After a 10-hour workday, Wang Yue doesn't put her feet up in front of a TV - she prefers to spend one or two hours in the gym, sweating and panting.

An annual membership card, priced at 5,500 yuan (US$663), is definitely not small change for the 26-year-old who earns 2,500 yuan (US$300) a month.

But Wang says it is worth it.

"I cannot save much money as the salary is so low. If I didn't spend the money here, I would probably spend it all on shopping," says Wang, wiping sweat on her forehead.

"I come here to be healthy," says Wang, proudly showing off her svelte body. "You only have one life, one body."

With the increase in life expectancy and growing affluence, a rising number of Chinese people are paying special attention to health. The SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak in 2003 was a loud wake-up call, making people suddenly realize the importance of prevention of illness through regular physical exercise.

That change in lifestyle is luring investors from home and abroad to cash in on the fitness fad. Chain fitness centres and independent health clubs are mushrooming in large Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Dalian.

"As China continues to develop, there will be greater demand for fitness because as people enjoy more the success of what the economy brings, one of the things that comes along with that is a less physically-active lifestyle," says Ben Amante, vice-president of US-based Bally Total Fitness Corp.

"When I was here 10 years ago, there were not many cars, but there were a lot of traffic jams involving bicycles," Amante recalls in an interview with China Business Weekly.

"Today, there are fewer bicycles. People are in cars more, in offices more, basically sitting down more. They'll need somewhere to go for physical exertion."

In 2002, the US health club chain - with more than 400 clubs in North America - formed a joint venture with China Sports Industry Group Co Ltd (CSI), a domestically-listed company in which the General Administration of Sports (GAS) holds the controlling stake. Bally holds 35 per cent.

The first CSI-Bally Total Fitness Club opened in Beijing in June that year; and during the past three years, the chain opened two directly-owned fitness centres and 15 franchised centres around China. Beijing is home to eight CSI-Bally clubs.

"In the past, fitness was more for athletic people. But now we are getting the general public coming in for better health," Amante says.

"The industry has very good long-term prospects. There are at least 20 to 30 years of steady growth in the industry worldwide as more and more people want better health."

Amante's view is shared by Li Bin, president of Nirvana Fitness & Spa Club, one of CSI-Bally's biggest competitors.

"When I invested 22 million yuan (US$2.7 million) in the first Nirvana fitness club in Beijing in 2001, people thought I was crazy," Li tells China Business Weekly. "But I always believe as long as the Chinese economy keeps growing, the market demand for fitness will also keep growing."

Nirvana's fast growth proves the "crazy man" has made a wise investment.

The 3,000-square-metre club, with large windows where you can see the hustle and bustle on East Third Ring Road, was running at full capacity barely three months after its opening. The gym greets about 800 fitness enthusiasts every evening.

Li opened the second Nirvana club a year later; and now, there are five Nirvana fitness centres in Beijing, of which two are franchised.

Li is now expanding Nirvana into other large cities through franchising. Dalian, a coastal city in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, will have its first Nirvana club in September.

Li admits that Nirvana is one of the most expensive health clubs in Beijing, with its annual membership card costing more than 5,000 yuan (US$600).

"But I don't worry about the number of customers," Li says. "Chinese people are making more money. Just think about how many people owned cars five years ago? It's a matter of consumption habits."

Still, China is a nascent market in terms of the small number of fitness enthusiasts as well as the lack of fitness professionals.

About 13-14 per cent of Americans go to gyms but in China, only 1-2 per cent of urbanites do so, according to Amante.

"You need to spend a lot 'educating' this market," Li says.

Compared with other fitness clubs, Nirvana is a big spender in advertising. It is the first health club in China that uses outdoor advertising at railway stations and on streets and buses. It is also the first to place full-page advertisement in newspapers and magazines. Nirvana also invites Chinese movie stars to become its members and image ambassadors.

"I want 'going to Nirvana for fitness' to become a buzz phrase," Li says. "I want people to regard this as trendy and fashionable."

Jin Shan, director of business development at CSI-Bally Total Fitness Club Co Ltd, says besides advertising, fitness clubs also need to offer more customer-oriented services to better satisfy the young market. Jin is the chief representative of Bally in the joint venture.

"Fitness is so new here. Chinese people have little experience with fitness. Most of them haven't even seen a health club before ... Club members are usually perplexed when they first see the machines and the whole procedure," Jin says.

"Compared with the US, we have to do more handholding and spend more time with each member so that they get used to it and enjoy it. Otherwise, they would just be scared entering a club."

There are about 20 high-end fitness clubs in Beijing all boasting floor areas - over 3,000 square metres - and advanced fitness equipment made by companies such as Hammer Strength and Star Trac.

But having the best equipment is not enough.

"They all look like each other. Expensive and colourful," says Greg Hurst, director of Fitness Australia. "Anyone with money can buy equipment the same as yours."

Hurst says "investing in people" is the key to running a successful health club in the long run.

"You must get good people on your bus and make sure the right people are in the right seats," Hurst says.

Hurst, past president of the Federation for International Sport, Aerobics and Fitness, made the remarks at the 2005 Fitness China Beijing exhibition at the beginning of July. The exhibition was organized by CSI and GAS.

But having "the right people" in China is a challenge to club owners.

"Recruitment of qualified staff and franchisees is a growing challenge for us," Jin says.

"We still do not have enough people who want to find this job as a career. Some of them know this industry and want to be part of it for a while. But they don't know if they can be a personal trainer, a fitness consultant, or manage a health club for life.

"It's actually a good career. But because it is still unknown, most college students would not make us their first choice. We still have trouble finding the best people," Jin says.

That is the same problem faced by Frederick L. Wilkerson, vice-president of US-based Powerhouse Gym International.

Powerhouse entered China last year and has opened 15 clubs in the country.

"We plan to open 100 clubs in China by 2008," Wilkerson says. He says that to realize this ambitious target, it is not a question of financing.

"The question is to find the right staff to manage the clubs because we need 50 people for each club."

(China Daily 07/18/2005 page2)