MEMBERS ONLY

A new crop of ultracurated wellness clubs is targeting loneliness and longevity in one go.

- Alessandra Codinha.

I was inverted in the cavelike yoga studio at Hume, the almost alarmingly chic new Los Angeles fitness club in Venice, considering my pedicure, when one of my classmates asked what I was doing after. "A few of us are going to sauna, cold plunge, and then get matchas on the roof," she said. I told her I'd catch up after my massage. "Ooh," she said. "Ask about a B12 shot, and then come join." I might as well I wasn't going anywhere.

For as long as humanity has liked to sweat, we have liked to do it together. See: the Greek palaestra, Turkish baths, the YMCA, the contemporary preponderance of workout-minded meetups. And really, all with good reason: Studies have shown that community and social connection are as important for a long, happy, healthy life as diet and exercise. In an era where digital connection remains the assumed norm for everything from professional meetings to dating, the yearning for a third place (a location for social interaction outside of home or work) has never been more present.