The Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s (SFIA) 2023 Tracking The Fitness Movement Report identified that participation in fitness activities grew 5.3 percent, or by 10.4 million people, since 2017. Total fitness participants rose by 800,000 year-over-year in 2022 to 205.8 million, hitting a high of 67.4 percent, surpassing the 67.3 percent rate in 2019 and 2021.

The SFIA report, which includes an analysis of workout trends, participation habits and purchasing behaviors in the fitness industry, shows that Americans in 2022 generally continued with fitness routines they took up during the pandemic lockdown, including walking for fitness, but also shows a return to a greater variety of workout exercises. After a slight decline in 2021, 155.5 million people participated in running/walking in 2022, surpassing the 154.7 million participants in 2020.

Club workouts on equipment, including stationary bikes, ellipticals and stair-climbing machines that declined double-digits during the pandemic improved in 2022, contributing to a recovery in the health club sector; however, the SFIA found no consistent “hot trend” emerging within the Top 15 aerobic fitness activities in 2022.

In the treadmill category, the SFIA found participant levels were flat year-over-year but up 3.8 million from 2020 lows. Fitness activities with the highest one-year participation growth rates on a percentage basis were Cardio Kickboxing (+8.5 percent), Pilates Training (+5.8 percent) and Group Stationary Cycling (+5.5 percent).

“We believe the health club industry is poised for future growth, said Tom Cove, president and CEO of the SFIA. Given the role that clubs can play in providing an interesting variety of things to do, innovative fitness concepts, social connections and overall high-quality fitness experiences.”

The SFIA report lays out a detailed analysis of total and core participation rates for over 20 fitness activities, including data on age, cross-activity trends, aspirations to engage in different activities, and home versus club insights.