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1 ACCORDING to a recent survey, what proportion of people signed up to gyms don’t use their memberships for an entire year?

A. 2 per cent B. 5 per cent C. 11 per cent D. 53 per cent

2 THE word ‘gymnasium’ comes from the Greek word for what?

A. Muscle B. Sweat C. Naked D. Punishment

3 RANK the following objects in order, from highest to lowest, of how much bacteria they were found to harbour in an investigation . . .

A. Free weights B. A sink tap inside a public toilet C. Treadmill D. A toilet seat

4 TRUE or false? Listening to audio books at the gym is likely to boost how often you exercise. 5 WHICH two of the following reasons could form the basis for cancelling your gym membership early?

A. Finding a cheaper equivalent membership elsewhere B. Suffering an injury C. Losing your job D. A gym not having enough of the machines you enjoy using

6 TRUE or false? One in ten gym-goers said that they would be embarrassed if they broke into a sweat while they worked out.

1) C. 11 per cent. More than one in ten people surveyed by gym clothing brand Banana Moon had not used their membership for a year — despite paying an average annual fee of €635.

2) C. Naked. The gym dates back to Ancient Greece, where exercise was usually done nude. 3) THE correct order is: C. Treadmill; A. Free weights; B. A sink tap inside a public toilet; D. Toilet seat. According to research by FitRated, free weights have 362 times more bacteria than a toilet seat, while a treadmill has 74 times more bacteria than a tap in a public toilet.

4) TRUE. A study in the journal Management Science examined ‘temptation bundling’ — combining activities you’re tempted to do with those you feel you should, but often neglect.

It found that people who restricted themselves to only listening to audio books while working out were up to 51 per cent more likely to exercise than those who did not, as they were eager to know what happened next.

5) B. Suffering an injury and C. Losing

your job. The Competition and Markets Authority in Britain says that a gym contract is unfair if it does not let a member cancel due to serious injury or illness, or because of a major change in circumstances, such as losing your job.

6) TRUE. One in three gym members surveyed by home sports equipment firm Kettler said they don’t break into a sweat when they work out — and one in ten of the 2,000 people polled said they would be embarrassed if they did.