11 New Fitness Industry Statistics: Recent Growth & Market Trends
If you’ve recently joined a gym, started a new fitness program, or have finally built your dream home gym, then you’ve contributed to the 8.7% growth the world has seen in the health and fitness industry this year.
This industry has been on a steady trend upward over the past decade, but in the past few years things have been booming. If you’re an entrepreneur, or just a really crazed fitness guru, these numbers will excite you. The resurgence of health and fitness is worldwide and creating billions in revenue.
Here are 11 surprising fitness industry statistics, market trends, and growth rates.
1. The global health club market is worth $87.2 billion and has grown every year since 2008.
2019 saw an 8.7% growth rate; this is an abnormally large boom though and rates are expected to slow, but still maintain 2-5% growth globally.
2. China, India, Poland, Russia and Turkey are expected to see the largest growth in the coming years.
The market is expanding globally but these countries offer prime interest and real estate for boutique studios; this upward trend in smaller specialized studios is already taking place in tier 3 and 4 cities of China. When looking at the global market however, the US has the most amount of clubs followed by Brazil with 38,477 and 34,509 (not counting boutique studios or community recreational facilities) respectively.
3. In the US, revenue increased from $30 billion in 2017 to $32.3 billion in 2018.
According to the IHRSA (International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association) this equates to 71.5 million clients being served nationwide; compare this to the nearly 183 million being served worldwide and you’ll wonder who isn’t involved in health and fitness.
4. 1 in 5 Americans have at least one gym membership.
With that many people interested in health and fitness this means 1 in 5 Americans (and 1 in 7 individuals in the UK) have at least 1 gym membership. Between the boutique fitness studios and giant health clubs, the average membership is worth $517 a year and the number of individuals who hold a gym memberships has grown by 37.1% since 2008.
5. Functional training equipment has seen the largest growth on the equipment side of the equation.
Clubs still stock their floors with the staple machines, but the surge of HIIT and functional training has put the spotlight on free weights, plyo boxes, and other versatile pieces. This versatility also comes with lower overall costs for clubs. Roughly 30% of fitness studios will spend less than $1000 on equipment upkeep this year, while 65% of clubs will spend less than $5000.
6. Not sure if you want to go to the gym every day? That’s ok, the fitness industry has options outside of the club now too.
Even with the growth of memberships, and boutique clubs, home fitness is still seeing an upward trend. Peleton, Aaptiv, Les Mills’ and other smart technologies have helped increase fitness equipment revenues in the past year as well.
7. You don’t have to open a gym or sell equipment to reap the benefits either.
Technology associated with health and fitness is seeing just as much growth as the fitness industry itself. With Millennials highly interested in tracking everything from daily heart rate to body fat percentage, sleep, activity minutes, food logs, and any other quantifiable metric, fitness apps have become a substantial portion of fitness sales. Added trend: Women are twice as likely to use fitness related apps than men.
8. For those interested in the big players, the three largest gym chains globally are LA Fitness, Konami Sports & Fitness, and Life Time Fitness.
These three chains account for over $5 billion of the fitness industries revenue. The three largest gyms in the US are La Fitness, Life Time Fitness and 24 Hour Fitness.
9. Employment of Certified Fitness Professionals has increased.
With this many people interested in joining gyms and using fitness related technology, there has also been a sizeable uptick in certified professionals being employed within this realm. The ACSM predicts companies will continue placing emphasis on hiring certified professionals over their peers as exercise is now being recognized as a form of “medicine”, some doctors are even prescribing it!.
10. Personal training is seeing a resurgence thanks to more certified professionals and the help of technology.
Now personal trainers can use online platforms to connect with clients worldwide. This form of training has been a top 10 trend since its emergence in 2006 and is finding a new market for expansion.
11. Other top forms of training include group training, HIIT, and yoga.
The mindfulness and group experiences are making workouts more than just exercise. It’s a time to socialize with friends, destress, and improve your health.
Fitness Statistics Summary
Every aspect of the health and fitness industry is expected to continue growing in the coming years. The importance of exercise is being recognized in every country; clubs are popping up everywhere with millions ready to sign up for their membership. For those who can’t make it into the gym or local club there is a growing network of applications, websites, and home fitness technologies that will help create an exciting and worthwhile workout for you.
Getting and staying involved in an exercise program will be the new norm, just ask the 183 million individuals already participating. Take advantage of this growth by joining a gym close to you, starting one of your own, or becoming a certified professional to help serve all the clients in need.
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