It’s been a transformative year for many gyms and studios. Navigating the post-pandemic years has been challenging, with many businesses struggling to regain equal footing in an industry that, before January 2020, had been booming. But things have been getting better. The Global Health and Fitness Association reported that 80% of IHRSA gyms expect membership and revenue to grow by more than 5% in 2023. In the UK, the number of gyms has dropped slightly compared to the previous year, but according to the State of the UK Fitness Industry Report 2023, membership numbers are up by 3.9 per cent, and ‘market value is the highest’ they’ve observed. This growth is expected to continue in 2024, driven in some part by the trends we’ll discuss in this post. Biohacking Biohacking is DIY biology. It’s nothing new but has gained traction recently as more people look to control their health outcomes through experimentation and data analysis. Medical News Today describes biohacking as ‘a wide range of incremental changes a person can make to their bodies and lifestyles.’ Biohacking can be as futuristic and grandiose as genetic engineering or as mundane as using a wearable fitness tracker to monitor sleep cycles. Forbes writes that biohacking is about achieving ‘physical and mental performance, improving overall health and well-being, or... a specific health outcome (like weight loss)’. Examples of biohacking include the use of smart drugs like nootropics or intermittent fasting. Cold water therapy can help recovery and ease pain. Nutritional supplements like magnesium or iron can aid physical and mental performance or support sleep hygiene. Biohacking is becoming more mainstream now, thanks in part to advancements in wearable and personal technologies, giving people access to their own health and fitness data and presenting it in ways that are easy to understand and track over the long term. This is also an area in which artificial intelligence can help trainers and clients. By 2027, biohacking is expected to grow by 22.9%, with a market size of $65.95 billion. According to the Biohacking Global Market Report for 2023, chronic disease will be one of the main drivers behind this growth. By 2040, it’s believed that an additional 2.5 million people in England will be living with a major illness. You can read more about the study and the implications of how chronic diseases are on the rise in an article we wrote earlier in the year: Our Ageing Population: How Chronic Illnesses are Set to Rise (and the secret to reducing your risk). Healthcare can sometimes feel very reactive. Biohacking offers a way of examining the different elements of a person’s physical and mental health. This ties into holistic approaches to health, which we’ll also discuss in this article. Dave Asprey is one of the more extreme examples of a biohacker. You may know him as the man who invented bulletproof coffee (adding butter and oil to your morning cup). He also takes 150 supplements and injects stem cells in a bid to live until he’s 180 years old. Most other biohackers are working on a smaller scale, however. They might monitor physical performance using a wearable fitness tracker or adapt their nutritional intake using supplements or a special diet. They might choose to participate in light or cold-water therapies or use SAD lamps to mitigate the effects of a long, dark winter on their mental health. Gyms can tap into this trend, especially with injury recovery and performance enhancement. Biohacking gyms are already opening their doors, and while their methods may sound a little strange and although their prices may be a little eye-watering in places, they offer services that many people will be tempted by, including at Repose Space in Kensington, an electro-muscular stimulation session which turns 20 minutes of muscle contraction into the equivalent of a 90-minute gym workout or time inside an ice-cold cryotherapy chamber at The Body Lab. Sustainable Gyms More people than ever are concerned about climate change and are becoming more interested in sustainability. Several studies also suggest that customers and clients are willing to pay more to support eco-friendly businesses. Following sustainability as a lifestyle means people are likely to apply the same principles when choosing a gym. Most people are more comfortable embarking on consumer action rather than political action. Therefore, choosing which brands of businesses to endorse and purchase from can be a powerful means of changing current systems and processes. Younger generations are also more aware of the risks of climate change. In a study by the Office of National Statistics, 74% of people reported feeling somewhat or very worried about climate change. 2023 was also the year that many of us became acquainted with the term ‘eco-anxiety’, which describes a condition that occurs when concern about climate change manifests as mental distress. Mental health professionals in New York, for example, reported an increase in the number of clients exhibiting signs of climate change-related anxiety. In an article for Glamour Magazine, Danielle Pates investigated Google Trend data, reporting a 195% increase in people searching for ‘sustainable gyms’. We’ve also noticed increased commercial enquiries from gyms about the electricity-generating RE:GEN Studio. And it isn’t always about sustainability for sustainability’s sake. Rising global energy costs are forcing gyms to consider energy efficiency and how to reduce mounting operating costs. Most gyms don’t own the building they operate from, making solar panels and large-scale sustainable initiatives more difficult. It’s why electricity-generating indoor cycling bikes are becoming more popular, as they can be installed directly onto the gym or studio floor. Sustainable gyms have been around for a while, but don’t all look the same. Some boutique gyms will open as 100% sustainable to appeal to the more affluent end of the market, and you’ll find several of these in London. Still, most gyms are now integrating sustainability into their current offering. This could be installing LED lighting across an entire company, as The Gym Group has. It might be installing heat pumps like David Lloyd has plans to across all its locations. It could be installing solar panels, banning single-use plastic water bottles, or switching to non-toxic cleaning items. Virtual Fitness Experiences and AI Training Yahoo Life reported that searches for virtual workouts rose by 396% in 2023. During the global pandemic, many of us became used to exercising remotely, using either apps and streaming services for exercise or dialling into classes or PT sessions remotely. Advances in technology have made online workouts popular and accessible, especially as the busy modern lifestyle can make regular exercise difficult to commit to. Virtual and augmented reality will likely become more popular over the next twelve months. Although it’s worth mentioning that neither one nor artificial intelligence will replace personal training and the in-gym experience any time soon. Gyms and instructors are likely to begin integrating this type of technology into their membership offerings. Lumin Fitness is one gym in the US that’s switching to AI instructors and experiences to encourage people to workout more regularly. For at-home workouts, AI can also help correct form more accurately and offer feedback using cameras to help track movement. Perch, which has a 3D camera attached to a squat rack to measure the velocity of a barbell when it’s in use. There’s also something to be said for gamifying the workout experience, making it more fun and exciting, especially for people who struggle to enjoy more traditional forms of exercise. This type of experiential workout is also likely to become more popular, especially as VR and AR become more realistic and immersive. AI is already being used throughout the industry, but recently, wearable fitness tracker manufacturer Whoop added OpenAI’s GPT-4 technology to create training programs and build workout schedules. More People Will Be Strength Training Cardio has long been considered king, but many people now incorporate strength training into their fitness regime. People now better understand the physical and mental health benefits of strength training beyond the aesthetic. Lifting weights can create a pleasing and strong physique, but it also about feeling physically able in everyday life: carrying shopping bags or children, picking up heavier objects or maintaining balance, flexibility and mobility, especially as a person ages. It can also boost mood. Fitness influencers have also helped demystify strength training for many people, including for women who may have felt intimidated. The COVID-19 pandemic and the rise in at-home fitness and remote workouts have also helped. According to Yahoo Life, there’s been a 315% increase in the number of online sources relating to strength training. And it isn’t difficult to understand why. Strength training has been associated with a 10% to 17% lower risk of developing several chronic and life-ending conditions including cardiovascular disease and premature death. Holistic Attitudes Like biohacking and strength training, more people are now aware of the importance of all-around health. Mind and body are intrinsically linked, and true health comes from more than just having a snatched waist or regimen of supplements. Some gyms are already embracing this. Others are expanding their services to offer classes and experiences as varied as meditation or stress management courses to group activities that combat social isolation and loneliness or that encourage people to talk about their mental health. Nutritional and dietary support via courses or talks are other options. Mindset coaching or help for people struggling with sleep are two others. It’s moving beyond just the physical activity that we expect in gyms. While many of us go there to run on the treadmill for our cardiovascular health or lift weights to increase strength and mobility, gyms can also become a ‘wellness’ space and move beyond just physical improvement. This reflects a more general shift towards wellness in wider society. More coaches and trainers are going down this route too, offering services that bridge the gap between the physical and mental, supporting health in a broader sense. If there’s one thing the COVID-19 pandemic taught us, it’s that you can’t predict the future and that even rock-solid industries can falter in the face of significant international events, but 2024 looks like it’ll be another strong year for gyms and studios, driven in part by the growing trends we’ve listed above among others. Ready to install electricity-generating indoor cycling bikes in your gym? We’d love to make it a reality for you in 2024 and beyond. Find out more about how you can use human power to help power your studio.