In the last 2 decennia the feeling of chaos has increased – our society is now experiencing unrest and uncertainty having been confronted with numerous existential threats (climate change, covid-19, cyber-attacks, disinformation [fake-news is like a virus itself], war, terrorism, increasing nationalism, deeply rooted economical and racial in-equality, social-political polarisation, social discord, as well as, a feeling of dissatisfaction, uneasiness and even hopelessness).

• More than 4 out of 10 persons  interviewed by US Census Bureau, reported symptoms of fear and depression;
• The UK Office for National Statistics reported that 19% of the interviewed persons showed symptoms of depression  almost double versus the percentage before the pandemic;
• World Economy is losing over USD 1B annually because of employees having symptoms of depression and fear;
• Mental problems are being called “disease of disparity”. Suicide is now the second cause of death for those between 15 and 29 years old;
• 50% of teenagers are suffering from stress (research RIVM Netherlands 2023);
• 20% of the employees between the age of 15 and 75 years had a burn-out in 2022;

A presentation Mieke Roovers – founder of Top Life – showed me that our brain frequency should be 50%-60% of the time in an Alpha/Beta 1 state (we call this “being in a state of flow”).  However due to over-stimulation as well as performance pressure 80% of the day we are in a Beta 2 state. Our survival mechanism is active in this Beta 2 state and we are very sensitive and easily agitated. Hence more and more people come home extinguished after a day at work.

Juvenal – a roman poet – once said  “Mens Sana in Corpore Sano” – a healthy mind in a healthy body. Having a healthy mind is the key to your overall Health and Well-Being and affects how you think, feel and act. It works in unity with your body and influences how you handle stress as well as how you relate to others.

However what I see happening  is that “traditional fitness” isn’t connecting the mind and the body. For long the focus was on a healthy body – the thinking was “maintaining a level of physical fitness is hugely beneficial for your mental health”. But it is no longer enough!

Working out should always have a place in our lives, but now, more than ever, holistic work-outs – connecting mind-body boosting our mental health – are definitely the way to go.

I see some operators already going after this new opportunity for our fitness industry: SATS is offering a Wellness Bundle as one of their membership options and it has shown that it is increasing yield. So it is paying off.

Sondre Gravir CEO from SATS said “offering these wellness bundles responds to a demand from members who want to actively take care of their mental health and stress management.

Yvette McGaffen (one of the founders of Reform RX) said “the future of fitness lies in the intersection of innovation and mindfulness. It’s not just moving from point A to point B; it’s about creating seamless experiences that inspires, rejuvenates and connects the mind and body in ways that transcend traditional fitness routines”.

So let’s take our Fitness Industry to the next level and move from “just” a healthy body – assuming that it will be beneficial to a healthy mind – to a healthy mind in a healthy body.

About Frank van de Ven

Frank is a global executive armed with 40 years of experience in managing international as well as global businesses, 30+ of which have been in the fitness industry. In his last position Frank was the Chief Commercial Officer as well as Chief Marketing Officer at Life Fitness responsible for Global Sales and Marketing. In April 2024 he started a new journey in his life being a growth catalyst advisor/partner for companies in the fitness industry as well as outside the fitness industry.

Quote from Chris Clawson: “Frank is a thoughtful leader in many levels and continues to have well considered plans that involve and engage his team leaders as well as others from the Executive team. He is a voracious reader; a terrific listener and he asks the tough questions that key decision makers should be willing to make”.