High School Summer Pass: Planet Fitness invites teens ages 14-19 to work out for free

Special to Gannett / USA TODAY NETWORK
·4 min read

FORT WALTON BEACH — Planet Fitness, one of the largest and fastest-growing franchisors and operators of fitness centers with more members than any other fitness brand, invites high schoolers ages 14-19* to work out for free at any Planet Fitness location in the Fort Walton Beach area from May 16 through Aug. 31 as part of the High School Summer Pass initiative.

High School Summer Pass was formerly known as Teen Summer Challenge, which was the first program of its kind launched in 2019 and saw more than 900,000 teens sign up and complete more than 5.5 million workouts over a three-and-a-half-month period.

High schoolers can visit PlanetFitness.com/SummerPass to preregister and get a reminder to formally sign up when the program officially kicks off on Monday, May 16. Teens under age 18 must register with a parent or guardian online or in-club.

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Teens empowered to stay active

According to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network Open, less than 15 percent of teens met the 60-minute daily physical activity recommendation during the pandemic. And a national study commissioned by Planet Fitness found that 93 percent of American teens want to stay healthy and active over the summer months, but many lack motivation or access to do so.

“As the leader in fitness, we believe we have a responsibility to provide a welcoming, safe, and judgment-free environment for high school students to improve their physical and mental wellness, particularly given the challenges they have and continue to face in the wake of the pandemic,” said Chris Rondeau, chief executive officer at Planet Fitness. “Our study found that nearly all (92 percent) high school students agreed that when they are regularly physically active, they feel much better mentally. Fitness is about feeling good, too, and our hope is that High School Summer Pass empowers teens to create life-long workout habits to help them succeed in every aspect of their lives.”

To further motivate high schoolers to make fitness a priority, all participants who sign up starting May 16 are automatically entered into The Planet Fitness High School Summer Pass Sweepstakes.

Planet Fitness will award one $500 scholarship in each state and the District of Columbia), and one grand prize $5,000 scholarship at the end of the summer. These scholarships can be used for academic or athletic activities or programs.

A safe, clean, welcoming environment

In addition to free in-club fitness training that all High School Summer Pass participants will have access to, the certified trainers at Planet Fitness have also designed 15 trainer-led workout videos and 10 downloadable workouts encompassing cardio, strength, toning and sports circuits just for high schoolers (across all fitness levels).

This content will be available on the Planet Fitness App and at PlanetFitness.com/SummerPass starting May 16.

This summer and all year-round, Planet Fitness’ top priority continues to be keeping its members and employees safe. It is the first fitness brand to receive the WELL Health-Safety Rating for Facility Operations and Management by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). The rating recognizes Planet Fitness’ leadership in adopting the leading framework to ensure a safer and healthier environment for its employees and members across all of its more than 2,200 facilities.

COVID-19 safety protocols

Enhanced COVID-19 safety and sanitization protocols at its well-ventilated and spacious clubs include:

  • Touchless check-in via the free Planet Fitness App – available to all High School Summer Pass participants

  • A Crowd Meter on the Planet Fitness App that allows members to check club capacity in real-time before even leaving the house

  • Increased sanitization to continually clean and sanitize high-touch areas, with cleaning stations available for member use

  • Mask policies in accordance with local guidelines.

For more information on High School Summer Pass, including how to sign up for the free membership at any Planet Fitness location in the Fort Walton Beach area, visit PlanetFitness.com/SummerPass.

This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: Teens exercise free: Planet Fitness offers High School Summer Pass