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Sydney Cassidy’s visits to her local gym go beyond fitness routines; they are also a social lifeline. As a 28-year-old digital creator and fitness enthusiast known as Syd Grows on social media, Sydney views the gym as her primary space for connecting with others. “The gym is my space to get a social fix and to talk to and see people,” she explains. It’s there that she forms most of her friendships, attending training sessions that double as social gatherings. For Sydney, the gym also offers an alternative to traditional nightlife: “I don’t go out drinking.”
This trend is part of a broader shift among younger generations who are redefining wellness and social interaction. Syd notes that since the pandemic, social media’s gym content surge has made it clear that gyms serve as lively community hubs. Many young people are now using gyms much like earlier generations used pubs—a familiar spot to meet friends and feel part of a collective experience. Supporting these observations, PureGym reports that nearly half (47%) of its new members in January were aged 25 or younger. This demographic, Mintel research suggests, now embraces a broader concept of health that goes beyond simply lifting weights or cardio. They expect fitness centers to provide community and social engagement, effectively repositioning gyms as alternatives to bars and nightclubs.
Paul Davies, senior director of leisure and trends at Mintel, highlights this development: “Young consumers are choosing gyms and leisure centres over traditional alcohol-centric socialising, such as pubs.” This shift includes creative new social formats, from gym workouts paired with coffee meet-ups to gatherings over protein smoothies. For many, fitness classes serve as communal spaces with a party-like atmosphere but without the hangover. Megan Riley, a 20-year-old paralegal apprentice attending dance fitness classes in Grimsby, shares, “It feels like you’re in a club, you’re getting all the songs, you’re all dancing, you’ve got the club vibes but without the hangover the next day.” Similarly, Vikki Harries, a 28-year-old safeguarding manager, values the gym for both socialising and marathon training, saying, “The gym just feels like there’s like-minded people there. I just don’t feel out of place or anything like that.”
The rise in gym-going among young adults is reflected in statistics that highlight changing social habits. Between 2017 and 2024, participation in gym and fitness activities among children and young people grew 12%. The Gym Group found that in 2025, 44% of Generation Z reported working out specifically to socialise, up from 37% the prior year. This generation is also spending more on fitness-related expenses, with the average monthly expenditure on memberships, apps, and equipment rising 17% from the previous year to £48.81. Meanwhile, Mintel’s data shows that over half of 18- to 24-year-olds visited gyms more than once in a recent month, surpassing the 42% who frequented pubs for drinks during the same period.
While the popularity of gyms as social hotspots might suggest challenges for traditional pubs, Mintel has not found direct evidence linking increased gym attendance with declining pub revenues. Nevertheless, data from the Night-Time Industries Association, analyzed by CGA
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