Being active is an all-year resolution

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) December 16, 2011 -- For immediate release Date: 15th December 2011

Being active is an all-year resolution

Far from being a new year fad, research collated by the FIA (Fitness Industry Association) indicates that fitness has become an indispensable commodity for members of gyms and leisure centres, who have embraced the well-publicised benefits of an active lifestyle.

The UK fitness industry is currently worth £3.81 billion, and against the turbulent economic infrastructure of 2011, saw only a very small drop in membership levels (0.3%). In fact more than 30 million UK adults now take part in sport or exercise at least once a month – a 15 per cent increase compared to 10 years ago.

David Stalker, CEO, FIA, said: “We know that almost 70 per cent of people who start using a gym are still members over 12 months later. We also know that New Year joiners – people who sign up to a gym in January or February – retain their memberships just as long as members who join at other times of the year.

“As we enter our Olympic year, there has never been a better time to take up a new form of activity or return to exercise to achieve your personal activity goals and become a healthier you in 2012.”

Joining the gym is only the first step in the process of establishing a healthier lifestyle. Research shows that the main reason people cite for not exercising regularly is lack of time, but this is a perception rather than a direct barrier. New gym users need to make a personal commitment to being more active and fitting exercise into their lifestyle in order to achieve their health goals.

90 per cent of the population live or work within two miles of one of the 6000 health and fitness facilities in the UK, and the FIA hope that in 2012 more new consumers will walk through the doors of our clubs to make the commitment to their long-term wellbeing.

ENDS
Notes to Editor:

FIA
• The FIA is the trade body for the UK health and physical activity sector
• The FIA’s vision is to get more people | more active | more often
• The FIA’s main objective is to help everyone in the UK become more active and live a healthier life

• The FIA promotes and protects the interests of its members and the industry to all stakeholders
• The FIA is actively involved in helping the Government deliver its public health strategy, through the Responsibility Deal Physical Activity Network Chaired by the FIA Chairman, Fred Turok
• The FIA can provide case studies, comment and expert spokespeople for health and fitness issues on request. For all media enquiries, please contact Ruth Woods, Marketing and Communications Manager on 020 7420 8563

Retention
(facts & figures from FIA retention research studies)

- In a survey of over 200,000 inactive people who were invited to exercise, almost half (45%) made a commitment to sustain their healthy lifestyle beyond the six week trial.

- Almost 85% of new gym users retain their membership for at least 6 months and over 65% keep their membership for over 12 months.
- The highest retention rates are seen in members aged 45 and over.
- Level of service received from fitness staff is strongly associated with retention rates, as is frequency of club visits.
- Contrary to popular beliefs, new member joining rates vary by no more than 3% a month throughout the year. September is actually the most popular month to join a gym, not January.

exercise     fitness     gym membership     health     physical activity