#Weightlifting

Picture this: you’re standing in front of a barbell loaded with more weight than you can imagine. The crowd is silent, all eyes on you. In a single, explosive movement, you have to lift that entire weight from the floor and hoist it straight over your head. This isn’t just about brute strength; it’s a test of power, speed, and perfect technique. Welcome to the world of Olympic weightlifting, one of the most demanding and awe-inspiring sports you’ll ever see. It’s a sport where a split second of hesitation or a tiny flaw in form can mean the difference between a gold medal and a failed lift. In this guide, we’ll break down everything you need to know about this incredible sport, from its two powerful lifts to the rules that govern the quest to be the strongest.

For years, popular wisdom — and much of the Thai public’s workout regimen — has focused heavily on running, cycling, aerobics, or other forms of cardiovascular exercise as the best path to health and a desirable body. But a new wave of research and expert discussion signals it may be time to rethink our devotion to cardio. Resistance training, more widely known as weightlifting, is rapidly gaining traction as not just an add-on to cardio, but as a potentially more sustainable, empowering pathway to overall fitness, especially among women and those struggling with “exercise burnout” (LA Times).

A new fitness trend is sweeping through gyms worldwide: more people are swapping treadmills for barbells, with weight training gaining unprecedented popularity over traditional cardio. This shift, highlighted in The Guardian’s recent report “Treadmills are out, barbells are in: why gym-goers are abandoning cardio for weight training”, signals a significant reconsideration of what it means to stay fit in 2025—a trend Thai fitness enthusiasts are eagerly embracing.

The trend matters profoundly for Thai society as health-consciousness grows across the nation, fueled by post-pandemic priorities and a younger generation that’s keener than ever on building muscle, improving posture, and achieving an overall healthy lifestyle. Traditionally, Thai fitness culture has revolved around group aerobics, running in parks, and cycling along rivers. However, Bangkok’s gyms, from upscale fitness clubs to local neighborhood centers, now report an uptick in weight training classes and free-weight area use, mirroring the Western shift. Research suggests this move is grounded not just in aesthetics but in robust scientific evidence about the benefits of resistance training over—or alongside—steady-state cardio.

A quiet revolution is taking place on gym floors around the world, and it is increasingly visible in Thailand’s major cities: women are flocking to squat racks and barbells, reshaping not only the demographics of strength training but the very layout of fitness centers. As reported in Bloomberg, traditional cardio-heavy gyms from New York to Bangkok are swapping out rows of treadmills for weightlifting platforms and strength machines, in response to a major cultural shift—women are now lifting heavier and training harder than ever before, prompting an industry-wide rethink of gym design and fitness programming (Bloomberg).