Staying on the treadmill

Health management members like Yi are also given monthly lectures where health and lifestyle issues are discussed, and they are free to use the facilities in any Impulse club.

Jiang says Impulse introduced health management into its fitness clubs in Suzhou in early 2009, and soon to all 108 in the country. It now has more than 20,000 health management members.

"An 80 percent year-on-year growth in the section of health management business and a 90 percent margin contribution indicates a good market and a feasible way for reviving gyms," she says.

"The low retention rates of fitness clubs are partly due to people's lack of perseverance and ability to continue independent exercise. When members feel there is concern for them, that they are being monitored and encouraged, they are more likely to persist in doing exercise.

"Persistence has an effect, and the effect is satisfying, resulting in good word of mouth and a high retention rate."

Health management membership fees range from 2,000 yuan ($320; 245 euros) to 20,000 yuan a year depending on the level of service.

Jiang says health management membership fall into three categories: general members, family and individuals with special needs, such as those relating to obesity, illness or injury.

She says currently more than 60 percent of the health management members are family ones, especially those prone to hypertension, hyperglycemia or hyperlipidemia.

Impulse is hoping to cooperate with enterprises and colleges so that employees or students can join at a discounted corporate fee.

Impulse Fitness Club, headquartered in Qingdao in Shangdong province, is a national chain of upmarket fitness clubs, and is part of the Qingdao Impulse Group, a fitness equipment manufacturer founded in 1991 with investment from Taiwan.

Jiang says Impulse's core competitiveness is the data integrity of its members' profiles. Since Impulse started as a fitness equipment maker, it has formed a complete industrial chain from facilities and fitness clubs to health management.

"Soon chips will be embedded into all the equipment at Impulse fitness clubs, and all the sports behavior and motion indexes of each member will be recorded," says Jiang.

The recorded information will be collected into a national fitness database, a cloud platform recently built by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology.

"Our advantage is we are capable of producing the chips, the equipment and all the updates," she says, adding that several Impulse Clubs have been building local databases since April.

Jiang says all these records enrich members' profiles, the data proving helpful in further analysis and guidance of their health management, and making the service more scientific, accurate and in-depth.

Jiang says they are also willing to cooperate with other fitness clubs in places where there is no Impulse club.

"We still want our clients to enjoy exercising in gyms, and a contract with other clubs is needed here," she says.

xiaoxiangyi@chinadaily.com.cn