You’re also moving away from GX studios. Why? A lot of that comes down to space utilisation. Our ideal footprint is around 7,000sq ft, with some clubs as small as 4,000sq ft. A studio might therefore only hold five or six people and be used for two or three hours across a 24-hour period. That isn’t a great use of space and doesn’t deliver a great ROI.If we have larger clubs, closer to 10,000sq ft, then a group exercise room can still work. But in smaller locations, we’d rather use that space for functional training or free weights – facilities members can use all day and that can in themselves support small group training. Our data also shows that if members really love a particular class discipline – Pilates, for example – they’ll go to a specialist studio, paying separately for these classes alongside their Anytime membership. What we primarily want to do is lean into and own the strength training component, executing really, really well on this. Who does this refined proposition target? Our core customer is really the 18- to 32-year-old who loves going to the gym and is very engaged with fitness. They want good equipment and a quality environment, but they also value convenience and affordability.
simply be percussion devices such as Hyperice or Theragun. As clubs get bigger, we’re adding Normatec compression boots, massage beds and – where space allows – we’re looking at trials of infrared saunas. In the UK, we have two trial sites already lined up, allowing us to establish ROI before asking franchisees to invest. We’re also investing in monitoring and feedback tools: the Evolt body scanner, for example, feeds data into the Anytime app and helps members track their results. Meanwhile, our app is evolving to embrace concepts such as AI-powered inductions, to enable enhanced personalisation and a superior member experience. The other big shift we’re seeing is an increased consumer demand for strength and resistance training. Currently, compared with Anytime Fitness clubs globally, our free weight areas in the UK are generally too small. In response to demand, we’re adding more lifting platforms – six to eight per club – and increasing the number of dumbbells and plate- loaded stations. Meanwhile, we’re reducing the size of our cardio areas, removing some of our selectorised kit and leaning more into functional training spaces. In many ways, we’re taking our clubs back to the fundamentals of what a gym is.
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STATE OF THE UK FITNESS INDUSTRY REPORT 2026
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