Health and fitness are trendier than ever. It improves life quality and even fosters a sense of community. However, the positives don’t show the whole picture. We’ve all heard “health is wealth,” but in the 2020s, this age-old quote has taken on a new meaning.
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Healthy habit or status symbol?
According to the Global Wellness Institute (GWI), 2024 worldwide spending on wellness has surged to a record $6.8 trillion, accounting for six percent of the GDP. Taking a closer look at the Philippines, data from GWI shows the wellness economy grew by 25.8 percent from 2020 to 2024. Globally and locally, the COVID-19 pandemic shifted everyone’s focus to their well-being, and in turn, also their spending.
Since then, wellness has evolved from a personal habit into an entire lifestyle ecosystem. Before the pandemic, getting fit for most people meant carving out some time in their schedule after work or before social events, but now it takes center stage.
The emergence of run clubs around the metro like EZ Run Club or Just Show Up Club (formerly Rockwell Run Club) is an example of how people are meeting their social needs and health pursuits simultaneously. A popular coffee chain like Pickup Coffee is even getting in on the wellness bandwagon by offering beverages with protein up to 20 grams per cup. And earlier this year, sportswear brand Adidas went viral in the fashion scene for its Lunar New Year jacket, showing the worlds of fashion and fitness are mixing more and more.
The collective focus on health and wellness has made it an essential piece in who you are as a modern individual.
What distinguishes today’s fitness culture is its visibility. Exercise is documented, shared, and displayed. Social media feeds are filled with race medals, smartwatch statistics, training milestones, and healthy meals. What was once a personal journey of self-improvement has turned into a social—or what some would deem performative—display.
Fitness now serves a dual purpose: It promotes health, but it also communicates social identity. To be fit in Metro Manila is to signal discipline, ambition, and a commitment to self-improvement. Fitness is no longer merely something Manileños do; it’s part of who they are.
However, the problem lies within this new form of social signaling. When health is measured through exclusive memberships, curated social media content, or aesthetic standards, fitness risks become another arena in which inequality is displayed.
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The expense of Manila’s modern fitness
As with all luxuries, modern-day fitness is associated with status because it’s become increasingly pricey.
Premium memberships in exclusive gyms and studios cost a few thousands monthly, and classes often exceed an average Filipino’s daily wage. If you include costs like athletic shoes, branded sportswear, supplements, wearable fitness devices, recovery treatments, and personalized coaching, then health quickly becomes a luxury industry.
However, money is just part of the equation. Accessibility is another key player.
Running, for example, seems quite straightforward—but not all cities have accessible parks, paths, and sometimes even proper sidewalks like Makati or BGC.
And for those who have to make a trip to access an area like the UP Diliman’s Academic Oval, making their way to and from there entails having a commute budget, thus revealing hidden costs and limitations that may come with getting into certain sports.
Pickleball for example is getting increasingly popular, and its highest concentration is currently in Quezon City with nearly 30 locations. On the more reasonable side, places like Neopolitan Brittany Pickleball Club and Picklrs Lounge charge P300 a session per head, Kalarô Pickleball is a bit pricer at P650 to P750, and higher-end options like Solaire Sports Club charges P1,200 per hour for walk-ins.
Other than hidden costs and inaccessibility, sports come with their own equipment, attire, gear, and spaces. But most of all, living a fit lifestyle heavily depends on everyone’s most important resource: time.
Filipinos spend anywhere between one to three hours on average commuting per way. That’s about two hours daily of a difficult commute home after a long day of work. Some days for the working class are just about surviving and fulfilling essential needs like putting food on the table and getting some rest.
Although staying fit and healthy is important for everyone, the harsh reality is that doing so highly favors the privileged in Metro Manila.
If you have the capacity to try out different sports, access recreational spaces, and have excess time and money to further new hobbies, you’re likely part of the social class of Manileños that can afford other status symbols.
Everyone has a right to exercise
Still, reducing Manila’s rising fitness culture to mere elitism and social segregation overlooks the positives.
More Filipinos are exercising regularly, paying attention to nutrition, and placing more value on habits that contribute to self-care. Although “how” depends a lot on social factors, there are definitely options open to everyone that are cost-effective and save people time, as these are doable at home.
Jumping rope, mat exercises, and basic weight training require minimal space and spending. E-commerce platforms also sell affordable fitness equipment that you can easily integrate for a well-rounded home workout, like resistance bands, ab rollers, push-up boards, and cross-training rings.
But doing the same thing in the same space alone can get boring. Luckily, there are inexpensive or even free options where you might even connect with a community. For cardio, check if your city or one nearby has car-free Sundays. As for building muscle, bakal gyms are less than a hundred per use and less than a thousand for monthly memberships.
Expensive or exclusive does not always equate to effectiveness. Discipline, consistency, and resourcefulness are what’s truly valuable in anyone’s fitness journey. Although what people can access to further their fitness can differ greatly, the goal is the same: improved health that ultimately benefits oneself.
A reflection of urban privilege
The fitness boom sweeping across Metro Manila reflects both aspiration and inequality. On one hand, it represents a genuine desire for healthier, more balanced lives in such a demanding urban environment. On the other hand, it highlights how access to wellness is shaped by money, time, infrastructure, and social opportunity.
Fitness becoming trendy isn’t something to frown upon. A healthier society is undoubtedly a positive development. In a city defined by congestion, stress, and inequality, the ability to care for one’s body may have become the clearest symbol of privilege in modern urban life—not because health and fitness are exclusive, but because access to these often is.
How much it costs to be fit in Metro Manila
Here are the average monthly costs of memberships, services, and supplements that Manileños likely spend on:
- Gym membership: P2,000 to P3,500
- ClassPass membership: P2,649 (standard 30 credit plan)
- Sportswear: P500 to P1500
- Smart devices: P500 to P3000
- Recovery treatments: P2,000 to P15,000
