Light Therapy: Is it Right for Your Fitness Business?

Aaron Eisberg for Accuro discusses the trend of light therapy, how it fits into gym environments, and if it’s right for your business

Is Red Light Therapy Right for your Fitness Business

Many of today’s successful gyms are focusing on much more than workout equipment and Zumba classes. Why? Because in order to succeed in today’s competitive fitness industry, you need a differentiating factor.

One such selling point embraced by many health clubs? Near Infrared (NIR) red light therapy. Here’s a closer look at this increasingly popular practice, along with why it might be a smart fit for your fitness business.

What is NIR Red Light Therapy?

Originally used by NASA to promote wound healing, red light therapy is widely heralded for its untapped potential. The Fashion Spot on this cutting-edge technology: ”Infrared light is the invisible part of natural sunlight that feels like heat when we are exposed to it. It’s completely safe. Hospitals use it to warm newborns. And, you can be exposed to it for hours since it’s devoid of harmful UV rays. Unlike the heat you find in traditional saunas and yoga rooms, in an infrared heated room, the heat is heating your body directly and only 20 percent of the heat is heating the air, meaning you’re not just sweating from the heat, the heat is actually penetrating your skin.”

Praised by the likes of everyone from Dr. Oz to Gwyneth Paltrow, red light therapy has earned a sought-after spot among the growing list of “no-workout workouts.”

Use in the Gym

Light therapy is often thought of in a medical context and is used for non-invasively treating ailments ranging from fibromyalgia to chronic pain. But it offers benefits to health club members as well. Says a recent ClubSolutions article on the potential of red light therapy in the fitness industry, “In a health club setting, NIR red light therapy can help members reduce lactic acid in their muscles, allowing for easier workouts. Female health club members have experienced skin tightening, smoother skin, improved hair and even sun damage reversal; while male members have noticed a testosterone boost, reduced overall pain and younger looking skin.”

Other potential benefits of NIR red light therapy include evening out skin tone, the healing of acne and other blemishes, and even weight loss — all without relying on dangerous UV rays.

The best part? NIR red light therapy technology is affordable and safe.  Members can even self-administer in a matter of minutes. Although, a professional practitioner should supervise the initial treatments.

Is NIR Red Light Therapy Right for Your Fitness Business?

While red light therapy was once the sole domain of dermatologist’s offices and beauty salons, more gyms are investing in red light therapy machines.

One example of a health club currently using red light therapy to attract and retain members? The nation’s fastest growing fitness center franchise: Planet Fitness. And, according to Light Therapy Device, nearly all members who tried (NIR) red light therapy reported improvements across everything from weight loss to skin enhancements.

Meanwhile, Tiffany Cruikshank, L.A.c., MAOM, RYT, founder of Yoga Medicine and author of Meditate Your Weight told The Fashion Spot of the power of infrared light therapy after a workout, “We also see an important detoxifying effect on the body and it’s used for its ability to boost the immune system…This causes the body to work harder to lower your core temperature or keep up with an increased heart rate, your body will burn more calories, resulting in weight loss.”

An Opportunity for Profit

Members aren’t the only ones who gain benefits from adding NIR red light therapy to your gym’s offerings. In order to support best outcomes, red light therapy must be taken regularly. The result? An exciting new profit generator. You can sell sessions individually or as part of membership packages.

There’s a reason why infrared light has earned a spot on countless roundups of current fitness trends. Proposes phototherapy device designer and head of product development at Canada-based Collagentex and Tanses Technologies Inc. Kirk Kiremitci for ClubSolutions, “ The opportunities for NIR Red Light therapy are endless. If you haven’t looked into the technology and are looking for a new profit center that can help differentiate your club and benefit your members’ recovery, NIR Red Light therapy may be the perfect solution.”

Many fitness businesses are also turning to another differentiator to stand out from the crowd: Fitness monitoring technology. To learn more about what the Accurofit System can do for your health club, download the catalog today.

Read on Accuro here.