Fitness boom pumps up job opportunities
An aging population and increased interest in worker fitness have created a variety of career paths in the fast-growing fitness field
By Joan Axelrod-Contrada, Globe Correspondent, 6/27/04
Fitness professionals know all about working out -- and about getting their careers to work out, too.
Credit the fitness boom. As more Americans recognize the health benefits of exercise, fitness is becoming one of the fastest-growing fields in America. Employment nationwide is forecast to increase from 177,790 fitness workers in 2003 to 263,947 by 2012, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, an increase of almost 50 percent.
Opportunities range from part-time jobs teaching aerobics or weight training to full-time managerial positions in sales and operations at health clubs and other fitness facilities.
Clubs today offer career paths that previously didn't exist, said Bill Howland, director of research for the International Health, Racquet, and Sportsclub Association in Boston. "Employees can rise through the ranks from fitness director to general manager to regional manager," said Howland. "Twenty years ago, the opportunities and pay weren't there for someone unless they were the owner."
Specialists point to two factors fueling the growth: the aging of the American population and increased interest in worker fitness by employers.
People over age 55 comprise the fastest-growing segment of club membership, according to Howland. "It's less about being buff than about maintaining their physical health," he said.
Many employers have jumped on the fitness bandwagon to cut health-related expenses. The number of employers offering fitness center reimbursements/subsidies has increased from 23 percent in 1999 to 30 percent in 2003, according to the Society for Human Resource Management of Alexandria, Va.
The field's growth parallels the increase in health clubs. The number of US clubs rose from 11,655 in 1993 to more than 22,000 in 2003, according to the sportsclub group. In Massachusetts, the number of clubs increased from 480 in 1998 to 730 in 2003.
Health clubs rely heavily on part-time workers, particularly for group exercise classes. Part timers also provide basic all-around coverage because clubs, like restaurants and hotels, tend to be open seven days a week from morning until night. A recent sportsclub association survey found the median staffing for members is 12 full-time employees to 59 part-time workers. "Clubs rely on part-time staff and, depending on the position, there can be turnover," said Howland. "I don't know if it's any different from part timers in any other service industry."
Full-time employees typically perform a variety of tasks. They might conduct fitness assessments, give new-member orientations, oversee part-time employees, and work one-on-one with clients as a personal trainer. Their main job title might be fitness professional, fitness director, or exercise physiologist.
Personal training is one of the hottest segments of the fitness industry. The number of health clubs offering personal trainers has risen from 42 percent in 1996 to 71 percent in 2003, according to IDEA Health and Fitness Association, a national membership organization based in San Diego.
"People have begun to realize that a personal trainer helps with their motivation," said Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise. "It's lucrative for club owners."
Someone who is a full-time employee in a health club might earn a base salary, then additional income from personal training. Typically the club and personal trainer split client fees 50-50, although master trainers can command as much as 70 percent. An average session costs $50 an hour, according to the exercise council. Some fitness professionals develop lucrative sidelines or full-time businesses as personal trainers. Others prefer to rise up the corporate ladder in a multiclub organization like Healthtrax Fitness and Wellness or Fitcorp.
One who has risen through the ranks is Mike Parent, 43. As a student at Springfield College in the late 1970s, he chose the new major of health fitness rather than the older physical education major geared for gym teachers. In 1980, when corporate fitness was just getting off the ground, Parent got an internship with Fitcorp in downtown Boston.
"Back then, the martini lunch was more popular than the workout at lunch," Parent recalled. "One day we were showing the club to 25 senior vice presidents, and the first thing they asked was, 'Where's the bar?' " Over the years, Parent rose from exercise physiologist to director of corporate sales, general manager, division director, and, finally, senior vice president of new business development and a partner of Fitcorp. The company grew from one center and three employees in 1980 to its current 34 centers and 170 full-time employees.
Fitcorp's exercise physiologists spend part of their time in a health club and part out in the field. "They might go to a company to give a program on nutrition or ergonomics," said Parent. "The more entrepreneurial ones might work 15 hours for Fitcorp and the rest of the time doing personal training sessions."
In the fitness field, certification and academic degrees often are required for advancement.
Rossella Avitabile-Muller, for instance, got a master's degree in health education so she could move up to a management level position in a college or university. As fitness director for Boston University, she supervises fitness programs for students, faculty, and staff. She got into fitness in her 20s. She was working in international business when she started taking aerobics classes and got hooked.
"It made me feel better," said Avitabile-Muller, 38. "And I wanted to bring that to other people." She decided to get certified and leave her old career. She worked in a variety of fitness jobs to make ends meet. She taught aerobics at two places, did personal training at BU, and also had her own clients. "Most people in the field do a combination of things," Avitabile-Muller said.
Not every job is in a gym. Some fitness professionals work in exercise physiology in hospitals or rehabilitation centers. If, for example, a patient is recovering from a heart attack, an exercise physiologist might monitor a stress test, then develop an exercise plan suited to the client's needs. At Massachusetts General Hospital's Spaulding Rehabilitation Center, for instance, exercise physiologists develop and monitor exercise programs for patients while those with PhDs work in research.
Health clubs, too, are getting into the medical fitness field. HealthFit in Needham has developed strong ties with its neighbor, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital. Doctors often refer patients who can benefit from exercise. The relationship is nonfinancial, said HealthFit owner John Atwood.
Most of HealthFit's employees have degrees in either physical therapy or exercise physiology. The former deal more with muscular skeletal rehabilitation issues; the latter with all-around fitness. Both work one-on-one with clients.
Increasingly, personal trainers are getting additional training to offer clients a wider array of help. At Gold Gym's in Saugus, Bryan Sobolewski is certified in lifestyle and weight management and personal training. Like Avitabile-Muller, he got into fitness as a second career. He was working as a substance abuse counselor when he decided to make the shift.
As a newly certified personal trainer, Sobolewski landed a job with Bally Total Fitness. He quickly learned the schedule of a new personal trainer revolves around the seasons and client's schedules. Sometimes appointments are spaced out from 6 in the morning until 10 at night as a result.
"The first of the year is your season," he said. "It's New Year's resolutions, and everyone's getting on the diet train. Right around spring, people start getting into it because they're wearing less clothing. Then summertime is pretty quiet."
Sobolewski wanted a more regular schedule and so applied for a job as assistant manager of Gold's Gym, which led to his current position as general manager. He negotiated a contract that allowed him to train four clients during his regular 40-hour work week.
He also trains club members before and after his shift. In addition, he trains a 93 year-old-woman in her home. But he no longer works on weekends. As a more established trainer, he can set his own schedule.
"If you're a good trainer and personable, there's no reason you can't be very successful," he said.
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