bodyLIFE Medien GmbH

What bodyLIFE Medien GmbH does

bodyLIFE Medien GmbH is a Munich-based, privately held German limited liability company (GmbH) founded in 1987 that publishes a portfolio of professional trade magazines serving the fitness and sports industries. The company operates four flagship titles — bodyLIFE (monthly, 12 issues/year, marketed as Europe's No.1 fitness studio trade magazine), TRAINING Magazin (quarterly, for personal trainers, physiotherapists, and sports physicians), LEISTUNGSSPORT (6 issues/year, co-published with the German Olympic Sports Confederation DOSB for elite coaches), and FITNESS SOCIETY (annual, lifestyle magazine for industry personalities) — plus the TRAINER Magazin sub-brand. Distribution runs entirely through the company's own e-commerce storefront at shop.bodylife-medien.com, where readers buy annual subscriptions (€8 to €70 per title), single print and digital (PDF e-Paper) issues, individual articles, books (under the bodyLIFE Edition and TW Trainingsworld imprints), and online programmes, with payments processed via PayPal and Stripe.

The underlying technology is a WordPress-based content management and e-commerce platform augmented by Jetpack for analytics, Google Analytics for traffic measurement, ConvertBox for lead capture, AddThis and Shariff for privacy-compliant social sharing, and standard social media plugins for Facebook and YouTube embedding. Distribution is supported by a dedicated microsite per title (bodylife.com, trainingsworld.com, leistungssport.net, fitness-society.de) and per-title LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube channels, plus an email newsletter and proprietary industry events (body LIFE Award, GROW-UP Kongress, body LIFE Expert Forum).

The business model is direct-to-consumer, content-led, with recurring subscription revenue (auto-renewing annually unless cancelled 14 days before expiry) as the primary mechanic, supplemented by one-time sales of single issues, books, and digital programme access. The company sells primarily into the DACH region, with no external investors, private equity ownership, or disclosed revenue figures; operations are led by managing director Ben Arnold from a small team of 11-50 employees based at Balanstr. 73 / Haus 9, 81541 München.

Name

bodyLIFE Medien GmbH

Legal name

bodyLIFE Medien GmbH

Website

https://bodylife-medien.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

bodyLIFE Medien GmbH is a Munich-based publisher of professional fitness and sports trade magazines (bodyLIFE, TRAINING, LEISTUNGSSPORT, FITNESS SOCIETY), distributing print and digital subscriptions, books, and online programmes via its own e-commerce platform to studios, trainers, and coaches in the DACH region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Periodical Publishers (51312), Book Publishers (513130), Book Publishers (51313), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health, Fitness & Wellness Magazines (MPAJAEAD), Health, Wellness & Fitness Trade Publishing (MPAJAAAL)

Keywords

• Trade publishing
• Fitness media
• Sports science journals
• Magazine subscriptions
• B2B publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

München

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions (Print & Digital): Annual subscriptions for bodyLIFE (12 issues/year, €70), TRAINING (4 issues/year, €30), LEISTUNGSSPORT (6 issues/year, €40), and FITNESS SOCIETY (1 issue/year, €8). Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled 14 days before expiry.
2. Single Issue Sales: Individual magazine issues sold as print or digital (PDF e-Paper). Price varies by publication and format.
3. Books and Training Guides: Books on training, nutrition, health, coaching/motivation published under bodyLIFE Edition and TW Trainingsworld imprints.
4. Online Programme Subscriptions: Digital programme offerings under a separate product category on the shop platform.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

bodyLIFE Medien GmbH publishes and distributes a portfolio of professional trade and special-interest magazines — bodyLIFE (monthly for fitness studio operators), TRAINING (quarterly for fitness professionals), LEISTUNGSSPORT (bi-monthly sports science journal co-published with the DOSB), and FITNESS SOCIETY (annual lifestyle magazine) — sold through its own online shop as print subscriptions, digital e-Paper subscriptions, single issues, and individual articles, supplemented by books and online programmes.

Product overview

bodyLIFE Medien GmbH operates a multi-brand magazine publishing business centered on the fitness, sports, and health industries. The core portfolio includes four flagship magazine titles — bodyLIFE (monthly, 12x/year, for gym owners), TRAINING (quarterly, for fitness professionals), FITNESS SOCIETY (annual, lifestyle for fitness makers), and LEISTUNGSSPORT (6x/year, for competitive sports trainers, published under DOSB), plus TRAINER Magazin for trainers. These are sold through print and digital (e-Paper PDF) subscriptions, as well as individual issues and single articles. The company also publishes books and offers online programs. All publications share a common distribution platform (shop.bodylife-medien.com) and customer account system, but each targets a distinct professional audience within the broader fitness and sports ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• bodyLIFE Magazin: Europe's No.1 fitness studio industry magazine, published 12 times per year for gym owners and operators
• TRAINING Magazin
• FITNESS SOCIETY
• LEISTUNGSSPORT

Products and services

• bodyLIFE Magazin The flagship monthly trade magazine for fitness studio owners and operators, published 12 times per year and marketed as Europe's No. 1 in the segment, providing insider knowledge and expert know-how for the fitness and health industry including management, digitalization, and medical fitness topics.
• TRAINING Magazin A quarterly special-interest magazine for fitness professionals including personal trainers, physiotherapists, sports medicine practitioners, and ambitious recreational athletes, covering training, mobility, conditioning, nutrition, and rehabilitation.
• LEISTUNGSSPORT Zeitschrift A specialist journal for sports training knowledge in theory and practice, published six times per year by the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), providing top trainers with relevant information on their sport and useful background reports from other disciplines.
• FITNESS SOCIETY Magazin An annual lifestyle magazine for fitness and health industry makers, featuring in-depth background reports, home stories, interviews, event coverage, and news, profiling the most well-known and influential personalities in the scene.
• Books and Training Guides Books on training, nutrition, health, coaching, motivation, and mindset published under the bodyLIFE Edition and TW Trainingsworld imprints, sold as individual one-time purchases in the publisher's online shop.
• Online-Programme Online programs offered as digital subscriptions or individual access products, complementing the magazine content with interactive digital learning experiences.
• Single Issues (Print and Digital e-Paper) Single printed or digital (e-Paper PDF) issues of all magazine titles available for individual purchase, covering fitness, training, sports, and lifestyle topics.
• Individual Articles (e-Paper PDF Downloads) Individual articles available as e-Paper PDF downloads, allowing customers to purchase single articles from magazine issues rather than full issues.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Deutscher Olympischer Sportbund (DOSB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLEISTUNGSSPORT is the official journal of the DOSB (German Olympic Sports Confederation). The DOSB endorses and co-publishes the journal, lending credibility and distribution through the Olympic sports network. bodyLIFE Medien serves as the publishing partner.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Runner's World Germany (Bauer Media): Major German consumer running and endurance sports magazine — overlaps with TRAINING and LEISTUNGSSPORT audiences at the fitness professional / serious amateur level.
• Health & Fitness Association (formerly IHRSA): US-headquartered global industry association for the fitness club industry that also publishes research, magazines, and runs the industry-leading trade show — overlaps with bodyLIFE's B2B fitness audience and event ecosystem.
• Fit For Fun (Burda): Established German consumer fitness magazine published by Hubert Burda Media — competes with bodyLIFE and FITNESS SOCIETY for advertising and reader attention across the German fitness audience.
• Men's Health Germany (Mens Health / Bauer Media): Major German consumer fitness and health magazine from a large media group — competes for fitness reader attention and advertising in the same German-speaking market as bodyLIFE.

Others

• Sports Medicine / DOSB Member Federation Publications: The German Olympic Sports Confederation and its member federations publish a constellation of sport-specific training and medicine periodicals — institutional ecosystem adjacent to bodyLIFE's DOSB co-published LEISTUNGSSPORT title.

Direct peers

• Sports Management (UK) / Leisure Media: UK-based B2B publisher of sports facility and leisure management trade magazines including Sports Management — directly comparable in targeting operators of sports, fitness, and leisure facilities.
• Fitness Tribune: German B2B fitness industry trade publication serving fitness studio operators and the health club market — the closest direct competitor to bodyLIFE Magazin in the German trade press segment.
• fitpro (Active IQ / fitpro network): UK fitness trade association and publisher producing magazines and content for personal trainers and fitness professionals — overlapping with bodyLIFE's TRAINING Magazin professional-development audience.
• Athletic Business: US B2B media serving fitness, sports, and recreation facility operators with management, programming, and trend content — directly comparable to bodyLIFE's operator-focused trade positioning.
• Club Industry (ClubIntel): Long-standing US B2B trade publication for the commercial fitness club industry, covering club operations, programming, and trends — structurally analogous to bodyLIFE in addressing fitness studio operators.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCqMxc_QCpgtI1s0VTwx-WxQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/bodylife
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bodylife-medien-gmbh
• Instagraminstagram.com/bodylife_magazin

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about bodyLIFE Medien GmbH