New research has revealed that Marbella is the most popular place for a gym selfie, followed by Dubai and the Norfolk city of Norwich. The study was undertaken by SportsShoes.com, who created a unique #gymselfie score for over 500 global cities by analysing the number of gym-related hashtags and population sizes, to unveil which places are taking the most photos in the gym per capita.
British Gym Selfie Hotspots
Norwich boasts the most Instagram uploads from the gym per person, with a whopping 10,346 posts under the city’s gym-related hashtags, resulting in a #gymselfie score of 48.5. Gym bunnies in the west of England are far more likely to post a workout snap than their counterparts in the east; Wigan, Leeds, Warrington and Liverpool rank 2nd, 4th, 5th and 7th with #gymselfie scores of 48.2, 33.4, 31.1 and 26.1 respectively, whilst south-west cities Bristol and Swindon rank in 8th and 9th place.
Residents of Leeds are responsible for pumping the most weights on the ‘gram in the Yorkshire and the Humber region, with over 17,700 posts under gym-related hashtags, cementing the city as the third most popular for a gym snap. Cardiff is the most popular Welsh town to show off a post-workout pump, ranking 6th with a score of 22.4, whilst Scotland’s most active Instagram gym users reside in Edinburgh, which just squeezes into the top 10 with a score of 17.
| Top 10 British Gym Selfie Hotspots | ||||
| Rank | City | Population | Insta hashtags | #gymselfie Score |
| 1 | Norwich | 213,166 | 10,346 | 48.5 |
| 2 | Wigan | 175,405 | 8,445 | 48.2 |
| 3 | Leeds | 455,123 | 17,729 | 39.0 |
| 4 | Warrington | 165,456 | 5,527 | 33.4 |
| 5 | Stockport | 139,052 | 4,320 | 31.1 |
| 6 | Cardiff | 447,287 | 10,006 | 22.4 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 906,443 | 19,543 | 21.6 |
| 8 | Bristol | 693,552 | 14,706 | 21.2 |
| 9 | Swindon | 185,609 | 3,266 | 17.6 |
| 10 | Edinburgh | 542,599 | 9,246 | 17.0 |
Global Gym Selfie Hotspots
Based in the shimmering Costa del Sol and a hotspot for fitness influencers and celebrities to sunbathe at famous beach bars by day and party in Puerto Banus by night, Marbella took the top spot for gym posts per person globally, with famous gyms like M13 Gym and the Real Club Padel Marbella featuring heavily in photos taken.
Dubai ranked second globally thanks to over 800 luxury gyms, which provide the perfect backdrop for a staggering 198,200 Instagram posts. Not only are residents of Dubai regularly updating their feed with weights, cardio and hot yoga sessions, but people travel from all over the world to luxuriate in the glamour of Dubai’s fitness lifestyle.
The faithful gym selfie proved extremely popular with UK based fitness fanatics, with eight of the top 20 spots for gym selfies being held by British cities. Norwich ranked third globally, and took the top spot for British cities, whilst Wigan, Leeds and Warrington placed fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.
| Top 20 Global Gym Selfie Hotspots | |||||
| # | City | Country | Population | Instagram Hashtags | #gymselfie Score |
| 1 | Marbella | Spain | 134,623 | 9,197 | 68.3 |
| 2 | Dubai | United Arab Emirates | 2,921,376 | 198,200 | 67.8 |
| 3 | Norwich | United Kingdom | 213,166 | 10,346 | 48.5 |
| 4 | Wigan | United Kingdom | 175,405 | 8,445 | 48.2 |
| 5 | Leeds | United Kingdom | 455,123 | 17,229 | 39.0 |
| 6 | Warrington | United Kingdom | 165,456 | 5,527 | 33.4 |
| 7 | Toowoomba | Australia | 131,258 | 4,298 | 32.7 |
| 8 | Perth | Australia | 1,896,548 | 59,745 | 32.0 |
| 9 | Stockport | United Kingdom | 139,052 | 4,320 | 31.1 |
| 10 | Atlanta | USA | 524,067 | 14,715 | 28.1 |
| 11 | Bendigo | Australia | 100,617 | 2,761 | 27.4 |
| 12 | Las Vegas | USA | 667,501 | 15,984 | 24.0 |
| 13 | Brescia | Italy | 184,826 | 4,352 | 23.6 |
| 14 | Brisbane | Australia | 2,189,878 | 51,315 | 23.4 |
| 15 | Townsville | Australia | 196,219 | 4,554 | 23.2 |
| 16 | Cardiff | United Kingdom | 447,287 | 10,006 | 22.4 |
| 17 | Liverpool | United Kingdom | 906,443 | 19,543 | 21.6 |
| 18 | Houston | USA | 2,323,660 | 49,373 | 21.3 |
| 19 | Bristol | United Kingdom | 693,552 | 14,706 | 21.2 |
| 20 | Canberra | Australia | 367752 | 7,566 | 20.6 |
| 21 | Winnipeg | Canada | 824,771 | 16,453 | 20.0 |
| 22 | León | Spain | 134,305 | 2,597 | 19.3 |
| 23 | Girona | Spain | 96,188 | 1,790 | 18.6 |
| 24 | Salerno | Italy | 125,797 | 2,303 | 18.3 |
| 25 | Chicago | USA | 2,679,080 | 47,240 | 17.6 |
Australians are also no stranger to the gym selfie, with six cities from down under making the top 20 – Toowoomba (7th) and Perth (8th) even make the top 10. Meanwhile, fitness lovers from three cities in the USA are regularly posting to the ‘gram; Atlanta, Las Vegas and Houston based social media users rank 10th, 12th and 18th most fond of a gym upload.
Dan Cartner, Senior Marketing and E-commerce Manager at SportsShoes.com commented: “Instagram has cemented itself as a source of inspiration for fitness lovers all over the globe, with millions of users posting snaps of their workouts and fitness progress on the social media platform. The Instagram hashtag #gymselfie alone has amassed an impressive 3.3 million posts, so we were curious to find out which cities around the world are most partial to a cheeky post-workout snap. We were delighted to see such a range of countries in the top 25, and surprised to see Norwich rank so highly globally! As the new year rolls in and resolutions are made across the world, what better time to take to Instagram to share some motivational fitness posts with your friends and family”.
A full breakdown of the most popular gym selfie cities in the world can be found at: https://www.sportsshoes.com/gym/expert-advice/training/gym-selfie-hotspots/
