “By helping rebalance hormones, not only are we resolving these two big issues, but our program is also solving two other health issues impacted by COVID19 – helping women better deal with stress and strengthening their immune system.”
For women thinking of getting back into shape this summer — whether it’s to lose the quarantine weight or just to get ready for a poolside vacation — BeBalanced gives them a tool to look their best, and stay healthy.
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About BeBalanced Natural Weight Loss Centers:
Founded in 2007 and franchising since 2015, BeBalanced is a Pennsylvania-based franchise of non-medical, Holistic centers, helping women lead their best lives through natural solutions to stubborn weight, PMS, and menopausal symptoms. Today, there are 25 centers open and operating throughout Pennsylvania, Maryland, Texas, Minnesota, Florida, New York, Arizona and Virginia.
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If you have ever considered owning a rewarding business that is helping to change the lives of others, BeBalanced could be the right fit for you! To learn more visit our franchise section today.