26 Feb 2020
One in five Americans now a member of a health club
BY Tom Walker
The number of people in the US with a health club membership has increased by 28 per cent since 2010, with more than one in five Americans now belonging to a health club or studio.
The figure comes from a study conducted by the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) and the Physical Activity Council.
According to the research, 64.2 million consumers held a fitness membership during 2019 – translating to 21.2 per cent of the total population.
The study also shows that the total number of "health club consumers" – which includes members and non-member users – has increased by 27 per cent since 2010.
This has lead to the number of individual health club visits reaching 6.7 billion in 2019, up from 4.7 billion in 2010.
“A decade of growth attests to the critical role health clubs play in meeting the physical activity and wellness needs of consumers,” said Joe Moore, IHRSA president and CEO.
“As we anticipate strong membership numbers in other key markets, continued member growth in the US shows promise for the industry’s goal of reaching 230 million members worldwide by 2030.”
Jay Ablondi, IHRSA’s executive vice president of global products, added: "“Health club goers have come to rely on their health and fitness facilities to engage in regular exercise as average attendance reached an all-time high of 109 visits among members in 2019.
“Results highlight how important fitness is to the public as more than two-thirds of Americans (67.3%) engage in fitness-related activities, including cardio, resistance training, and group-based exercise.”
For the study, a total of 18,000 online interviews were carried out with a nationwide sample of individuals.
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