Andy Devaney
If your usual Saturday session involves a sweaty mat, a wall clock, and the familiar bargaining stage of burpees, GymNation has other plans. The fast-growing fitness brand has launched what it calls the World’s Highest Gym Class—an aerial strength-and-conditioning workout staged in a hot air balloon some 2,200ft above Riyadh, and social media has responded exactly as you’d expect: wide-eyed, loud, and slightly jealous.
This is not a stunt bolted onto a marketing calendar and hope. GymNation says the class was built with its award-winning fitness team and sports scientist Aderito Manuel, shaped by research across the GCC suggesting 67% of exercisers are increasingly seeking more memorable fitness experiences over traditional workouts. Translation: people still want results—but they’d rather earn them with a story worth telling.
A workout with thin air and thick bragging rights
Altitude training is not new. Elite runners have lived at altitude for decades, cyclists flirt with mountain camps like they’re holiday homes, and HYROX athletes are rarely shy about chasing marginal gains. GymNation’s twist is to turn that principle into a ticketed, public-facing class—complete with a skyline that makes most studio murals look like a school project.
Athletes and professional sports teams have often integrated altitude training into their schedule, and that principle “was the basis” for the World’s Highest Gym Class, according to Aderito Manuel, a leading sports scientist.
Manuel commented: “The concept for the World’s Highest Gym Class is rooted in science. Altitude training can increase the overall volume of Red Blood Cells by 3 to 10% and haemoglobin from 5 to 10% in the body due to the low oxygen content in the air at a high altitude.
This increase can fuel recovery, due to more oxygen being fed to the muscles. It’s a popular method for different athletes, including runners, cyclists, and HYROX athletes looking to boost their aerobic capacity.”
GymNation adds that participants can expect to burn between 5 & 15% in extra calories when training at altitude. Whether you come for the physiology or the punchline (“I did legs in a balloon”), the point is clear: this is fitness packaged as an experience, not just a session.
What happens before you leave the ground
Despite the headline, the class doesn’t begin in the clouds. Participants start with a dynamic warm-up and stretching session on the ground—because nobody wants their hamstrings filing a complaint mid-flight.
From there, it’s an ascent to around 2,200ft for a 30-minute full-body strength and conditioning workout in the air. The programming is designed to be practical in a basket: controlled, coachable, and focused on big movement patterns rather than anything that requires a full gym floor and a miracle.
The “cloud menu”: what you’ll be doing up there
The class combines tailored bodyweight and weighted movements, including:
- Cloud Crushers (Squats)
- Altitude Lunges (Lunges)
- Overhead Ascent (Overhead Press)
- Wing Spans (Lateral Raises)
- Bicep Take-Offs (Bicep Curls)
Yes, the names are playful. But the structure is serious: lower-body power, unilateral work, pressing strength, shoulder control, and arm finishing—simple enough to execute safely, spicy enough to leave you humbled.
Riyadh from above: the view does half the motivating
During the session, participants are treated to breathtaking aerial views of Riyadh’s most iconic landmarks, including Kingdom Tower, Majdoul Tower, and Al Faisaliah Tower.
There are easier ways to see the skyline, of course—like standing still. But GymNation’s bet is that effort changes the memory: you don’t just see the city; you earn it, rep by rep, while the ground quietly slips away beneath you.
“Where else can you curl with views over the Kingdom Tower?”
For Rory McEntee, Chief Marketing Officer at GymNation, this is positioned as a logical next step—another proof point that the brand wants to compete on experience as much as price, access, or square footage.
McEntee commented: “As the research shows, exercisers are demanding more from their fitness provider and ever since GymNation opened its first gym in KSA we have delivered – from state-of-the-art equipment, contemporary interiors, and dedicated studio spaces alongside some of the largest free weights zones in the region.
Our expansion in the KSA is moving at pace, and this new class takes things to new heights, delivering a first-of-its-kind fitness experience for a region that is becoming a global benchmark for setting records.
I mean, where else can you curl with views over the Kingdom Tower or squat while peeking at the Majdoul Tower?”
It’s a fair line—and a smart one. In a crowded market, “we have the machines you expect” is no longer a differentiator. A class that turns your warm-up into an aviation plan is.
Records, ambition, and a region that likes to go big
Saudi Arabia is no stranger to landmark achievements in recent times. The Kingdom will soon be home to the world’s tallest building, the Kingdom Tower in Jeddah, set to become the first kilometre-high building in the world when completed in 2028.
Whether you see that as thrilling, daunting, or simply inevitable, the broader context matters: experiences that feel “only here” are increasingly part of the region’s identity—sport, entertainment, tourism, and now, apparently, strength training with a basket railing.
GymNation is leaning into that momentum. The message is unmistakable: if the benchmark keeps rising, your workout should probably rise with it.
Dates, safety, and how to book
The World’s Highest Gym Classes will take place every Saturday throughout January, with limited spaces available due to the exclusive nature of the experience. GymNation says the class has been developed in collaboration with leading Health and Safety experts to ensure a safe and memorable experience for participants and onlookers alike.
Bookings are now open here: https://events.gymnation.com/worldshighestclass/
