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Creative gym ads are what we really love. As a place where people work on themselves, improve their physical and mental health and reach new goals, the gym industry is very motivational and inspirational. That’s exactly what you find in gym commercials. But some are better than others. Our article is about that. Here are the best gym ads for you to take notice of and upgrade your advertising (or finally buy that club card).
1. Welcome to Your Comeback – LA Fitness
Why: comeback is such an alluring ad concept to work with. It’s that moment after something happened that you find inner powers to overcome. LA Fitness may not give us the whole hero’s journey scenario arc here, but it makes their ad about the comeback.
We don’t quite get an idea where the comeback is from. But at the end of the day, it’s always individual. One thing is clear, LA Fitness is happy to assist you with your personal comeback by offering a great fitness experience.
2. Start something that’s Real AF – Anytime Fitness
Why: going with AF in your commercial tagline is bold, but Anytime Fitness pulls it off with grace. One of the most creative gym ads, it depicts a diverse roaster of gym people who each go through their gym struggles. The company wants you to know that Anytime Fitness is the place you can count on and that it will give you all the necessary tools to have the workout you deserve.
3. Life is the Luxury – Equinox
Why: rarely do you see gym ads that are such a high level as Life is the Luxury. American luxury gym brand Equinox decided to go full-The Tree of Life Terrence Malick-level of visuals. The slick video follows several people doing some kind of activity. One is climbing the rock, the girl is running through the forest in a Twilight fashion, the other girl is standing on the water, and, finally, there’s a guy (probably, taking time off Burning Man) drawing circles around in the desert.
The stories are supported by the narrator’s voice that takes usual gym motivation mantras to the next level by turning them into a kind of poetry. Overall, this ad is very poetic at the core, it’s very impressionist. And you can’t use that often for a commercial for a fitness center. So, undoubtedly, it’s among the best creative gym ads of 2022.
4. What’s Gotten into Lindsay? – Planet Fitness
Why: Planet Fitness went absolutely bonkers with their recent Lindsay Lohan ad. While it looks goofy and quite silly, it’s actually a fantastic piece of pop culture-heavy advertising craft, one that not everyone can master.
The ad is led by none other than Lindsey Lohan and follows her throughout the day as she plays “Jeopardy!” with Dennis Rodman, encrusts Danny Trejo’s ankle tag, crosses paths with Star Trek’s William Shatner at the gym, and makes paparazzi cry their eyes out (literally) by not showing for a night party.
It’s more of a Lindsay Lohan being on the joke about her past struggles with fame than a regular gym ad. But what’s the connection with Planet Fitness you may ask? And here it gets really smart. The gym space is proclaimed a non-judgmental zone where your past doesn’t matter and you can simply focus on working on the better “you”. Quite an existential piece of advertising, isn’t it? Definitely one of the most creative gym ads.
5. Just get here – Crunch Fitness
Why: oh, this one hits close to home. All creative gym ads love to show off, but here Crunch Fitness goes even further. It suggests that their fitness center is your place to escape from the woes of your ordinary life. The way ordinary life is depicted is quite brutal (but quite honest).
The commercial starts with a girl walking down the street with literal baggage of her life hardships tied to her feet. That’s not a pretty package: there’s a useless boyfriend watching TV, breaking news saying that “everything sucks”, a Peloton (?) bike suggesting failed home exercises, and a disappointed mother (or landlord (or boss)) figure sighing in despair. That’s a tough combination to handle and it follows this poor girl around (and makes us realize that we, in fact, have something similar in our lives too). But there’s a way to relieve the depression. Tada. Crunch Fitness is there to make our lives better (even if for an hour or two).
Is it a great life prospect? Definitely no. Is it one of the best gym ads out there? Hell yes!
6. Built By Gold’s – Gold’s Gym
Why: if you were looking for that classic, sweaty, pumping gym ad that is short, on point, and makes you think of getting ripped to the levels of Barbarian-era Arnold Schwarzenegger, here it is. Gold’s Gym won’t take much of your time to show what you’re getting by coming there to work out. In under a minute, the commercial shows a series of beautiful bodies working hard to get to even bigger levels of body beauty. Where to do it? Gold’s Gym is the answer.
While there are many similar creative gym ads around, we really love this one for an amazing level of execution where every element works.
7. Barre Beginner? What To Expect At Pure Barre
Why: there’s always anxiety about going to the gym of trying out new fitness concepts for the first time. Pure Barre understands that and uses a commercial format to address these concerns and calm them down. This ad is very meditative, very slow, and peaceful. The main message here is “don’t worry, we’ve got you and we accept you”.
Instead of going full motivation beast mode, Pure Barre chooses a soothing voice and welcoming vibe. The mission is the same, to sell. It’s just the way to that sell is different and caters to a specific audience. In the case of Pure Barre, they understand that their potential customers are not interested in screaming and loud commercials. So the company gives them what would work best.
