From the 1950s to 1970s, New Zealand athlete Les Mills, competed in discus, shotput and weightlifting in four Olympic and Commonwealth Games events. In 1966, he won a Gold Medal for discus, while his record for shotput was retained for the 44 years that followed.

In 1968, Les and his wife Colleen opened the very first Les Mills gym in Auckland, New Zealand.

Fast-forward to 1995, when Bill Robertson – the owner of Deakin Health Spa in Canberra (now Fitness First Deakin) – discovered the original version of BODYPUMP® in that same gym chain called ‘Les Mills’ in New Zealand. This innovative program was a pre-choreographed barbell workout, and Bill immediately recognised its potential to solve the challenge of how to refresh the empty aerobics classes in Australian health clubs. BODYPUMP was never intended for a wider market, but Bill negotiated the export of the program to Australia, and after only a few years BODYPUMP revolutionised the fitness industry by becoming the world’s most famous group exercise class.

A year later in 1996, following the massive success of BODYPUMP, Bill founded Les Mills Asia Pacific and co-founded Les Mills International. Les Mills International has since become a global market leader in group fitness and team training solutions, with more than 6 million workouts being delivered every week, by 140,000 certified instructors, across 21,000+ clubs and homes in 110 countries.

Today, Les Mills Asia Pacific is responsible for the licensing of Les Mills programs and group fitness solutions, the education of Les Mills Instructors, and the provision of SMART TECH fitness equipment throughout Australia and Southeast Asia (including Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Maldives, Guam, Laos and Papua New Guinea).

Chief Executive Officer, Ryan Hogan explains:

“We offer the Ultimate Group Fitness Solution which comprises of omni-fitness solutions that will keep members connected to their club, and help clubs reach new audiences. These include live and LES MILLS® Virtual classes in fitness facilities; on-demand classes for use at home or while travelling via LES MILLS+; LES MILLS Content (enabling clubs to host 100+ Les Mills workouts on their own website or app); award-winning, premium SMART TECH fitness equipment (for use in facilities or at home); live-streaming solutions; comprehensive marketing support; world-class Instructor training;  and a proven Group Fitness Management system to help clubs achieve their maximum business potential.”

Les Mills Asia Pacific is for a fitter planet and they achieve this by creating healthier fitness businesses by making more people fall in love with their club.

Watch the Les Mills story or to learn more about the Les Mills Asia Pacific click here.

To explore how Les Mills Asia Pacific can help you create a healthy and sustainable business, contact your local Business Partnership Manager in Australia or Southeast Asia for a no-obligation consult.