I've been thinking about this quite a bit recently! It seems to me that more and more people are into fitness and healthy eating than say 5-10 years ago. There's gyms popping up everywhere, flyers everywhere for fitness classes and then all the dieting things too. I'm only 25, so I don't know whether it's just that I'm more aware of it now I'm older, but I never remember my parents or my friends parents going to the gym or being on diets so much! One friend's mum used to go to the gym and it really stands out in my mind cos I don't think anyone else's did!

I suppose as well with the Internet, things are more out there and obviously if you're into health/fitness you'll seek out like minded people! But in the kids' classes, most of the parents go to the gym, or to multiple classes/running/swimming, totally different to my experiences with friends' parents. I live a few streets away from where I grew up, so it's not demographics!

Thoughts anyone?

I think that lots more people are into health and fitness these days. Society is a lot more health conscious these days, so more people make an effort. I think that they say we are getting more obese as a society, so I think a lot of people become more interested in trying to lose weight and get fit.

I think, overall, people ARE more health-conscious than they used to be a decade ago. Obesity has become a major problem in probably the past twenty or thirty years and people are really starting to respond to that. For a while, I think people didn't really do gyms, exercise, dieting, etc., because it was seen as vain. Now, I think people recognize that it's not so much about how you look, but your state of health. People feel more okay about prioritizing their health when it's not a sign of vanity. Or at least, that's my two cents' worth.

I think it's a combination of things...societal standards of beauty, public attitudes towards fitness and healthy living, awareness of diseases, genetically modified foods, hormones, etc...seems like there's a general shift in the overall attitude that being fit and healthy is admirable.

I just assumed I'd intentionally blocked out fit people and poster ads etc

I think women in particular have always been dieting to lose weight. Fitness has always been big business. Maybe some of you are too young to remember all the "Sweating to the Oldies" and Jane Fonda work out tapes. Jack LaLanne was promoting fitness and a homemade juicing diet for decades. I remember my mom watching him and exercising along to his TV show when I was little.

I don't know about this but I will say it's possible I think it will be impossible to measure so I will just say that with the Internet, YouTube, Facebook, etc., it has become much easier to promote your fitness business.

PrincessPikachu - I think you make a good point. Information travels so much faster, and is easier to find these days, since just about everyone has the internet. There are still a lot of diet fads but people are able to do their own research and get to the bottom of all the health issues that concern them. I also think that the largest part of the population right now is the Baby Boomer generation and they are all approaching the older years and want to be able to stay fit and healthy.

I do believe the internet has helped spread the word about fitness and the different types of fitness/exercise there are. A lot of new fitness activities (Zumba included) were pretty much posted on YouTube and then it became the newest craze.

I also think that people are more out of shape now than they were back in the earlier days. Everyone is looking for a way to get into shape.