Muscles bulging, bodybuilder Takuya Usui settles a woman into her wheelchair at a Japanese care home, where jacked Gen Zers are helping ease labor shortages in a struggling industry.

Gender stereotypes and low pay have long discouraged young Japanese men from becoming caregivers, even as demand surges in a country with one of the world's oldest populations.

But Visionary, a firm based in the central city of Nagoya, has hit on an unusual solution: luring male bodybuilders into the care sector with perks that include paid gym time and subsidies for protein shakes.