Measuring fitness

PureGym’s latest UK Fitness Report shows that people’s raised awareness of the importance of health is resulting in more people hitting the gym 󹀹oor

Low-cost gym operator, PureGym, has published its latest UK Fitness Report, which provides a snapshot of the UK’s fitness sector within the UK. The report is based on PureGym’s own internal customer data, as well as data from YouGov, Google and a nationally representative survey.

HOW OFTEN ARE PEOPLE EXERCISING?

89% of people who exercise, do so at least once per week, up 2% from last year (87%)

39% exercise two to three times per week ( up 5% YoY)

People take 2.5 rest days on average each week

A healthier nation

The 2025 edition, the third that PureGym has produced since 2022, shows that being fit and healthy is a major aspiration for Brits, with the vast majority of people (76%) giving improving physical health as a priority. It seems, however, that there’s still a large disparity between people’s aspirations and how they actually feel, with 65% of people saying they don’t look after their health as much as they should.

What’s more, one in five people (22%) don’t consider themselves to be healthy, from either a physical, mental, emotional or social point-of-view.

Women still don’t consider themselves to be as healthy as men do, with one in four women (24%) not feeling healthy from any point of view, versus one in five men (20%). When compared to the 2024 report, however, the numbers have improved slightly for both genders – the 2024 report showed that 26% of women and 21% of men felt unhealthy. While this might reflect actual health, it may also be that women are more likely to view their health negatively than men.

When it comes to differences between age groups, the percentage of people who consider themselves unhealthy is highest in the 45-to-54-year-olds group (27%), followed by those aged between 35 and 44 years old (25%).

Areas of improvement

For the report, PureGym asked people to pick out all the key areas where they feel their health could improve the most. This identified a clear “top fi ve” of priorities: mental health (34% of respondents saw it as one of the priorities), cardiovascular fitness/endurance (34%), strength (33%), flexibility/range of movement (32%) and mobility/ability to move freely (30%). When it comes to strength, women in particular (36% versus 30% of men) feel that they could get stronger.

The report shows that 48% of people are currently exercising. While the figure is, disappointingly, less than half of the population, it is 3% more than the previous PureGym report (2024). While this may sound small, it equates to approximately two million more people taking part in exercise in the space of just one year.

According to the report, the increases in the number of active people is being led by millennials, with 65% of 25-to-34-year-olds exercising, followed closely behind by 61% of 18-to-24-year-olds.

The report states: “The fact that the majority of people aged between 18 and 34 are incorporating exercise into their daily lives goes to show how much of a priority fi tness is starting to become in the UK, especially for young people.”

2024-25 GYM USAGE

17% of people in the UK are currently a member of a gym, up 1% year-on-year

Men are more likely than women to be gym members (18% versus 15%)

The average gym visit lasts 1 hour and 9 minutes

25-to-34-year-olds are the age group most likely to be gym members (29%)

17% of people plan to join a gym in the next calendar year

Almost a third (30%) of people cancel their gym memberships due to cost

Why do people exercise?

The report also sheds light on the reasons for people to exercise. The most common exercise goal – mentioned by nearly half (49%) of those surveyed – was ‘improving overall health’, followed by improving mental health. Interestingly, there was a big drop in the number of people who exercise as a way of improving their appearance – from 35% of people in the 2024 report to 27% in 2025.

Losing weight is more of a priority for women (39% of women list this as a priority versus 27% of men) in addition to working towards feeling more confident. 29% of women are prioritising confidence as a 2025 exercise goal, while 18% of men are.

Meanwhile, 13% of people have become physically active due to a health professional’s recommendation to do so, while 12% of people have been inspired to exercise following a health scare in the family or with a friend.

To access the full report, visit: [www.puregym.com/blog/uk-fitness-report-gym-statistics/](http://www.puregym.com/blog/uk-fitness-report-gym-statistics/)