Les Mills and Life Fitness announce strategic partnership to elevate fitness experiences
Partnership sees two iconic brands with shared heritage and purpose bring together world-class training and engineering to create better fitness experiences for every body
San Diego, USA – 17 March 2025
Les Mills and Life Fitness / Hammer Strength today announced a new strategic partnership that combines their complementary strengths and values to shape the next era of fitness.
The partnership, unveiled at the Health & Fitness Association (HFA) trade show in San Diego, unites world-class training experiences and equipment to create more engaging ways for clubs and partners to move people.
The collaboration will result in exciting new products, live events and connected fitness experiences across the two brands’ ecosystems, with further announcements to be revealed in the coming months.
Les Mills will serve as the Official Cycle Content Partner of Life Fitness, while Life Fitness will serve as the Official Bike Partner of Les Mills for its cycle programs.
Shared heritage and values
The seeds of the partnership can be traced back to 1968, when two fitness revolutions began, half a world apart. In the US, the first piece of electronic fitness equipment, the Lifecycle exercise bike, emerged and later became the first product Augie Nieto brought to market as he built what would become Life Fitness. Meanwhile in New Zealand, Les and Colleen Mills parlayed Olympic training expertise into a fitness movement for the people. Nearly six decades later, those legacies are converging to shape the next era of fitness.
Les Mills and Life Fitness share a belief in performance, science-driven innovation, and the role fitness plays in improving global health and well-being. Both brands have consistently set industry standards through engineering excellence, world-class programming, and a commitment to creating experiences that inspire people to fall in love with fitness.
Uniting strengths to raise standards
The partnership brings together Les Mills’ world-leading group training content with Life Fitness’ market-leading equipment engineering and global footprint. The collaboration will enable clubs, partners, and operators to deliver more connected, motivating, and high-quality fitness experiences at scale, across a range of environments.
Phillip Mills, Les Mills Managing Director, said:
“Les Mills and Life Fitness are living proof that innovation and passion stand the test of time. Together, we’re building a foundation for the future, rooted in shared values, proven expertise, and a long-term vision to elevate the role fitness plays in people’s lives.
“Our mission is to make people fall in love with fitness - to help clubs deliver more inspiring, more effective workouts that support long-term engagement and growth.”
Jim Pisani, Life Fitness / Hammer Strength CEO, added:
"Life Fitness / Hammer Strength has always been focused on building equipment that helps people move with confidence and achieve results. Our alignment with Les Mills is rooted in shared values and a deep belief in performance, science, and quality.
"As global fitness leaders, we have a unique opportunity to elevate the experience for training environments, instructors, and members worldwide — empowering more people to work out and creating healthier lives together. This partnership reflects what’s possible when complementary strengths come together to shape the future of fitness."
ABOUT LES MILLS
Les Mills is the global leader in group training and creator of over 30 programs available in leading fitness facilities around the world. Les Mills programs include the world’s favourite group strength workout BODYPUMP™, BODYCOMBAT™ (martial arts), THE TRIP™, LES MILLS SPRINT™ and RPM™ (indoor cycling), LES MILLS CEREMONY™ (functional circuit training), and its latest fitness innovation – BODYPUMP HEAVY™.
The company was founded by Les Mills – a four-time Olympian and national head coach of New Zealand track and field – who opened his first gym in 1968 with the aim of taking elite sports training to the masses. Today, Les Mills workouts are delivered by 100,000 certified Instructors in 22,600 clubs across 110 countries, as well as via the LES MILLS+ streaming platform and Extended Reality (XR).
ABOUT LIFE FITNESS
Life Fitness / Hammer Strength has been inspiring the world to work out for more than 55 years. Every day, people in more than 150 countries log in 1+ million workouts on the company’s connected fitness equipment – proving daily that Life Fitness/Hammer Strength is the world’s workout partner of choice. By seamlessly bringing innovative, high-performance and reliable equipment and digital solutions to members, wherever and whenever they work out, Life Fitness/Hammer Strength aims to inspire healthier lives. Headquartered outside of Chicago, in Rosemont, Illinois, the company manufactures and sells strength and cardiovascular equipment through its iconic Life Fitness and Hammer Strength brands. By integrating the best of both brands, the company provides comprehensive workout solutions for commercial and consumer customers. For more information, visit www.lifefitness.com.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES
Les Mills: jak.phillips@lesmills.com
Life Fitness: rekha.rao@lifefitness.com
Les Mills and Life Fitness / Hammer Strength today announced a new strategic partnership that combines their complementary strengths and values to shape the next era of fitness.
The partnership, unveiled at the Health & Fitness Association (HFA) trade show in San Diego, unites world-class training experiences and equipment to create more engaging ways for clubs and partners to move people.
The collaboration will result in exciting new products, live events and connected fitness experiences across the two brands’ ecosystems, with further announcements to be revealed in the coming months.
Les Mills will serve as the Official Cycle Content Partner of Life Fitness, while Life Fitness will serve as the Official Bike Partner of Les Mills for its cycle programs.
Shared heritage and values
The seeds of the partnership can be traced back to 1968, when two fitness revolutions began, half a world apart. In the US, the first piece of electronic fitness equipment, the Lifecycle exercise bike, emerged and later became the first product Augie Nieto brought to market as he built what would become Life Fitness. Meanwhile in New Zealand, Les and Colleen Mills parlayed Olympic training expertise into a fitness movement for the people. Nearly six decades later, those legacies are converging to shape the next era of fitness.
Les Mills and Life Fitness share a belief in performance, science-driven innovation, and the role fitness plays in improving global health and well-being. Both brands have consistently set industry standards through engineering excellence, world-class programming, and a commitment to creating experiences that inspire people to fall in love with fitness.
Uniting strengths to raise standards
The partnership brings together Les Mills’ world-leading group training content with Life Fitness’ market-leading equipment engineering and global footprint. The collaboration will enable clubs, partners, and operators to deliver more connected, motivating, and high-quality fitness experiences at scale, across a range of environments.
Phillip Mills, Les Mills Managing Director, said:
“Les Mills and Life Fitness are living proof that innovation and passion stand the test of time. Together, we’re building a foundation for the future, rooted in shared values, proven expertise, and a long-term vision to elevate the role fitness plays in people’s lives.
“Our mission is to make people fall in love with fitness - to help clubs deliver more inspiring, more effective workouts that support long-term engagement and growth.”
Jim Pisani, Life Fitness / Hammer Strength CEO, added:
"Life Fitness / Hammer Strength has always been focused on building equipment that helps people move with confidence and achieve results. Our alignment with Les Mills is rooted in shared values and a deep belief in performance, science, and quality.
"As global fitness leaders, we have a unique opportunity to elevate the experience for training environments, instructors, and members worldwide — empowering more people to work out and creating healthier lives together. This partnership reflects what’s possible when complementary strengths come together to shape the future of fitness."
ABOUT LES MILLS
Les Mills is the global leader in group training and creator of over 30 programs available in leading fitness facilities around the world. Les Mills programs include the world’s favourite group strength workout BODYPUMP™, BODYCOMBAT™ (martial arts), THE TRIP™, LES MILLS SPRINT™ and RPM™ (indoor cycling), LES MILLS CEREMONY™ (functional circuit training), and its latest fitness innovation – BODYPUMP HEAVY™.
The company was founded by Les Mills – a four-time Olympian and national head coach of New Zealand track and field – who opened his first gym in 1968 with the aim of taking elite sports training to the masses. Today, Les Mills workouts are delivered by 100,000 certified Instructors in 22,600 clubs across 110 countries, as well as via the LES MILLS+ streaming platform and Extended Reality (XR).
ABOUT LIFE FITNESS
Life Fitness / Hammer Strength has been inspiring the world to work out for more than 55 years. Every day, people in more than 150 countries log in 1+ million workouts on the company’s connected fitness equipment – proving daily that Life Fitness/Hammer Strength is the world’s workout partner of choice. By seamlessly bringing innovative, high-performance and reliable equipment and digital solutions to members, wherever and whenever they work out, Life Fitness/Hammer Strength aims to inspire healthier lives. Headquartered outside of Chicago, in Rosemont, Illinois, the company manufactures and sells strength and cardiovascular equipment through its iconic Life Fitness and Hammer Strength brands. By integrating the best of both brands, the company provides comprehensive workout solutions for commercial and consumer customers. For more information, visit www.lifefitness.com.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES
Les Mills: jak.phillips@lesmills.com
Life Fitness: rekha.rao@lifefitness.com