By Erin Phelan
Fitness Industry Council of Canada
In the middle of the pandemic, the Fitness Industry Council of Canada held a Zoom meeting with more than 200 operators from across Canada to discuss advocacy efforts and the long road to reopening. Emotions were high. Bills continued to arrive. Revenue had disappeared. Weeks had turned into months, and for many owners there was no clear end in sight.
Behind the scenes, FIC leaders met with government officials, wrote editorials and op-eds, and made the case that exercise was essential to Canadians’ physical and mental health. The organization worked alongside public health officials on social distancing guidelines, mask protocols and cleanliness standards while helping operators navigate unprecedented uncertainty. FIC also galvanized the industry to stand together. For many, old competitive boundaries faded as operators shared ideas, supported one another and united around a common goal: helping Canadians move safely and reopening responsibly.
In 2021, FIC submitted its first post-pandemic pre-budget recommendations, including changes to Line 33099 to allow fitness memberships to qualify as a medical expense. Those submissions have continued every year. At the same time, FIC entered negotiations with SOCAN and Re:Sound in response to proposed increases in music licensing fees, standing up for operators already fighting for survival.
Why revisit this history?
Because advocacy isn’t simply what the Fitness Industry Council of Canada does.
It’s why we exist.
Earlier this month, industry leaders gathered in Ottawa around National Health and Fitness Day to meet with parliamentarians, researchers and stakeholders committed to improving the health of Canadians. Days later, leaders from across North America convened in Washington, D.C. for the Health & Fitness Association Fly-In, continuing conversations about affordability, prevention, exercise referral pathways and the role of physical activity in addressing chronic disease.
Today, FIC advocates for gyms and fitness professionals to be recognized as part of the healthcare solution and for policies that align with decades of evidence showing that physical activity improves health and can save governments billions in healthcare costs.
Most importantly, we advocate for all Canadians to have access to structured exercise and qualified professionals who can help them live longer, healthier and more independent lives.
The Evidence Has Been There All Along
For decades, researchers, physicians and public health organizations have documented the power of physical activity.
The evidence isn’t new.
Policy has simply failed to keep pace with it.
The Price of Inactivity Report from the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute (CFLRI) and the Canadian Parks and Recreation Association (CPRA) found that sport, physical activity and recreation contribute $37.2 billion annually to Canada’s economy and support nearly 260,000 jobs. Research from Sheffield Hallam University and 4GLOBAL estimates that increasing physical activity could prevent more than 2.2 million cases of chronic disease and generate more than $23 billion in healthcare savings. Portas Consulting found that affordability remains one of the greatest barriers to participation, suggesting that a 10% reduction in the cost of fitness could increase participation by as much as 35%.
Research conducted alongside international partners demonstrated that combining structured exercise with GLP-1 medications could generate $3.5 billion in economic value in Canada over the next decade and nearly $18 billion over thirty years.
The health benefits are equally compelling. A landmark review published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that exercise can be as effective as psychotherapy and medications for treating depression and anxiety. Studies have shown that as little as 75 minutes of moderate physical activity each week can significantly reduce the risk of premature death, while strength training helps reduce falls, fractures and disability among older adults.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describe regular physical activity as one of the most important things older adults can do for their health, noting that it can prevent or delay many chronic conditions, preserve independence and improve brain health. Public Health Agency of Canada echoes those findings.
A Global Movement
Small gains are being made around the world, but they are not keeping pace with the science. In the United States, the PHIT Act continues to generate support, even as progress remains uneven. In Australia and New Zealand, governments, researchers and industry leaders have increasingly focused on prevention, affordability and the economic value of physical activity. The challenge is translating decades of evidence into policy.
Governments increasingly recognize the value of prevention, yet affordability and access remain barriers. The challenge is no longer proving that physical activity works. The challenge is translating decades of evidence into policy.
The challenge is translating evidence into policy.
That means making physical activity more affordable, recognizing the infrastructure and expertise that already exist in Canada’s more than 6,000 fitness facilities, building trusted referral pathways between healthcare providers and qualified exercise professionals, and ensuring that structured exercise is available to every Canadian who stands to benefit.
Science has moved ahead. Public policy needs to catch up. The question is whether we are prepared to act on what the evidence has been telling us for decades.
Our Strategy
Prevention requires more than awareness. It requires a plan.
This is where the FIC takes a stand on behalf of the fitness industry.
Make fitness more affordable. Cost remains one of the greatest barriers to participation. FIC continues to advocate for changes to Line 33099, tax incentives and policies that make structured exercise more accessible to Canadians.
Leverage infrastructure already in place. Canada’s clubs, professionals and millions of monthly visits represent an existing network capable of supporting healthier communities through public-private partnerships.
Build an exercise referral framework. Physicians understand the importance of movement, but patients need somewhere to go. Exercise professionals deserve a place within the continuum of care, and healthcare systems need trusted pathways that connect people with qualified professionals and community-based facilities. Exercise is medicine, but medicine requires a system.
Raise standards and continue building the evidence. Healthcare runs on trust, and trust depends on professionalism, accountability and research. Stories inspire, but evidence changes policy.
The Vision
We’re not fighting for gyms. We’re fighting for Canadians.
We envision a country where older adults can maintain their independence, where people living with chronic disease have access to qualified exercise professionals, where physicians have trusted referral pathways and where prevention is accessible rather than exclusive.
We envision a country where the healthy choice becomes the easy choice.
In 2027, we hope to bring operators, suppliers, researchers, healthcare leaders and policymakers together in Ottawa for Canada’s first Fitness Industry Fly-In, ensuring that prevention has a seat at the table and that the voices of fitness professionals are part of the national conversation around health.
None of this work happens alone. We are grateful for the support of Matrix Fitness Canada, Isophit, Stay Above Nutrition, InBodyCanada, Power Plate, Fitness KPI, Roxton, Zoom Media, LenzVU, Club Management Software, WellnessLiving, NPE Fitness and Precision Health Alliance, together with the commitment of our members, volunteers and board of directors.
We are grateful to hundreds of gyms who have joined our cause and support our advocacy.
Prevention needs a strategy.
And building a healthier Canada will take all of us.
Join FIC today at www.ficdn.ca and help shape the future of health and fitness in Canada.
Fitness Industry Council of Canada (FIC) is the not-for profit trade association that represents the voice of fitness facility operators across Canada. Representing more than 6,000 facilities with more than six-million members nationwide, FIC pursues a legislative agenda in the hope of bettering the fitness industry for both consumers and operators. FIC aims to work with both industry and government to improve the health and physical activity levels of Canadians.
