Every year ACSM releases the results of its Worldwide Survey of Fitness Trends, a valuable tool for the industry. As programming and service demands continue to evolve, the industry must keep up.
This year’s top trends list featured mainstays, new to the list and old trends reemerging. Below are the top 10 ACSM fitness trends for 2024, ranked in order, and how health club operators can apply them this year.
1. Wearable Technology
Wearable technology — fitness trackers, smart watches, heart rate monitors, GPS tracking devices, etc. — has been the No. 1 trend after it was introduced on the survey in 2016, except for 2018 (No. 3) and 2021 (No. 2).
This trend has grown on par with the rise of holistic health and wellness. Post-pandemic people are even more interested in knowing their level of health. By tracking important metrics like sleep, heart rate, blood pressure, temperature and more, people can make more informed decisions on diet, exercise, sleep patterns and more.
It’s important to note that this level of data is now expected by consumers. People joining fitness facilities will likely be searching for equipment that can integrate with their personal devices or prefer facilities that offer a tracker to members to help build community and push them in their workouts.
2. Worksite Health Promotion
New to the trends list, worksite health promotion includes things like employee athletic leagues, access to fitness facilities, health education classes and more. According to the CDC, the average American will spend approximately one-third of their life at the workplace when participating in a 40-hour work week. This need will create a large opportunity for the fitness industry to deliver in 2024. Consider going out into your community to find businesses to partner with. Position your staff as experts and offer educational classes on the importance of fitness. Resurge your corporate wellness programs that may have fallen off during the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, the industry, employers, workers and communities all benefit from the prevention of disease and injury and from sustained health.
3. Fitness Programs for Older Adults
Fitness programs for older adults moved up one spot from 2023. This is a trend that emphasizes and caters to the fitness needs of the baby boomer and older generations. The number of people aged 80 years or older is expected to triple between 2020 and 2050 to reach 426 million. With people living longer, more are prioritizing a healthy lifestyle. However, with aging also comes with the risk of chronic illness, cognitive impairment and falls.
Regular aerobic and muscle-strengthening physical activity is an essential strategy for reducing the impact of disease, maintaining independence and improving quality of life throughout the aging process. According to Advisory Board, baby boomers are also particularly vulnerable to loneliness because they “prized individuality” more than previous generations. As such, one in six boomers live alone and one in four are divorced or never married. Creating programming for this specific demographic can not only help them improve their physical health but also their social health.
4. Exercise for Weight Loss
Jumping four spots from last year, exercising for weight loss is gaining traction once again. Society is becoming more educated on how regular exercise is a contributor to improving metabolic function and reducing body fat and should accompany dietary changes to create a caloric deficit. While there has been a surge in more people working out solely for mental health reasons in recent years, it is important to note there is still a demand for weight loss programs in your facility.
5. Reimbursement for Qualified Exercise Professionals (QEPs)
According to ACSM, “this is a revised trend from previous years, which advocated for licensure for QEPs. Licensure never peaked in the top 10, and significant policy-level barriers exist that make licensure less realistic for the fitness industry. However, reimbursement for the services that QEPs are trained to provide supports recognition of exercise professionals as a part of the health-care continuum. An ACSM Task Force was formed in 2021 to advocate for policy change allowing insurance billing for patient services performed by QEPs within their scope of practice to improve physical activity outcomes and quality of life.”
6. Employing Certified Exercise Professionals
This has been a constant on the trends list. In today’s digital age people have more information at their fingertips than ever before. However, with this unlimited access, they are also being exposed to poor fitness tips, advice and more. Having certified professionals at your facilities can help your community members breakthrough the nonsense and know they have a reliable trainer or instructor leading them on their health journey.
7. Mobile Exercise Apps
Mobile apps are gaining traction once again after first appearing in 2021 after the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, people want to be able to work out whenever and wherever they can. Mobile apps allow people to get a preorganized work out in on their own terms both inside and outside of clubs. While the fitness mobile app market is saturated, clubs can compete by offering workouts from in-house trainers on your facility’s app. This allows you to stay connected to members and continue relationships with instructors.
8. Exercise for Mental Health
With 1-in-5 adults in America experiencing a mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the fitness industry is set up to help many people in their communities improve not only their physical health but mental health, too. More and more Americans are beginning to acknowledge the importance of exercise and its positive impact on mood. What does this mean for health clubs? A new market. More and more people are leaving behind the “no pain, no gain” mentality and are working out solely for stress relief or to feel better rather than losing a certain number of pounds. As a fitness facility it’s important your marketing messages align with this shift in order to welcome more people through your doors.
9. Youth Athletic Development
According to the CDC, regular physical activity can help children and adolescents improve cardiorespiratory fitness, build strong bones and muscles, control weight, reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, and reduce the risk of developing health conditions. In recent years, there’s been a rise in training facilities and programs designed to improve confidence, develop social skills and enhance sports performance in kids. Fitness facilities should consider offering specific training camps or programming for children and adolescents to learn basic movement patterns and prepare for skill acquisition. If you choose to go this route, ensure you have a professional with specific education and experience working with this population.
10. Personal Training (PT)
PT has been a mainstay on the trends list since 2007. With a new influx of first-time gym goers and more people interested in strength training, consumers may benefit PT to learn effective exercise selection, safety and recovery methods. In order to find success with this offering a standard for education must be set, and hiring a diverse set of people whose specializations can appeal to a diverse clientele can also increase the number of members participating.
Overall, identifying the top trends is important to keep a pulse on the industry. However, knowing your membership base and what they prefer is vital to success. Consider surveying your members or evaluating member feedback to adjust accordingly in 2024.
To read to the full survey report visit acsm.org.
