Bahram Akradi

Bahram Akradi founded Life Time in 1992 with a goal of helping people achieve their health and wellness goals through a category redefining approach in providing entertaining, educational, friendly and inviting, functional and innovative experiences with uncompromising quality and unparalleled service. From the very beginning, Akradi led the company with a focus on serving members' needs first – designing and delivering the Company’s athletic country clubs, programs, products and events from a member point of view, knowing that business results naturally would follow. 30 years later, it's a principle that has proven itself time and time again. Not only has Life Time established a unique and powerful model in the healthy living, healthy aging, and healthy entertainment space, the company invented an entirely new industry – Healthy Way of Life (HWOL) – in which Life Time operates in a category of one.

Today, Akradi and Life Time deliver Healthy Way of Life experiences that change the way consumers live, work and play via best-in-class programs, services and content across its network of more than 170 athletic country clubs that address the needs of everyone from 90-days-old to 90+; a robust digital platform; and a portfolio of 30+ iconic athletic events. Life Time’s comprehensive, omnichannel HWOL ecosystem of offerings simply is unmatched.  

Within the ever-changing retail landscape, Akradi has formed partnerships with leading commercial property owners and developers nationwide to transform former mall anchor store spaces into Life Time's large, healthy way of life destinations. The Company also introduced Life Time Work, an entirely new concept that is redefining the shared workspace industry through the thoughtful application of space geometry and color psychology, along with timeless materials and finishes. Since each Life Time Work membership includes access to its athletic country clubs, Life Time Work also promotes a healthy mindset as members can be productive, engaged and healthy. Akradi and Life Time have further extended the brand with the creation of Life Time Living – high-end, leased residences that combine functional space design, luxurious amenities and finishes, and the latest in connected home technology to provide the ultimate in comfort and convenience. Here too, Life Time Living residences are located adjacent to Life Time athletic country clubs, meaning resident members always have Life Time's healthy way of life programs and services conveniently nearby. Altogether, Life Time athletic country clubs, Life Time Work and Life Time Living are naturally and intuitively more environmentally friendly, recognizing that a healthy environment and planet are core to the Company’s HWOL commitment.

Looking forward, Akradi and Life Time remain focused on expanding the Company’s unparalleled HWOL ecosystem to inspire healthier, increasingly sustainable communities that also create and deliver long-term value to all stakeholders.

Prior to launching Life Time, Akradi led U.S. Swim & Fitness Corporation (formerly Nautilus Fitness Center, Inc.) from 1984-1989 as co-founder, Executive Vice President, and part owner. U.S. Swim & Fitness was the second-largest health club company in the Minneapolis-St. Paul market when Akradi and his partners sold it to Bally Total Fitness in 1986. After continuing to operate the business as a division of Bally for more than two years, Akradi left the company to develop business plans and secure investors for Life Time, which was launched three years later.

Akradi has a recurring column in Experience Life magazine. You can read all of his Perspective by Bahram Akradi columns at https://experiencelife.lifetime.life/perspective.

For more information about Akradi, please contact Jason Thunstrom, Life Time Corporate Communications at jthunstrom@lt.life or 952-229-7435.