But what doe sthat actually mean..?


It’s that time of year when the ACSM’s Health and Fitness journal release the top fitness trends for the following year. There was no surprise when Wearables’ trumped the top spot for 2019, with Group Training and HIIT following in second and third place.
In 2016 and 2017 wearable technology took the top spot and before this it hadn’t made it on the report. It just shows that technology is helping to drive the enthusiasm of users within facilities and more operators should be in tune with this offering. Is it still a trend or is it here to stay?


More and more people are getting involved with wearables, be that for everyday use to help monitor or motivate their activity or to help deliver results faster or more measurable. The biggest challenge the industry faces with this, is the ability to engage and help the specific wearable to not be a flashpoint, which after a couple of months ends up sitting on a shelf never to be dusted off until the following January!


Wearable Technology, like Apple Health has helped break down barriers by allowing wearables to be accessible rather than just having a high price ticket.


But how do operators capitalize on this to help make potential or existing users take that step to regular activity?
Operators need to look at their strategy, and if wearable is not part of that, then you may get left behind. Wearables are extremely accessible and workable for clubs and with key industry designed wearable solutions like Myzone, operators can certainly take full advantage.


A lot of operators tend to find barriers from their teams when looking to implement a wearable strategy but they key is to ensure the solution fits the facility, the ethos and the overall community. Work out what you actually want it to do, just to fill a gap is not a long term strategy it simply is a reactive response which as we know is usually short lived.


Wearables are not going away, so embrace it and invest in time to find the best solution as you move into 2019.