从书页走到健身房：浪漫奇幻风健身走红，剑术瑜伽靠“书迷女孩”起家

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9 min read

The female warrior lunges, her sword slashing in the sunlit forest. Clad in black armor, she spins, whirling her weapon over her head. Silver slices the air. She jumps, spins, then kicks. No, this isn’t a Valkyrie training scene from the newest installment in Sarah J. Maas’s hit romantasy (romantic fantasy) series, A Court of Splintered Harmony. It’s a workout class.

Charity LeBlanc didn’t set out to create a romantasy-inspired workout program. Originally, the former American Ninja Warrior semifinalist just wanted to share videos of her fitness journey and fantasy-inspired cosplay creations on social media—and her follower count grew. Then, in 2024, she heard about the Dragon Gauntlet, a Fourth Wing-inspired obstacle course race in Boyne Falls, Michigan. She asked her followers if they wanted to train together for the event, and designed a workout program that combined strength training, HIIT cardio, combat circuits, and weapons training. “It wasn't just working out to do a rep; it was to gain a skill,” says LeBlanc. “And it took off.”

Five hundred people signed up for that initial program. Today, LeBlanc’s online fitness platform, Whimsy Forge, has more than 6,000 subscribers.

Romantasy-inspired workout programs have exploded over the last few years, mirroring the genre’s takeover of the publishing industry. After reading A Court of Thorns and Roses in 2022, trainer Samantha Willens put her Harry Potter- and Star Wars-themed Pilates classes on pause and shifted her focus to workouts inspired by the bestselling romantasy series. She created the Valkyrie Squad Program, a four-month fitness plan based on the series’ fifth book, A Court of Silver Flames—and her business, Micro Squad, grew exponentially.

In 2024, Sabina Storberg launched WeaponUp, a sword yoga platform, thinking it would attract women into traditional martial arts or yoga. But “it was actually the book girls,” she says. Now, they have thousands of members around the world.

Sure, gaining the endurance of a dragon rider, the agility of a half-Fae assassin, or the muscle of a Valkyrie warrior (IYKYK!) isn’t your average fitness goal, but that’s why these workouts work. Romantasy books allow women to fall in love with stories of female empowerment—and these workouts allow women to live out those stories in real life. “There's something to be said for channeling a character you admire, especially one who embodies strength, confidence, and resilience,” says exercise physiologist Rachelle Reed, PhD. “For some women, that connection might make exercise feel more fun and approachable, or even help them feel more confident trying something new.”

Here’s how women are taking on their own version of a heroine’s journey—and what mixing sweat with a little bit of magic has done for their minds and bodies.

Charity LeBlanc (center) with two other Whimsy Forge trainers.

Why Fantasy Makes Fitness Feel Different

Jamie Dalton, 38, never really enjoyed working out, especially in front of other people. She always struggled with coordination, which made her self-conscious. “Weight training was the closest to me enjoying something because that required the least amount of coordination,” Dalton says. “But it just felt more like a punishment, and punishments, you don't keep doing long-term.” She’d often start a workout program only to stop a few months later.

But when Dalton discovered WeaponUp, her relationship with fitness transformed. The classes consist of sword drills and choreographed flows inspired by romantasy characters, like Nesta Archeron from ACOTAR and Manon Blackbeak from Throne of Glass. And while the workouts are rooted in fantasy, the moves are a real fusion of kung-fu and yoga, and involve a lot of squats, lunges, kicks, core work, balance, and mobility. They also present a mental challenge as you learn to wield a sword with each hand and on either side of the body. Five months in, and Dalton is still going strong with WeaponUp, training four to five times a week.

While working out wasn’t totally foreign to Dalton, many of the people who sign up for WeaponUp, Whimsy Forge, and Micro Squad are new to exercise. Romantasy-inspired fitness “lowers the barrier to entry” because it speaks to people’s existing interests and feels personalized; they can put themselves in the shoes of the strong female protagonist(s) they’ve admired in book form, Reed says.

For instance, all of Whimsy Forge’s eight-week workout plans, called character arcs, are designed to emulate a different fantasy character's abilities, whether that's an Elven Huntress’ agility, a Dragon Rider’s endurance, or a Valkyrie Warrior’s strength. Whichever workout plan you choose, you’ll still do classic exercise moves, such as squats and presses, as well as optional special skill challenges that require a (play) weapon. “I'm really passionate about making sure the programs are accessible, and I am not a gym girl,” says LeBlanc. “For a lot of the workouts, all you really need is a yoga mat and some space.”

Both the level of access and the genuine enthusiasm for the subject matter are enough to help some people get started with fitness, which is often the hardest part. “When people are new exercisers, if they have an enjoyable or interesting experience the first few times, it's easier for them to start building toward a habit,” says Reed. “Eventually, your discipline and intrinsic motivation pick up.”

WeaponUp founder Sabina Storberg teaching a sword yoga class.

Of course, romantasy-inspired fitness can also help more experienced exercisers get out of a workout rut. Brooke Lydon, 33, used to love taking fitness classes, but between a full-time job and raising her 4-year-old daughter, she didn’t have the time. A fan of yoga teacher Taylor Johnson, Lydon thought that doing her fantasy-inspired strength and mobility program, Arius, might be a fun way to get back into fitness, and she liked that she could do the program at home.

Plus, it gave Lydon an extra opportunity to listen to her romantasy audiobooks during workouts, which doubled as a form of motivation. She’d often imagine herself competing against her favorite characters and end up working harder. “I would be like, ‘If she can do it, I have to do it,’” she says.

Romantasy-inspired fitness may offer an extra incentive to exercise, but it’s also just plain fun. Each program infuses a sense of childlike joy and wonder into workouts. “We don't have that many fun fitness experiences available to us—everything is for a goal,” Storberg says. “I'm going to go to the gym so I gain muscle, and that's very important, but we don't make it fun like we used to when we were children.”

How Playing Pretend Leads to Real Gains

Can a romantasy workout provide the same level of results as traditional strength training or cardio? For Dalton, who was losing muscle and experiencing joint pain due to perimenopause, the answer is a resounding yes. “I definitely feel like I've regained some of the mobility that I felt like I was losing, and I've definitely regained a lot of the strength back,” she says.

WeaponUp classes have also helped Dalton improve her coordination, thanks to the focus on proprioception (the understanding of where your body is in space). “You're doing your whole flow on a yoga mat, and you might have your kids' stuff in one corner, so you have to have a really good understanding of where you are in space, where the sword is in space,” says Storberg.

But sword yoga also provides balance training in a more accessible way, especially since you have a prop. “When I try to do a squat normally, I feel like I'm going to fall over,” Dalton says. “But because of the flow that they have you do with a sword, somehow it counterbalances so I feel more grounded and secure.”

Micro Squad founder Samantha Willens posing with a play sword.

Meanwhile, in Micro Squad’s Pilates-based classes, you’ll do moves like Russian twist punches with (optional) weighted daggers that evoke a character or pivotal scene from ACOTAR through the series called “A Fortnight in Prythian.” As such, you’ll experience many of the same muscle endurance benefits that come from any low-weight, high-rep workout. But there’s also “the added bonus of feeling badass while wielding weighted daggers and immersing yourself in the world,” Willens says.

Additionally, in the Valkyrie Squad program, you’ll train foundational strength and mobility skills before progressing to martial arts, kickboxing drills, and sword training, like the warrior characters in A Court of Silver Flames. Many Micro Squad members finish the program feeling not only confident in their bodies, but also like they can take on any obstacle—physical or mental, Willens says.

It’s no coincidence that a fitness program based in fantasy can lead to real-life gains. If you can build confidence with a class you find interesting, you’re more likely to stick with it for the long-term, Reed says. In fact, several WeaponUp members have lost 50 pounds or more after starting the program. “That got them into a trajectory of getting into wellness [and] being able to really take their health back,” Storberg adds. “There's so many women that are actually sticking to a fitness routine because it's fun, unique, and different.”

WeaponUp members taking an in-person sword yoga class.

Badassery is the intangible benefit that all romantasy-themed workouts seem to share. “A lot of women have never seen themselves as this person who is strong, who is capable, who can do skills, but walking into these programs where they feel like they're becoming something, that transformation is real for them,” LeBlanc says. “They actually are becoming stronger.”

With the popularity of romantasy fitness only growing, it’s also evident that more women are invested in what their bodies can do, not what they look like. For as much as the average romantasy female main character may uphold traditional beauty standards, that’s not why millions of readers love them, or why thousands want to work out like them. “It's not just about getting a smaller waist or growing glutes. A lot of women's fitness is about how you look and less about how it makes you feel,” says LeBlanc. “[This is] a lot more motivating and empowering.”

Romantasy-inspired fitness has even helped Dalton navigate discussions with her 7-year-old daughter about exercise, food, and health in general. “It's made it a lot easier to turn that conversation into becoming strong and powerful, instead of skinny,” she says. Her daughter will often join her for WeaponUp workouts, and “that has been a really cool thing for me as a mom,” Dalton says. “I want my kid to exercise in a way that's going to help her build healthy habits, and I love that this is letting me do that with her.”

A Court of Sweat and Friendship

Fantasy fitness is becoming more than just a workout trend—it’s a way for fans to connect beyond the pages of their favorite books. Whimsy Forge hosts a semi-annual Trial of the Guilds, a community-wide virtual fitness challenge where members choose one of the aforementioned character arcs, and everyone in the same arc becomes a Guild, or team. Then, all the Guilds compete against each other for eight weeks. “We do it as a community, so you feel like you're with friends and people that are going to encourage you,” says LeBlanc.

In addition to online fitness programming, several of these platforms now offer in-person classes and meetups. The WeaponUp team just finished a 10-city Graceful Warrior tour that took them from coast to coast, attracting a range of ages, sizes, and fitness abilities, says Storberg: “What they have in common is this desire to be the main character.” That desire is so strong for Dalton that she’s willing to drive three or four hours to attend an in-person WeaponUp event. “[I’d] go and make a whole day of it,” she says.

Whimsy Forge members doing a weapons workout together.

The collective power of the book girls, both online and in-person, is not to be underestimated. “Having a community can provide accountability, encouragement, and a sense of belonging, which can all make it easier to stick with an exercise routine over time,” says Reed. “But what's particularly interesting here is that these women are connecting over more than just exercise. They already have a shared interest in the books, characters, and stories, which gives them another way to connect with one another.” (Perhaps unsurprisingly, Whimsy Forge, WeaponUp, and Micro Squad all boast virtual book clubs.)

While many women are initially drawn to romantasy fitness because of a connection to a character, they not only forge new connections with other readers, but ultimately, themselves. “It’s less about acting like some of these female main characters that we see in the books, but rather becoming a female main character in your own life,” says Storberg. After all, who needs a shadow daddy when you can swing a sword?

Lindsay Geller is the lifestyle director at Women’s Health, where she oversees the Sex & Love, Relationships, and Life sections. She has more than 10 years of experience covering sex, relationships, health, fitness, and general lifestyle topics for print and digital publications. She is also a NASM-certified personal trainer and lives in New Jersey with her husband, daughter, and rescue dog.