A new partnership between ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) and US fitness chain Anytime Fitness has been created to help promote collaboration between healthcare providers and fitness professionals.

ACSM's Exercise is Medicine global initiative is at the heart of the agreement - a programme which supports the notion that healthcare providers, especially physicians, should play a vital role in encouraging patients to get healthy, and that fitness professionals should have a hands-on opportunity to carry out the doctor's orders within the four walls of a health club.

Anytime will offer numerous benefits to those who take the health-and-fitness merge to heart, including: Exercise is Medicine health screenings in its clubs; discounts and rewards for members who bring a completed exercise 'prescription form' from their healthcare provider; and awards for healthcare practitioners who discuss exercise as a preventive healthcare tool with their patients.