America's health and fitness kick -- partially a response to mounting concerns about obesity, bad eating habits, and high health care costs -- is fueling solid growth opportunities for franchises that focus on healthy living and well-being.

Health club memberships will be up again this year after climbing 3% in 2011 and nearly 11% the year before. It's not just gyms. More and more Americans are shelling out for the services of personal trainers, nutritionists, and massage therapists, as well as for fitness apparel and gear, vitamins and more.

New players in the health and fitness field are finding interesting niches alongside established clubs such as Planet Fitness and Jazzercise, for example.

Here are eight promising newcomers flexing their muscles, most on the scene in just the past few years.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

8 Growing Health and Fitness Franchises

Product/service: Boxing fitness clubs

Franchises in the U.S.: 200

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 2,757%

Net worth requirement: $200,000

Royalty: 7% of memberships sold

Franchise fee: $35,000 ($29,000 if 3 or more are bought)

The TITLE Boxing Club franchise, headquartered in Kansas City, brings a popular inner-city phenomenon, the boxing club, to the suburbs, smaller cities, and towns. The calorie-burning self-defense course appeals to a largely young, female clientele. TITLE Boxing Club provides a one-week training program for its franchisees and offers daily webinars and annual conferences.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

TITLE Boxing Club

Product/service: Personalized fitness programs

Franchises in the U.S.: 130

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 300%

Net worth requirement: $300,000

Royalty: $395/month

Franchise fee: $30,000

The Rockland, Mass.-based company with gyms in 29 states automates personal training for its customers. Clients take a survey that takes into account their lifestyle and goals to create a personalized fitness regimen. Each time they come to a KoKo club, they insert a key into a "smart trainer," generating the day's 30-minute customized workout. KoKo's technology focuses primarily on helping clients manage weight and maintain muscle.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

KoKo FitClub

Product/service: Fitness programs for mothers

Franchises in the U.S.: 300

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 44%

Net worth requirement: N/A

Royalty: $170/month

Franchise fee: $5,000 (classic model); $25,000 (business development model)

Stroller Strides has expanded from its roots as a small-scale fitness program enabling new moms to get back into shape to prenatal classes that focus on staying healthy before giving birth, as well as classes for moms of all ages to get back into shape. Based in San Marcos, Calif., the business also invites new moms to bring their infants along to classes and even incorporates strollers into exercise routines. Franchisees can invest on two levels: the classic model, in which they run the franchise and teach the classes themselves, or the business development model, in which they hire instructors and focus on running a larger business.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

Stroller Strides

Product/service: 24/7 fitness clubs

Franchises in the U.S.: 1,100

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 13%

Net worth requirement: $250,000

Royalty: $449/month

Franchise fee: $15,000

Working out when you want is a hallmark of this Chanhassen, Minn.-based company, which keeps its facilities open 24/7. In addition to workout equipment, the clubs also offer health and wellness programming for both corporations and individuals, personal trainers and tanning. Snap Fitness plans to open between five and 15 new clubs per month through the rest of this year.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

Snap Fitness

Product/service: Personal and group training

Franchises in the U.S.:
146 (Fitness Revolution);
54 (Athletic Revolution)

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 40%

Net worth requirement: N/A

Royalty: 6%

Franchise fee: $7,500

This Elizabethtown, Ky.-based business has two program options for potential franchisees: Fitness Revolution, designed for adults, and Athletic Revolution, targeted toward six- to 18-year-olds. The business focuses on group training sessions, based on individual needs: weight loss groups or muscle building groups, for example. Athletic Revolution is also geared towards helping kids and teenagers perform better at sports. Franchisees are not required to rent or own brick-and-mortar studios: many hold classes in churches, school gyms or other rented spaces.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

Fitness Revolution

Product/service: Healthy and organic snacks

Franchises in the U.S.: 150

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 30%

Net worth requirement: N/A

Royalty: 6% of units that have 100-plus sales per month

Franchise fee: $120,000 to buy 10 standard units; $80,000 to buy five coffee/snack units

With 1,500 vending machine locations (franchisees have multiple machines in a region), the company's largest presence is in schools. Fresh Healthy Vending machines, stocked with items such as Naked Juices and Stacy's Pita Chips, are also found in gyms, yoga studios, car dealerships and other locations. Headquartered in San Diego, Calif., the firm recently rolled out a combination snack/organic coffee machine designed for the workplace. Franchisee training includes how to best stock a machine based on local demographics and other business know-how.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

Fresh Healthy Vending

Product/service: Nutritional supplements and wellness planning

Franchises in the U.S.: 151

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 56%

Net worth requirement: $180,000 ($40,000 cash)

Royalty: 6%; 2% for marketing

Franchise fee: $30,000 ($15,000 down, $15,000 on opening)

Complete Nutrition retail stores are staffed with dietitians, nutritionists and personal trainers, who undergo two weeks of intensive training at the company's corporate headquarters in Omaha, Neb. They're also assigned "success coaches" to check in with them weekly once the store is up and running. Company-wide revenues have nearly doubled each of the past two years.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

Complete Nutrition

Product/service: Massage therapy

Franchises in the U.S.: 94

Growth in franchises (over the past 12 months): 15%

Net worth requirement: $300,000 for a single location; $400,000 for two; $500,000 for three

Royalty: 6%

Franchise fee: $45,000 for a single franchise; $35,000 for each subsequent one

The company, based near Denver, Colo., is slated to open another 50 franchises by the end of 2012, capitalizing on the growing acceptance of therapeutic massage by mainstream America. About 20% of Americans get at least one massage each year to relieve stress and aching muscles (after all those workouts), helping to turn massage therapy into a nearly $15-billion business.

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

Elements Therapeutic Massage

QUIZ: Test Your Start-Up Know-How Fast-Growing Franchises with Staying Power

What Will Be the Jobs of Tomorrow?

Get in Shape on a Fitness Vacation

•  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
•  

More from Kiplinger