By the time the 1980s — the decade of Ronald Reagan, "Dallas" and JR Ewing, Richard Simmons, big shoulder pads and even bigger hair — arrived, the fitness industry had emerged from basements and garages where it had been home to bodybuilders to become an industry of tennis, racquetball and fitness facilities appealing to a broader market with broader offerings. In 1981, 70 million Americans — about half the adult population — did some form of exercise compared to 24 percent who did so in 1960. Thirteen million of those people belonged to at least one of the 5,000 health clubs in the country at that time. Many of those exercisers were part of the Baby Boomer generation (the tail end of which turned 26 years old in 1980), and they were in pursuit of becoming a "10" as the 1979 movie implied Bo Derek was.

In this decade, member of the National Tennis Association and the National Court Clubs Association formed the International Racquet and Sportsclub Association (later renamed to International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association). The fact that the word "health" was not originally included in the name of the association demonstrates that at the beginning of the decade, most clubs were tennis and racquetball clubs. However as the decade progressed, more of those club operators began moving away from being strictly racquet clubs to including fitness. Aerobics classes became more popular after the 1985 movie "Perfect" with Jamie Lee Curtis as a fitness instructor helped push group exercise as a programming option.

Most club owners in the 1980s were independent club operators. The biggest name in the industry was Health and Tennis Corporation of America, later to be known as Bally Total Fitness, which grew as it gobbled up one club after another. However, other players made names for themselves, too, in this decade. Cardio-Fitness Centers, Cedardale Athletic Club, Club Sports International, East Bank, Family Fitness Centers, Gold's Gym International, New York Health & Racquet Club, Red Lerille's Club, Sawmill River Club, Sports Training Institute, Tennis Corp. of America, Vertical Club, Western Athletic Club and 24 Hour Nautilus were some of the most talked about club operations in the 1980s. Some of their stories from that decade follow.

Jump to:

• 24 Hour Nautilus (24 Hour Fitness)
• Cardio-Fitness Centers
• Cedardale Athletic Club
• Club Sports International (Wellbridge)
• East Bank Club
• Family Fitness Centers
• Health and Tennis Corporation of America (Bally Total Fitness)
• New York Health & Racquet Club
• Sports Training Institute
• Tennis Clubs of America (Midtown Athletic Clubs)
• Western Athletic Clubs

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