Scroll through Instagram and you’ll see who most fitness businesses are targeting. Mid-20s, already in decent shape, happy to post gym selfies and chase PBs.
It makes sense for aesthetic-driven offers or low-commitment memberships. But for training gyms — businesses built on coaching, long-term transformation, and community — it’s the wrong audience.
Who really needs your help
The biggest opportunity for most training gyms isn’t young people who already train.
It’s 40–60-year-olds who’ve never had a consistent routine, or who’ve fallen off the wagon as life’s got busier.
They’ve got jobs, families, responsibilities, and bodies that don’t bounce back like they used to. They’re not looking for a six-pack. They want to feel better: stronger, more mobile, more confident. And they’re willing to pay for that outcome — but only if they believe you can actually deliver it.
Why they don’t show up
The issue isn’t lack of demand; it’s lack of alignment.
Most of the fitness industry is set up to attract and serve people who are already active. Class times suit flexible schedules. Marketing is built on hype, banter, and buzzwords. Coaches are often young, high-energy, and don’t necessarily relate to someone navigating menopause or nursing an old injury.
For the average 47-year-old who’s anxious about even stepping in the door, none of it feels like it’s built for them.
So they stay away; not because they don’t want help, but because they don’t see themselves in what you’re offering.
Rethink your targeting
If you want your business to grow and stabilise, this is where to focus. Start by defining your ideal client based on reality — not just aspiration. What are their real frustrations? What are their actual goals? What do they need to feel safe, seen, and supported?
Then build your offer, your messaging, your operations and your product around that. Shift your tone, rework your onboarding, and hire people they can trust. Create an experience that feels genuinely relevant to them — not just a generic version of “fitness.”
Rethink your competition
You don’t need to be louder, flashier, or cheaper. You just need to be a better fit for the right kind of person. And right now, one of the most valuable audiences in the industry is being pretty much ignored.
Serve them properly, and you’ll become a market of one.
The July intake is now open for my Gym Owner Collective – a handpicked group of around 20 ambitious gym owners and operators.
We meet three times per year (March, July, November) to share ideas, challenge thinking, and move our businesses forward – through roundtables, focus groups, and real conversation.
Membership is by application only, to keep the group focused and the quality high: fill in an application here.