The latest State of the Nation Report has been welcomed across the fitness industry, and rightly so. Membership is growing, participation is increasing and more people than ever are using gyms, health clubs and fitness facilities across the UK.

At a time when many industries face economic pressure, that’s worth celebrating. Every extra person who becomes active is a win for our industry and for the nation’s health.

But while I fully support celebrating the good news, I think it’s important we don’t just focus on the headlines and ignore the questions underneath. Some will call me a negative Nelly for saying so. That’s not the intention. If we genuinely want to grow participation and improve health, we have to evaluate the data critically, understand its limits and focus on the challenges that remain.

How Reliable Is the Data?

After 28 years in the industry, I’ve seen the quality of data management across many operators. Plenty of clubs do it well. Many don’t. Cancelled members stay on freeze, old records stay active and databases aren’t managed consistently. If membership figures come from poorly maintained systems, it’s fair to question how accurate they are.

Participation is the same. How confident can we be when so many clubs don’t accurately track usage? A membership tells us someone is paying. It doesn’t tell us they’re exercising.

The Sleeper Member Question

Many clubs have significant numbers of members who pay every month but rarely visit. In some businesses it’s as high as 20%. Replicated across the industry, that could mean millions paying but not participating. Great for revenue, less impressive for an industry whose purpose is supposedly better health.

Retention: The Issue That Rarely Gets Enough Attention

Many operators celebrate monthly attrition below 5%. But put that in context: 5% a month is roughly 60% of your membership leaving every year. Using the report’s figures, that could mean as many as 7.5 million memberships cancelled annually.

Some will join another facility. Some will come back later. Many won’t. So why are so many people leaving?

In the clubs we work with, the biggest opportunity is rarely sales. It’s onboarding, engagement and retention. Most clubs don’t have a structured onboarding programme. Many don’t communicate regularly with members. Few can tell you every member’s goal, whether they’re achieving it and what support they’ve had.

We pour money and effort into acquisition because it’s easy to measure and celebrate. Retention is harder. Community is harder. Member success is harder. But that’s where the greatest opportunity lies.

Growth in Context

The report puts penetration at around 18%. That’s positive. But when I joined the industry 28 years ago, it was around 14%. Progress, yes, but hardly dramatic over nearly three decades. More than 80% of the population still aren’t gym or health club members. For an industry built around improving health, that should concern us.

We should also ask whether some reported growth comes from broader inclusion. Boutique studios, functional fitness, recovery centres and reformer Pilates are now part of the sector in ways they weren’t before. Equally, some clubs may not be included at all, depending on how data is collected.

None of this is a criticism of the report. Reports serve several purposes: influencing policy, supporting investment and demonstrating growth. Naturally they lean towards positive outcomes. But alongside celebrating the wins, we should be prepared to ask hard questions, because growth won’t come from celebrating success alone. It comes from understanding our shortcomings.

A Final Thought on Industry Research

Many industry reports and surveys are treated almost as fact, yet few people question how the information was gathered.

A survey can be considered nationally representative with around 2,000 respondents. Statistically that may be fine, but many people struggle with the idea that 2,000 people represent more than 60 million. Then consider who completes surveys: people willing to give up their time, which creates selection bias. Which operators were involved? Which demographics and regions? How many independents versus chains? Many independent clubs don’t belong to ukactive, CIMSPA or other bodies, so they’re less likely to be represented.

Question design matters too. I recently saw research suggesting mental health was the main reason people join gyms. Mental health is absolutely an important benefit of exercise. But respondents could select multiple reasons rather than rank them. Someone focused on weight loss might also tick mental health because exercise makes them feel better. So might someone focused on strength or sport. Weight loss might get 50%, strength 50%, mental health 90%. That doesn’t make mental health the main reason for joining. It makes it a widely recognised benefit.

The distinction matters. Misread the data and you risk building products, services and gym marketing around the wrong assumptions.

None of this means the reports are wrong. It means all research should be viewed critically. Good reports should start conversations, not end them. Their value isn’t absolute truth. It’s that they push us to ask better questions, and that deeper understanding is what will help our industry grow.

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Want help putting this into practice in your gym? Black Raccoon Consulting are gym and fitness business consultants with over 25 years’ industry experience in sales, marketing, member retention and operations. Book your free 45-minute business call or explore our services.

Ryan Charlesworth, Founder, Black Raccoon Consulting