A Question of Time

THE FITNESS INDUSTRY

How much of the average person’s day is really spent on working out?

When it comes to working out, time is often one of the biggest excuses. Americans on average, though, may spend more time than you think on exercise each day. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Time Use Survey and reports from IBISWorld, individuals in the U.S. on average spend 1.5 hours exercising each day.

The majority of people exercise between 5 and 8 p.m. on workdays and between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on non-workdays. In all, Americans spend more than a fifth of their day on leisure activities, which not only includes sports and fitness but also includes activities like watching TV, socializing, reading, playing games, and browsing social media.

As a whole, men spend more time on leisure and work than women and contribute far less toward household activities than women. There also is a lag in leisure time from the ages of 15 to 44 before trending back up again. It’s no surprise then that people over the age of 75 have the most leisure time at almost 8 hours a day.

While an individual’s time spent on exercise varies based on gender, age, how many children they have, employment, and other demographics, a major contributing factor is education. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, sports participation is twice as high in people with bachelor’s degrees or higher compared to people with a high school diploma. As the percentage of people in the U.S. with bachelor’s degrees has grown, so has the amount of people participating in sports.

The number of people with bachelor’s degrees isn’t the only rising stat. According to a new report from Mintel, 36% of consumers are working out more regularly than they were before the pandemic.

Plus, the report also found that the number of Americans working out once a week or more increased from 67% in 2020 to 72% in 2021.

Though the amount of time individuals spend on fitness and exercise varies, it’s clear Americans are conscious of using their time to stay fit and healthy. It’s the reason the fitness industry is such big business and why United Leasing & Finance has been lending in this space for more than 20 years. No matter how you break down the data, one thing is clear — time is of the essence.

About United Leasing & Finance

United Leasing & Finance is a customer-focused and growth-oriented leasing and finance company committed to providing custom financing solutions to businesses across the U.S. and Canada. For almost 60 years, United has partnered with clients to achieve mutual success from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies and has been lending in the fitness space since 2000.