Mark Colton
Gym Business Operations & Sales Strategist
"Mark Colton is the founder and president of Fitness Management USA, a gym management consulting and turnaround firm, with over 35 years of hands-on experience in the fitness industry. A former owner of six gyms — three started from scratch and three acquired — he has helped revitalize hundreds of underperforming health clubs across the United States. His core philosophy: the gym business is a fixed-cost business. Control rent at 15% of revenue and payroll at 40%, and you have a running shot at profitability. He is a published author and contributing writer for Club Insider since 2006."
Published Intelligence Reports (2)
Gym Profitability Ratios & Equipment ROI: The Operator's 2026 Guide
The 6 profitability ratios that decide whether your gym makes money — benchmarks, the fixed-cost rule (rent 15% / payroll 40%), and the equipment ROI decision framework for CAPEX.
Why Fitness Growth Is Not Saving Weak Operators
Japan recorded 26 fitness-club bankruptcies through August 2026 and True Fitness entered provisional liquidation in Singapore. We map what the 2026 failure wave actually says about club-level unit economics.