I would like to take a moment and say that the release of this article has been delayed thanks to a combination of storms, power/Internet outages, and my own busy schedule. With that said, I present to you five predictions concerning the fitness industry for 2014:
CrossFit will stumble
Before I even start, let me say that CrossFit is not going away anytime soon. It is simply too popular to just collapse. That said, I do feel that the mounting negative backlash CrossFit has been receiving is going to hinder its growth moving forward. When people start hearing things like some CrossFit practitioners are suffering from muscle death, it’s going to have a negative impact. The growing concerns surrounding CrossFit will also lead to my next prediction.
Rise of the “We’re like CrossFit, only safer”
The title here is self-explanatory. CrossFit is popular but has a growing perception that it is not safe. How do you capitalize? By offering a CrossFit type workout, only in a “safer” environment. This will be done either by having more trainers, better trained trainers, or mandatory introductory classes. I’ve already begun to see places advertising themselves as this and I’m confident that more places will pop up.
Primal Move
If you haven’t heard of Primal Move before, you will by the end of the year. Primal Move utilizes “primal” or “animal” movements to create bodyweight workouts. These movements include things like bear crawl, crab walk, planks, and scorpion’s pose. I’ll also go out on a limb here and say some yoga studios will be using Primal Move, but calling it “Yoga for Men” or something similar.
Group and Personal Training will lose popularity to Semi-Personal Training
It pains me to make this prediction. It really does. I truly believe one-on-one training is the best way to achieve your individual fitness goals. But I have a feeling that Semi-Personal Training is going to be taking off. Semi-Personal Training is similar to small group training in size (4-6 people). However, Semi-Personal Training provides clients with individually customized workouts. Rather than lead a workout, the personal trainer is just there to supervise as the clients go about their own workouts. This combines the lower expense of group training with some of the individualization of one-on-one training. Also, trainers can make more money per hour by offering Semi-Personal Training, which provides them with an incentive to push these types of workouts.
Small-Box gyms will rise, studios will fall
It won’t be as dramatic as the title makes it seem, but I do foresee independent studios starting to give way to small franchise (Small-Box) studios. Think Anytime Fitness. This will happen for a couple of reasons. First, these Small-Box studios have popping up quite frequently over the latter half of last year. They offer the seclusion of the small studios, but they are often much cheaper than their independent counterparts. Independent studios have two self inflicted issues that also hurt them: there are just too many of them for the demand and many aren’t run very well. These are symptoms of the business more than anything else. Opening their own studio is often part of a personal trainer’s career ladder and many personal trainers simply do not have the business savvy to run their own studio. The Small-Box, franchise model offers a “safer” alternative for trainers than trying to open your own small business.
There you have it! Five predictions for the fitness world in 2014. Be sure to leave any of your own predictions in the comments section below.
-Nick Iannucci