fitNdata will be launched by David Minton, founding director of The Leisure Database Company. It will combine real-time supply data with consumer fitness data to offer a series of services enabling solutions and insights for global clients.
Read MoreAye AI captain
Ground-breaking technology like Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning is way ahead of fitness industry practices, desires and dreams. The main reason being many fitness sites currently lack the granular data and infrastructure necessary to obtain real AI.
This means our industry is looking through the rear-view mirror on where it’s been, not where it’s going. This is of no use to the consumer and limited use to the operator.
Read MoreDavid Minton's 2020 vision for the fitness industry
The fitness industry doesn’t need a Tom, Dick, Harry or Hugh…it needs a Greta.
The “Greta Thunberg effect” is infectious; it’s one of the driving forces behind global climate strikes and carbon offsetting worldwide. Whilst climate action is a clear and unequivocal necessity, could all industries learn from the 16-year old?
Read MoreFitness cocktails and boutique cannibalisation
Fitness and technology expert David Minton shares insights from his latest report on the evolution of boutique fitness and explains how technology will help to power ‘Fitness 2.0’
What were the key findings from your recent report on boutique fitness?
Read MorePeloton is about to IPO
The company’s streaming service, which allows customers to participate in live workouts or stream recorded ones, has been one of the keys to its success, said David Minton, founder of The Leisure Database Company, a market research firm. Those programs have added an element of fun and interactivity to its equipment that rival gadgets typically haven’t had, he said.
Read More2017 STATE OF THE UK FITNESS INDUSTRY REPORT - OUT TODAY
The 2017 State of the UK Fitness Industry Report reveals that the UK health and fitness industry is continuing to grow. This growth is being primarily driven from the private sector, which has more clubs, more members and a greater market value than ever before.
There are now over 9.7 million fitness members in the UK which has boosted the penetration rate to an all-time high of 14.9%. 1 in every 7 people in the UK is a member of a gym.
Read MoreIHRSA 2016 Highlights
Last week David attended IHRSA in Orlando. Here's a few highlights from the show.
UK Pulse Interactive combines facial recognition, Trixter bikes and augmented reality Oculus Rift for a unique workout.
The Intel Recon Jet offers smart eyewear for your active lifestyle.
The cycling glasses show live metrics, heart rate, speed, power and ride summary, plus built-in glance detection, point of view camera, GPS maps and of course, social connectivity!
Amongst all of the incredible new fitness technology, there continues to be healthy competition amongst the big name heart rate monitoring brands MyZone, Polar and Heart Tech Plus. With the tracking companies offering new and exciting features or products such as sports bras with built-in trackers and group displays of live data streams.
Last but certainly not least, Zumba have embraced virtual reality by connecting with YouVisit to deliver a new dance experience for customers...and David loved it!
The next trip takes David and Natalie to the FIBO exhibition in Cologne.
60 Second UK Fitness News - Dec 2015
In this weeks 60 second news; our director, David Minton claims it’s time for the fitness industry to innovate or die, this echoes similar belief to that of Les Mills Chief Exec Martin Franklin who states an unwillingness to go digital could be what kills the industry. And Pivotal Living are helping everyone to get digital by bringing a £15 fitness tracker to the market. The tracker has sold out until Jan in the US, where it’s only $12. But if you’re not sure about wearable tech then maybe a Tech Tattoo is what you’re looking for? Chaotic Moon have announced they are working on a prototype for a bio wearable to track your medical and activity data.
Also this week, it's been announced that Sports Direct Fitness have acquired the Print Works Health Club and Spa at London Olympia, and we would like to congratulate all the winners at the 2015 National Fitness Awards especially Burnley Leisure who picked up 3 awards! Thanks for watching.
FT Article - Pay-as-you-go gyms increase in popularity over longer contracts
Interesting article in the FT yesterday looking at the rising popularity of pay-as-you-go gyms in the UK containing the following quote from David.
“New technology puts the power into the users’ hands,” says David Minton, director at The Leisure Database Company. “We just haven’t been in that position before and what we are finding is that the consumers love it.”
Technology in the swimming pool won't be an oxymoron for much longer!
We've all seen the impact of technology in the health & fitness sector - dozens of new products have hit the market in recent years, like young puppies marking their territory, all so eager to weave themselves into the fabric of our new fitness habits.
From Fitbit & Runtastic to Jawbone & MapMyFitness, some will surely disappear as quickly as they came, others will find their niche and thrive, but what about us happy splashers, still waiting for some of this new tech to hit our local swimming pool or lido?
In a word water. Water happened. Not an absolute barrier to the latest tech but definitely a hurdle/water jump that can erode magnetic chargers, scramble Bluetooth signals and has an unfortunate habit of leaking into the most thoughtfully designed and highly engineered miniaturised parts. It's not fair to say that the sport of swimming hasn't seen its fair share of innovation and by swimming I mean the kind of happy splashing you and I might do not Messrs Phelps or Thorpe.
The Poolmate took stroke tracking poolside and onto your wrist along with SwimTag who thought out of the box by leveraging technology combining with the physical environment of the pool. Splashpath app for iPhone got rid of those hard to read and out of date PDF swim timetables and then Speedo Fit app got in on the act with virtual swim goals and a growing global swim community. Zoggs used digital to get physical and had a crossover hit from the TV screen with their Peppa Pig kids goggles too!
Obviously this just a flavour of the new tech which has been rustling in the pool lockers up and down the country, but I'm still waiting for the next big thing to hit the pool. I've been swimming up and down at my local baths for 20 years and I'm ripe for disruption! There's some great hardware & software just landed or right around the corner from Speedo Aquabeat, Swimio, & Swimdotcom to Pebble, Instabeat & Bragi Dash, but the jury is still out who will be the game changer in aquatics. Don't forget swimming is the biggest mass participation sport in the UK though it's one of the last to see the latest tech. Is v1 of Apple Watch waterproof? Is it heck. Does Apple even list swimming as a fitness activity yet? Nope, not on their radar just yet.
Building hardware is a tough gig but somebody could win big in the water, digital is a global market that breaks through the old barriers, innovation is coming thick and fast and waits for nobody! Pebble has just put the finishing touches to some major hardware grunt work and launched the waterproof 'Pebble Time', breaking records and crowd sourcing $8m in 24 hours from their backers in the process. They're sharing the love and changing the game through their open source software platform to a new breed of hungry developers. Whether it's a buzz on my wrist to push me to go faster, a post swim stats dashboard, swimming flash mobs, underwater beats or lasers, I want it all, and I want it now!
Ok, fair enough... Hold the flash mobs and maybe the lasers, with all tech it's what I don't know about yet that excites me the most...
Jamie Buck - The Leisure Database Company
IHRSA 2015: Disruptive Technologies and the Impacts on the Fitness Industry
Attending IHRSA 2015, come and catch up with David this Wednesday - Details below on the session he is chairing:
Title: A Smart World: Disruptive Technologies and the Impacts on the Fitness Industry (Roundtable)
Date: Wednesday March 11th 2015
Time: 3.30pm - 4.30pm
Room: Los Anglees Convention Centre - Room 308