Technological advancement & at-home workout equipment have changed the face of fitness.
The fitness industry has gone through a great transformation in about a decade. Historically fitness equipment was only limited to weight training and some cardio equipment where are mostly used in health clubs and gyms. With the passage of time number of changes have been observed in the fitness habit of consumers at a global stage. This change in fitness habits has led to the creation of a wide range of fitness equipment. The fitness equipment market has been getting broader verities of innovative equipment being manufactured by the existing players as well as the new players coming into the market. Some of the major fitness equipment manufacturing companies present are Icon health & fitness INC, Life fitness, Johnson Health Tech co ltd., Nautilus inc, etc. Currently, the market has not only been limited to the health clubs and gyms but also expanded its reach to the corporate institutions, hotels, and more importantly the increasing audience from the residential segment. Over the years it is observed that residential audiences have been highly attracted to fitness equipment. This is due to the preference towards setting up your own gym at home or carrying out one’s daily fitness routine without paying expensive gym fees.
According to the report "Global Fitness Equipment Market, By Value, By Segment (Cardiovascular Equipment, Strength Equipment), By Equipment Type (Treadmill, Stationary Bike, Elliptical Trainer, Rowing Machine, Dumbbells, Weight Plates, Hydraulic Machines, Resistance Band & Tubes), By Company (Icon Health & Fitness INC, Johnson Health Tech Company LTD, Technogym S.P.A, Amer Sports, Etc.), By End User (Commercial & Residential), (Trends & Forecast), Outlook, 2025" published by Bonafide Research, North-America and Europe are the two dominating regions in the fitness equipment market which combine have generated more than 60% of the overall revenue. Both of these regions are also considered as the hub of major fitness equipment manufacturing companies. Health and fitness clubs are considered to be the major contributor to the global fitness equipment revenue generation. The presence of these health & fitness clubs is majorly from regions like North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region. In a comparison to the overall market, revenue growth from the Asia-Pacific region was found to be the fastest as it has shown revenue growth of above 7% CAGR till the year 2019.
Globally, a common concern was brought into notice in about a decade. The concern was majorly related to increasing obesity, physical inactiveness around the world. In order to fight with such growing concern cardiovascular training has gained robust importance and also dominating the global fitness equipment market. People have started preferring treadmill & stationary bikes as prominent in-home cardio equipment. Over the year’s new line of cardio equipment such as elliptical, indoor rowing machine, stepper, etc. has also enhanced consumer’s fitness training experience. The trend of strength training has transformed over the years from just being weight oriented to a number of innovative training with the inclusion of free weight and endurance training.
Advancement in technologies
With health awareness and fitness getting into the list of consumers habit, their attitude towards bringing change in daily routine have been experienced. There are scenario’s when due to hectic schedules and busy work life, many people are unable to make it to the gym every day. Things are getting changes with the advancement of technologies; also it is affecting the fitness industry. One such technology that is making its way in the fitness industry is virtual reality in fitness. With VR in fitness, people are not only getting attracted to it, but it is also letting them fight out the boredom associated with daily exercise. Working out in front of the television with loud music on till now was considered to be a joyful workout. Now, technology has removed the geographical barrier for fitness, now people can exercise in an entirely different world. The new form of workout in the form of virtual reality and augmented reality is viewed as the future of fitness. Many gyms and health clubs in the developed countries are already implementing it to make workout fun for members and also increase their profits.
The inclusion of wearable fitness devices like Fitbit and the Apple Watch has allured the attention of fitness freak consumers. From being luxurious items it has now become a fashion statement, these wearables are now accessible and widely-used. The excitement of performing exercises in gyms to get more intensified with advancements in the wearable tech market is resulting in improved fitness experiences. Gyms can now monitor users’ activities, and by using the resulting data, give exercisers quantifiable results to let them know if they are on the right track or not.