Sportswear giant, Adidas, and social network app, Bumble for Friends, have collaborated to help people find gym buddies.

The partnership has been formed in response to international research commissioned by Adidas into gymtimidation.

This found the main reasons for being nervous about joining a gym are fear of being judged (almost one in five); not being confident about how equipment works (one in three); uncertainty about how to push to the next level (more than one in four) and having no one to work out with (one in three.)

Having a gym buddy provides a good solution for these issues. Seven out of ten said having a gym partner helps them to overcome their feelings of discomfort; six out of ten said they would be more motivated and half said they would work out more often.

As a result of this new partnership, people looking for local workout mates can use Bumble for Friends and add “Adidas gym buddy” as an interest badge to their profile.

“At Adidas, we know that next-gen athletes can be pressured by negative-self talk which can form a barrier to training, so disarming these self-limiting beliefs with community-first solutions is important to us,” says Aimee Arana, GM for sportswear and training at Adidas.

“Partnering with Bumble, a platform dedicated to creating empowering community connection, perfectly supports our mission in helping athletes of all-levels become stronger and unlock their individual training goals."

Bumble’s global VP of partnerships, Olivia Yu told HCM: “Teaming up with Adidas Training for our new “gym buddy” interest badge helps encourage emotional support and empowerment as the foundation of a connection – whether it be romantic or platonic – to challenge the intimidation of showing up as you are."

HCM editor, Liz Terry, said: "We're increasingly seeing consumer and sportswear brands, such as Adidas, Nike and Puma, engaging with the health club sector and using their vast reach to encourage their customers into clubs.

"Extending this drive into dating and networking tech with Bumble adds another powerful dimension and will deliver more engagement than any one health club operator can achieve alone, making this a big win for the sector.

"We look forward to hearing more about the impact this partnership has on health club membership, attendance and retention and consumer engagement.

"Educating the next generation that health clubs are the place to network, meet people, date and make friends emphasises the 'club' in health club and we hope operators will respond by ensuing their social elements, such as networking events, retreats and activities, are really delivering, so they can optimise this opportunity."

The importance of community and gyms as a social space is increasingly coming to the fore. In its recent research with Savanta, UK Active found that 43 per cent of people join gyms to find new friends. Harvard research has shown social connection can help reduce the risk of dementia, heart disease and stroke and is the strongest determinant of happiness and wellbeing.