With founder Mark Mastrov back in charge, 24 Hour Fitness rolling out updates including Pilates classes, more recovery offerings and new strength equipment
24 Hour Fitness is making good on its modernization plans under Mark Mastrov, pouring over $100 million in investments into updating facilities to enhance member experiences and draw newcomers in.
Plans now include a goal of 64 redesigned clubs by May (about one in four locations nationwide), and more to come after that. Those updates include investments in recovery, strength training and Pilates, three of the fastest-growing sectors in fitness.
To its spa-inspired Recovery24 space, which launched last year, the brand is revamping:
- Compression Sleeves (Hyperice Normatec)
- Massage Chairs
- Massage Guns
- Zero-Gravity Recliners
- Thermal Therapy (saunas, steam rooms, hot tubs)
- Stretching areas and equipment (mats, bands, rollers, etc)
And upleveling its strength offerings, 24 Hour Fitness will add more floor space and new flooring (rubber and turf), as well as more weightlifting equipment such as Olympic Racks, free weights and more.
The brand revealed it is an update from the single-purpose machines that are becoming increasingly outdated. Although those will not be removed, the addition of more floor space is reallocating this type of equipment while giving members more room for their workouts.
In addition to those updates, 24 Hour Fitness also plans to bring six new pilots of Reformer24, its budget-friendly Pilates classes, to locations in California, as well as expanded Turf Zones for functional movement training and more coaching offers, from one-on-one to small-group experiences.
The moves come under the leadership of Mark Mastrov, who recently reacquired control of the brand he founded in the 1980s and sold two decades ago.
“We put a lot of cash on the balance sheet, and we’ve got the ability to start to grow,” Mastrov told Athletech News last month, noting initial priorities would surround refurbishing current clubs as well as a push to “reinvigorate the brand” more broadly.
While 24 Hour Fitness’ gym portfolio shrank in the absence of Mastrov, hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic, his return brings a renewed ambition for the future of the brand.
“In my mind, you start off by trying to do 10 to 15 (new openings) in year one; 20 to 25 in year two,” he told ATN of future expansion plans. “If you can absorb that … then you can start to head to probably a box a week being the ultimate goal by year five.”
That latter target would put 24 Hour Fitness on pace to open around 50 new gyms per year.
