Fitness Magazine has bucked this trend through a multi-pronged strategy of refining editorial to meet consumers’ changing needs, beefing up sales, and generally thinking outside of the box. Their 18.4% rise in ad pages last quarter was the largest gain of any major magazine.

Fitness Publisher Lee Slatter summed it up by saying, “Budgets are all smaller than they were a year ago and its been challenging staying in front of clients and, of course, convince them that we are the brand to invest in.”

Slatter added, “People are surprised when they find out that only 40 percent of our readers belong to a gym. Sure, people are putting freezes on their gym memberships and canceling their personal trainers. Fitness, though, encourages readers to put on their sneakers and start walking, or run a marathon.”

[Source: Folio]