January 28th, 2022, YouGov
With the personal interactions from in-office work and socializing less frequent for many post-pandemic, how do Americans think about fitness and exercise as a part of their lives? And how many live in a way that reflects this value?
A new YouGov consumer framework equips marketers and advertisers in the fitness industry by highlighting some of the opportunities in today's rapidly evolving fitness market. The framework, drawn from YouGov Profiles data, segments US adults into different groups based on the last time they exercised and whether or not they wish to exercise more.
Fitness Enthusiasts have worked out in the last month and wish to exercise more. Of the 111 million US adults who exercise regularly and want to work out more, more than 78 million do not yet use any apps for fitness, while 68 million do not have a gym membership, indicating an opportunity for fitness marketers.
Fitness Participants have worked out in the last month, but do not wish to exercise more. Our data shows 45% of this group of 39.2 million Americans say they tend to count the number of calories they consume, compared to 31% of the general population.
Fitness Tryouts did not work out in the last month but wish to exercise more. The 68.5 million US adults who do not work out but want to, often skew older than the national average. This group is more likely to be motivated by the repercussions of missing workouts than by the rewards of showing up.
Fitness Resistants did not work out in the last month, nor do they wish to exercise more. Of the 36 million US adults who expressed no interest in exercise, only 5 million have ever had a gym membership, indicating that most who try working out at any point tend to stay interested through the rest of their lives.