The Department has worked closely with the fitness industry to establish a National Quality Assurance Framework for Exercise Referral and Register of Exercise Professionals to support the important contribution that gym-based exercise can make to health.
While no market research has been conducted by the Department of Health to map the cost of membership of private and local authority gyms, a recent report by Deloitte and Tarp Worldwide on behalf of the Health and Fitness Foundation considered the impact of cost on exercise, including health club and leisure centre membership.
The health benefits of gym membership relate to the level of participation by the individual. According to the Sport England Active People Survey conducted between October 2005 and October 2006, 10.5 per cent. of the adult population went to the gym at least once in the previous four weeks. Of these, 16.8 per cent. met the Chief Medical Officer’s (CMO) recommendation of at least 30 minutes of at least moderate intensity physical activity on five or more days of the week, exclusively through gym-based exercise. 27.9 per cent. of those who went to the gym at least once in the previous four weeks, were also reported as meeting the CMO’s recommendation through moderate/vigorous intensity sport and active recreation. According to the survey, the average duration of a visit to the gym is 76 minutes. Gym-based exercise is likely to confer a significant general health benefit for those who participate regularly.