Technogym | Fit Tech promotion
Technogym | Fit Tech promotion
Technogym | Fit Tech promotion
features

Editor's letter: A transition to prevention

Fallout from the ongoing pandemic and changes in consumer attitudes are driving the sector and governments in the same direction. Now’s the time to link them up

Published in Health Club Management 2022 issue 12

Welcome to this third edition of the HCM Year in Review, we hope you find it a useful resource and a comprehensive record of these times when our industry has been challenged from every direction, driving it to mature and crystallise its purpose.

If 2020 and 2021 highlighted the need for better data about the value of the sector, then 2022 was the year this evidence really started to roll in. Deloitte China and the Global Health and Fitness Alliance delivered their report, Economic health and societal wellbeing: quantifying the impact of the global health and fitness sector, showing in detail the impact of the sector on GDP and healthcare systems around the world. This identified a total value of up to US$91.22bn per annum*.

Hard on the heels of this, the World Health Organization (WHO) published its Global Status Report on Physical Activity 2022 which revealed the shocking impact of sedentary behaviour on health outcomes.

WHO found US$27bn a year in public healthcare costs – or US$300bn by 2030 – could be saved globally by increasing participation in physical activity. In turn this would prevent 500m cases of noncommunicable diseases and mental health conditions by 2030.

Working with Europe Active, HCM interviewed Dr Fiona Bull, head of the physical activity unit at the WHO and the driving force behind this research, who called on the industry to commit to its inclusivity approaches – in terms of both consumers and staff – and encouraged the sector to work at shaping government policy on physical activity.

The Global Wellness Institute stepped up to contribute to this debate, issuing Defining Wellness Policy, a new report looking at ways of filling gaps in current public health policy, while also addressing failures in sick-care-focused medical systems.

Crises in healthcare provision, exacerbated by excess demand due to the pandemic, financial pressures and ageing populations, are driving changes in consumer behaviour. Where once some took the view they could live how they liked and their healthcare service would sort out any lifestyle diseases they developed, they’re now recognising help may no longer be forthcoming and it’s in their best interests to take more personal responsibility.

This impulse must be met with more effective government policy and support to enable a transition to a prevention-based system where health services and providers of physical activity work together to support people from all social groups and of all ages to be more effective guardians of their own wellbeing.

Liz Terry, editor
[email protected]

Sign up here to get Fit Tech's weekly ezine and every issue of Fit Tech magazine free on digital.
More features
Editor's letter

Into the fitaverse

Fitness is already among the top three markets in the metaverse, with new technology and partnerships driving real growth and consumer engagement that looks likely to spill over into health clubs, gyms and studios
Fit Tech people

Ali Jawad

Paralympic powerlifter and founder, Accessercise
Users can easily identify which facilities in the UK are accessible to the disabled community
Fit Tech people

Hannes Sjöblad

MD, DSruptive
We want to give our users an implantable tool that allows them to collect their health data at any time and in any setting
Fit Tech people

Jamie Buck

Co-founder, Active in Time
We created a solution called AiT Voice, which turns digital data into a spoken audio timetable that connects to phone systems
Profile

Fahad Alhagbani: reinventing fitness

Let’s live in the future to improve today
Opinion

Building on the blockchain

For small sports teams looking to compete with giants, blockchain can be a secret weapon explains Lars Rensing, CEO of Protokol
Innovation

Bold move

We ended up raising US$7m in venture capital from incredible investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures, Primetime Partners, and GingerBread Capital
App analysis

Check your form

Sency’s motion analysis technology is allowing users to check their technique as they exercise. Co-founder and CEO Gal Rotman explains how
Profile

New reality

Sam Cole, CEO of FitXR, talks to Fit Tech about taking digital workouts to the next level, with an immersive, virtual reality fitness club
Profile

Sohail Rashid

The app is free and it’s $40 to participate in one of our virtual events
Ageing

Reverse Ageing

Many apps help people track their health, but Humanity founders Peter Ward and Michael Geer have put the focus on ageing, to help users to see the direct repercussions of their habits. They talk to Steph Eaves
App analysis

Going hybrid

Workout Anytime created its app in partnership with Virtuagym. Workout Anytime’s Greg Maurer and Virtuagym’s Hugo Braam explain the process behind its creation
Research

Physical activity monitors boost activity levels

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have conducted a meta analysis of all relevant research and found that the body of evidence shows an impact
Editor's letter

Two-way coaching

Content providers have been hugely active in the fit tech market since the start of the pandemic. We expect the industry to move on from delivering these services on a ‘broadcast-only’ basis as two-way coaching becomes the new USP
Fit Tech People

Laurent Petit

Co-founder, Active Giving
The future of sports and fitness are dependent on the climate. Our goal is to positively influence the future of our planet by instilling a global vision of wellbeing and a sense of collective action
Fit Tech People

Adam Zeitsiff

CEO, Intelivideo
We don’t just create the technology and bail – we support our clients’ ongoing hybridisation efforts
Fit Tech People

Anantharaman Pattabiraman

CEO and co-founder, Auro
When you’re undertaking fitness activities, unless you’re on a stationary bike, in most cases it’s not safe or necessary to be tied to a screen, especially a small screen
Fit Tech People

Mike Hansen

Managing partner, Endorphinz
We noticed a big gap in the market – customers needed better insights but also recommendations on what to do, whether that be customer acquisition, content creation, marketing and more
More features
Matrix Fitness makes innovative commercial fitness equipment that stands out and sets new industry standards ...
The UK's largest annual trade event dedicated to physical activity, health, and performance...
Lockers
Cryotherapy
Digital
Flooring
Salt therapy products
Matrix Fitness makes innovative commercial fitness equipment that stands out and sets new industry standards ...
The UK's largest annual trade event dedicated to physical activity, health, and performance...
Get Fit Tech
Sign up for the free Fit Tech ezine and breaking news alerts
Sign up
Lockers
Cryotherapy
Digital
Flooring
Salt therapy products

latest fit tech news

Egym, has signalled its intention to become a dominant force in the corporate wellness sector with the acquisition of UK-based ...
news • 27 Mar 2024
Egym, which raised €207 million last year in new investment, continues to build its top team with the appointment of ...
news • 21 Mar 2024
The UK government acknowledged in its recent budget that economic recovery depends on the health of the nation, but failed ...
news • 11 Mar 2024
Technogym is launching Checkup, an assessment station which uses AI to personalise training programmes in order to create more effective ...
news • 06 Mar 2024
Fitness On Demand (FOD) has teamed up with Les Mills, to offer an omnichannel fitness solution to operators. Fitness on ...
news • 04 Mar 2024
Samsung has unveiled a smart ring, packed with innovative technologies to aid health and wellbeing, which will be available later ...
news • 29 Feb 2024
The ICO has ruled that eight leisure operators have been unlawfully processing the biometric data of their employees to be ...
news • 23 Feb 2024
More consumers are realising meditation is beneficial, but many give up because it’s difficult to master the mind. The Muse ...
news • 21 Feb 2024
Newcomer to the market, Lunar Health Clubs, is gearing up to open its first high-end club this April, in Marlow ...
news • 19 Feb 2024
University of Washington researchers have created a wireless wearable in the form of a thermal earring that continuously monitors a ...
news • 16 Feb 2024
More fit tech news
features

Editor's letter: A transition to prevention

Fallout from the ongoing pandemic and changes in consumer attitudes are driving the sector and governments in the same direction. Now’s the time to link them up

Published in Health Club Management 2022 issue 12

Welcome to this third edition of the HCM Year in Review, we hope you find it a useful resource and a comprehensive record of these times when our industry has been challenged from every direction, driving it to mature and crystallise its purpose.

If 2020 and 2021 highlighted the need for better data about the value of the sector, then 2022 was the year this evidence really started to roll in. Deloitte China and the Global Health and Fitness Alliance delivered their report, Economic health and societal wellbeing: quantifying the impact of the global health and fitness sector, showing in detail the impact of the sector on GDP and healthcare systems around the world. This identified a total value of up to US$91.22bn per annum*.

Hard on the heels of this, the World Health Organization (WHO) published its Global Status Report on Physical Activity 2022 which revealed the shocking impact of sedentary behaviour on health outcomes.

WHO found US$27bn a year in public healthcare costs – or US$300bn by 2030 – could be saved globally by increasing participation in physical activity. In turn this would prevent 500m cases of noncommunicable diseases and mental health conditions by 2030.

Working with Europe Active, HCM interviewed Dr Fiona Bull, head of the physical activity unit at the WHO and the driving force behind this research, who called on the industry to commit to its inclusivity approaches – in terms of both consumers and staff – and encouraged the sector to work at shaping government policy on physical activity.

The Global Wellness Institute stepped up to contribute to this debate, issuing Defining Wellness Policy, a new report looking at ways of filling gaps in current public health policy, while also addressing failures in sick-care-focused medical systems.

Crises in healthcare provision, exacerbated by excess demand due to the pandemic, financial pressures and ageing populations, are driving changes in consumer behaviour. Where once some took the view they could live how they liked and their healthcare service would sort out any lifestyle diseases they developed, they’re now recognising help may no longer be forthcoming and it’s in their best interests to take more personal responsibility.

This impulse must be met with more effective government policy and support to enable a transition to a prevention-based system where health services and providers of physical activity work together to support people from all social groups and of all ages to be more effective guardians of their own wellbeing.

Liz Terry, editor
[email protected]

Sign up here to get Fit Tech's weekly ezine and every issue of Fit Tech magazine free on digital.
More features
Editor's letter

Into the fitaverse

Fitness is already among the top three markets in the metaverse, with new technology and partnerships driving real growth and consumer engagement that looks likely to spill over into health clubs, gyms and studios
Fit Tech people

Ali Jawad

Paralympic powerlifter and founder, Accessercise
Users can easily identify which facilities in the UK are accessible to the disabled community
Fit Tech people

Hannes Sjöblad

MD, DSruptive
We want to give our users an implantable tool that allows them to collect their health data at any time and in any setting
Fit Tech people

Jamie Buck

Co-founder, Active in Time
We created a solution called AiT Voice, which turns digital data into a spoken audio timetable that connects to phone systems
Profile

Fahad Alhagbani: reinventing fitness

Let’s live in the future to improve today
Opinion

Building on the blockchain

For small sports teams looking to compete with giants, blockchain can be a secret weapon explains Lars Rensing, CEO of Protokol
Innovation

Bold move

We ended up raising US$7m in venture capital from incredible investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures, Primetime Partners, and GingerBread Capital
App analysis

Check your form

Sency’s motion analysis technology is allowing users to check their technique as they exercise. Co-founder and CEO Gal Rotman explains how
Profile

New reality

Sam Cole, CEO of FitXR, talks to Fit Tech about taking digital workouts to the next level, with an immersive, virtual reality fitness club
Profile

Sohail Rashid

The app is free and it’s $40 to participate in one of our virtual events
Ageing

Reverse Ageing

Many apps help people track their health, but Humanity founders Peter Ward and Michael Geer have put the focus on ageing, to help users to see the direct repercussions of their habits. They talk to Steph Eaves
App analysis

Going hybrid

Workout Anytime created its app in partnership with Virtuagym. Workout Anytime’s Greg Maurer and Virtuagym’s Hugo Braam explain the process behind its creation
Research

Physical activity monitors boost activity levels

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have conducted a meta analysis of all relevant research and found that the body of evidence shows an impact
Editor's letter

Two-way coaching

Content providers have been hugely active in the fit tech market since the start of the pandemic. We expect the industry to move on from delivering these services on a ‘broadcast-only’ basis as two-way coaching becomes the new USP
Fit Tech People

Laurent Petit

Co-founder, Active Giving
The future of sports and fitness are dependent on the climate. Our goal is to positively influence the future of our planet by instilling a global vision of wellbeing and a sense of collective action
Fit Tech People

Adam Zeitsiff

CEO, Intelivideo
We don’t just create the technology and bail – we support our clients’ ongoing hybridisation efforts
Fit Tech People

Anantharaman Pattabiraman

CEO and co-founder, Auro
When you’re undertaking fitness activities, unless you’re on a stationary bike, in most cases it’s not safe or necessary to be tied to a screen, especially a small screen
Fit Tech People

Mike Hansen

Managing partner, Endorphinz
We noticed a big gap in the market – customers needed better insights but also recommendations on what to do, whether that be customer acquisition, content creation, marketing and more
More features