What is the definition of the health and fitness industry?

The Health and fitness industry is literally any company or product that are involved in keeping the public healthy and fit, hence the title. This is mainly sports centres and gymnasiums. How much is the fitness industry worth? Can you use an example of a specific health and fitness chain?

Facts accurate up to 2010 Market Value is estimated at 3.8 billion, a 1% increase on the previous 12 months 12 per cent of the UK population are now registered as members of a health and fitness club or publicly-owned fitness facility.
Fitness First are the obvious example of a health and fitness company. Fitness First is the largest privately owned health club group in the world. It comprises 540 Fitness First clubs worldwide reaching over 1.7 million members in 21 countries. In the UK alone there are 160 Fitness First clubs with over 405,000 members. Recently however FitnessFirst have had to begin selling some of their gyms after building up too big a debt to handle. This isnt due to the industry shrinking, just merely down to buying more gyms than they had money to buy. In an article by www.expressandstar.com it states Fitness First is to sell off 67 of its gyms, including two in the Midlands, while another will stay permanently shut. Sites at Level Street, Brierley Hill, and Foley Business Park in Kidderminster will be sold in a last-ditch bid to tackle a 600 million debt mountain. The women-only gym in Birmingham Road, Wolverhampton, will also close for good. It shut for repairs after a fire at the AMF bowling alley above it in February. The chain also has premises in Wednesbury, Walsall Wood and Cannock, which are thought to be unaffected by the selloff. It wants landlords to back a company voluntary arrangement that will see it offload the clubs to other operators over the next six months. The deal would leave the health club firm operating 80 sites, 57 of which will move to monthly rent payments, while five others will see rent cut by more than a third for three years to help make it a leaner business.

What services do the industry as a whole? Does your specific example offer anything different to other companies? The company offer a wide range of facilities, these are as follows: Gym Ladies Only Area Cardio Theatre Weights Area Spinning Room Studio Lounge Pool

Beauty Room Sun Bed Saunas and Steam Room Aroma Crche

Although many of these are done by other companies, as far as I am aware, no other company in the UK has all of these facilities under one brand name. Things such as the Aroma, Beauty Room and Ladies Only Area sets Fitness First apart from its competitors.

Who do health and fitness clubs target in the UK? Fitness clubs have a wide range of target audiences. I would say that their biggest target audience would be middle aged men whos metabolism may have started to drop causing them to have more body fat than theyve been used to all their life. They target women with a wide range of dancing classes such as Zumba. Many gyms are women only or have women only areas to encourage women who may not enjoy working out in front of men. They would also target athletes and young adults/ teenagers who would be looking to enhance their bodies. What impact do does the industry have on the local community? The general impact would be that you would have a healthier surrounding area as they would be more likely to use be using health related facilities. Companies may also employ local residents, therefore they are boosting the surrounding economic climate. Health and Fitness Why is it important to maintain a good level of health of fitness? What dangers are associated with being unfit or over weight? There are so many benefits to keeping fit and healthy. Here is a list of a few (taken from http://www.healthguidance.org/)
It improves your IQ: Firstly being fit can improve your IQ. Though the exact mechanisms here are unknown, it is though this is to do with the cardiovascular fitness and though the increased oxygen getting to your brain, as well as using more of your brain for your movement and coordination (the motor cortex) and the increase of certain hormones released in your brain including dopamine and neurotransmitters. In tests it was found that the concentration and memory of those who did regular exercise was improved. It improves your mood: Running and other exercise increases the amount of dopamine and endorphins your brain produces. This creates the momentary improved mood known as the 'runners high' which causes many runners to become 'hooked' but it also means that over time your overall mood can change permanently for the better.

It improves your looks: Running results in generally improved health resulting in healthier skin, better hair and fewer wrinkles and bags under your eyes meaning you look better. At the same time it results in a lower body fat percentage and more lean muscle which emphasises all your best features and gives you a great physique. This in turn will improve your confidence and your luck in romance and even in careers. You'll fill out a suit better and can take off your top with confidence.

It improves your immune system: Exercising subjects you to stress and it's the job of your immune system to keep you going during this point. This then means that as well as your heart and your lungs, you will also be training that, and this can help you to get fewer illnesses. It protects you from heart disease: Any cardiovascular exercise strengthens your heart as you require it to pump the blood around your body faster. As your heart is a muscle this will mean that it gets strengthened in much the same way as your bicep would from lifting a dumbbell and that can mean you are less likely to suffer heart disease, heart attack or other problems. It improves your circulatory system: This in turn means that your blood is pumped more efficiently around your body and this can help to overcome problems such as those caused by cholesterol. Better circulation will prevent your extremities from getting cold, help you to have an even skin tone and prevent high blood pressure and associated problems. It deepens your voice: For men hoping to have a more commanding voice, then try having a bit more testosterone in your system and you will experience a very slight dip in your pitch. It helps you to sleep better: Exercising during the day means that you sleep better during the night as does the fact that you will be less stressed, have more oxygen pumping around your body and be healthier. This then has a range of benefits in itself. It slows down the effects of ageing: Exercise results in the production of growth hormone which has been shown to reverse many of the effects of ageing by helping you to heal individual cells. This then means that the visible signs of ageing are reversed as your body heals skin cells, and that your organs are rejuvenated. It helps wounds to heal: Again because of the growth hormone as well as the improved immune system.

It means you can eat more: If you are used to having to diet to stay slim you'll know it's no fun. With exercise you can eat that cake then burn it off by going for a run. It speeds up your metabolism: Your metabolism is responsible for burning the fat that you use for energy and for rebuilding muscle meaning that you can improve it through exercise. That then means that you will continue to burn fat more quickly even when you're not exercising, and also meaning you'll be warmer at night and flush problems out of your system more quickly. Increased hand eye coordination: Repeated movement improves your ability to know where you are in space and that means fewer accidents, a better catch and more. More explosive reactions: By training the fast twitch muscle fibres used for running and weight lifting you train the ability to move quickly and explosively so you can block punches or catch falling vases. Reduced chances of diabetes: Using your body regularly for energy as well as improving your weight so you will this way you will be less likely to have problems with your insulin. It keeps you flexible and limber: Lots of exercise means repeating movements that loosen up your joints. This can prevent joint problems (as well as you take good precautions) and can also result in your being more flexible. Fewer pulled muscles then, and higher kicks when you dance. Chores become easier: Opening a jar? Hammering a nail? It all becomes easier when you are stronger and fitter. It improves your lung capacity: Running and other aerobic exercises require you to get lots of air from the environment and this improves your VO2 max and your lungs. You'll also be able to swim further under water

then, it will counteract some of the negative aspects of smoking and you'll be less effected by high altitudes where the air is thinner. It ensures you win at sports: Want to be better at every physical activity? Then start exercising regularly. This way if you play for a local football team you'll suddenly start performing better and become a more crucial player. At the same time though you will also be able to perform better in all the other little tasks you perform should you and friends go bowling or to play darts, or should you decide to try your hand at something new. You will constantly impress and it's a great feeling to perform well in everything physical you do. You won't get out of breath: Embarrassed at getting out of breath taking the stairs? Or at not being able to play football with your children? Then cardiovascular or aerobic fitness is what you need.

What demographic are the most fit and why is this the case? What demographics of society tend to be unfit?
The demographic which I the most amount of fitness has to be athletes . Athletes that participate in events such as 1500m or other endurance events require you to have incredible physical and cardio vascular fitness so they would be training almost daily to ensure their bodies were meeting the demands their sport was putting on them. Anyone performing in any endurance sport would be on an incredibly healthy diet that is specifically designed for them so that they can get the most from their bodies. The age for the best fitness has to be around 17-25, this is solely because this is when your body is naturally at its peak in terms of physical output. It is extremely unlikely that an athlete would improve after he reached the late 20s. I would say that overall men are likely to be fitter than women as competitive sport is bigger throughout males in the UK. This means that they would be competing in strenuous activity on a regular basis. Obviously the people most likely to be unfit are people who dont do any exercise. This is because any calories they eat over their basic energy requirements would eventually be stored as fat. Other groups which are unlikely to be fit would be smokers, this is due to the clogging of alveoli in the lungs that occurs as a result of the tar consumed whilst smoking. Office jobs are the most likely to cause you to become unfit as you will be doing very little exercise throughout the day. This can be reduced slightly by walking to work, taking stairs instead of elevators or ensuring that you do plenty of exercise out of working hours.

What life style factors have an influence on your fitness? SleepMost adults need six to eight hours of sleep each night. Sleep is essential to replenish energy and to give our muscles time to repair after a days work. SmokingIt is a well-known fact that smoking reduces fitness. It does this in a number of ways, chiefly by reducing the amount of oxygen available in the body. Since oxygen plays a major role in energy production, even a minor depletion has an impact on physical performance. High levels of carbon monoxide from smoking reduce the amount of oxygen absorbed into the blood from the lungs. Carbon monoxide in the blood also reduces the amount of oxygen that is released from the blood into the muscles. Smoke inhalation has an immediate effect on respiration, increasing airways resistance and therefore reducing the amount of oxygen absorbed into the blood. Smoking causes chronic (or long-term) swelling of mucous membranes, which also leads to increased airways resistance. Smoking increases the heart rate for a given level of exercise. Carbon monoxide, the same lethal gas which is released by motor vehicle exhausts, is present in cigarette smoke and is absorbed rapidly into the bloodstream. The mechanisms by which it does this are as follows:

Once it leaves the lungs, oxygen is transported in the blood by attaching to the haemoglobin within red blood cells. Oxygen has a great affinity for haemoglobin. However, carbon monoxide has a much greater affinity (200 to 300 times greater than oxygen) and so binds preferentially to haemoglobin. Therefore, as the level of carbon monoxide in the blood increases, the level of oxygen decreases. Raised levels of carbon monoxide in the blood also impair the release of oxygen from the blood into the cells. This has a significant effect on heart and other muscle cells where there is a high demand for oxygen. Blood levels of carbon monoxide from smoking can also produce distortions of time perception, psychomotor and visual impairment and negative effects on cognitive skill. Oxygen is important for the functioning of all energy systems in the body, so any mechanism which interferes with oxygen transport and uptake interferes with energy production and therefore sports performance.

Exercise As mentioned earlier Running and other exercise increases the amount of dopamine and endorphins your brain produces. This creates the momentary improved mood known as the 'runners high' which causes many runners to become 'hooked' but it also means that over time your overall mood can change permanently for the better.

How does your diet have an impact on your fitness levels? Your diet has a huge impact on your fitness, in fact in many ways your fitness depends on you having a good diet. If you have a healthy diet your body will have all of the required fuels and nutrients it needs to run efficiently. If it doesnt you will be lacking in fuel whilst exercising meaning that youd tire quicker than if you were eating the right stuff. Here is a section from a piece of unit 17 work which describes the effects of Carbohydrate loading and its effect on exercise. Carbohydrate loading, commonly referred to as carbo-loading or carb-loading, is a strategy used by endurance athletes, such as marathon runners, to maximize the storage of glycogen (or energy) in the muscles. Carbohydrate loading is also used in healthcare to optimise the condition of patients prior to surgery. Carbohydrate loading is generally recommended for endurance events lasting longer than 90 minutes. For many endurance athletes the foods of choice for carbo-loading are those of low glycemic indices due to their minimal effect on serum glucose levels. Low glycemic foods commonly include fruits, vegetables, whole wheat pasta and grains. Because of this, many marathoners and triathlon participants have large pasta dinners the night before the race. Since muscles also extensively utilize amino acids when functioning within aerobic limits, meals should include adequate protein on top of carbohydrates. Large portions before a race can, however, be detrimental to race-day performance if the digestive system has not had the time to adequately process the food. Describe your health and fitness levels. What do you do each to avoid becoming unfit? I would say that I am extremely physically fit. I feel that I can run for long periods of time and am often participating in sporting activities. I often go for runs with an average distance of around 7

miles and regularly attend the gym. I also play for a local football tema, training twice a week and playing every Saturday. My weak point however, is my diet, as I take in far too much sugar. To summarise, I feel I am very physically fit.