According to a report from Australasian Leisure Management, Australians spent about $3.5 billion on gym memberships in 2023, with at least 1 out of 5 adults over 18 having a membership. This number does not include how much was spent on things like fitness equipment and clothing, which would surely also be an astronomical amount.
One of the many tools (and a free one at that) that we all have at our disposal when it comes to fitness is social media. While it’s important to have a healthy relationship with social media and not make it our “health Bible,” you can gain a lot of knowledge and motivation from positive role models in the fitness sphere.
Women and girls have been in the fitness game for a long time, but there is a new surge in the general mindset, where girls no longer have to strive to look thin and toned, and can instead care more about how strong they feel in their minds and bodies, and even show off some bulk if they want! Here are some of the best positive Australian fitness influencers for women and girls to follow to learn more about health and fitness.
| No. | Name | Instagram Handle | Followers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kayla Itsines | @kayla_itsines | 15.8 m |
| 2 | Lauren Simpson | @laurensimpson | 1.8 m |
| 3 | Emily Skye | @emilyskyefit | 2.6 m |
| 4 | Jenna Louise | @jennalouise_jl | 127 k |
| 5 | Tanya Poppett | @tanyapoppett | 350 k |
| 6 | Chloe Ting | @chloe_t | 2.5 m |
| 7 | Rachel Finch | @rachel_finch | 321 k |
| 8 | Amanda Bisk | @amandabisk | 637 k |
| 9 | Stephanie Sanzo | @stephaniesanzo | 3.5 m |
| 10 | Chontel Duncan | @chontelduncan | 1.1 m |
| 11 | Felicia Oreb & Diana Johnson | @basebodybabes | 502 k |
| 12 | Soph Allen | @sopheallen | 411 k |
| 13 | Ashy Bines | @ashybines | 999 k |
| 14 | Michelle Bridges | @mishbridges | 267 k |
| 15 | Dani Stevens | @danistevens | 147 k |
| 16 | Emma Ceolin | @emmaceolin | 20.6 k |
Kayla Itsines
@kayla_itsines // 15.8 m followers
@kaylaitsines // 413 k subscribers
HIIT, pregnancy, post-partum, nutrition, balanced diet, recipes, female-focused fitness, fitness app
kaylaitsines.com
Sweat
Named the world’s top fitness influencer by Forbes in 2017 and one of the ‘30 Most Influential People on the Internet’ by TIME Magazine in 2016 and 2018, Itsines has been in the fitness inspo game since 2008. She is consistently at the top of the list of Australian fitness influencers.
A certified personal trainer, her early days saw her success with "Bikini Body Guides" in 2014. Since then, she has become known for her workout and diet tips, fitness during pregnancy tips, and creating a zero equipment workout guide for people stuck at home in the pandemic. Her app Sweat was an instant hit, highlighting HIIT-style workouts and nutrition advice.
The Adelaide native has numerous brand deals and has hosted in-person bootcamps that attract thousands of fitness enthusiasts. Her app Sweat has been downloaded more than 30 millions times.
Lauren Simpson
@laurensimpson // 1.8 m followers
@LaurenSimpsonOfficial // 62.4 k subscribers
nutrition, lifestyle, personal growth mindset, muscles
.laurensimpsonfitness.com
LaurenSimpsonFitness
Lauren Simpson is an Australian fitness influencer, coach, and WBFF (World Beauty Fitness & Fashion) Pro athlete from Sydney. She is known for her focus on strength training, building muscle, and promoting a balanced approach to fitness and nutrition.
Through her Lauren Simpson Fitness programs, she aims to empower women to build strength and confidence and achieve their body goals. Lauren shares workout routines, meal plans, and motivational content across her social media platforms, inspiring a global community. Her emphasis on weightlifting and sustainable fitness practices has made her a popular figure in the fitness industry. You can find lots of great advice on her Australian fitness influencers Instagram.
Emily Skye
@emilyskyefit // 2.6 m followers
@EmilySkye // 77.2 k subscribers
mental health with physical health, lifestyle, motivation, holistic fitness
emilyskye.com
Emily Skye Fit
Gold Coast native Emily Skye is one of the most well-known health influencers Australia, a model, and an entrepreneur known for her holistic approach to fitness, emphasising strength, mental health, and overall well-being.
She gained popularity through her app, which offers a variety of workout programs, including strength training, HIIT, and post-pregnancy workouts. She also provides meal plans for people with a variety of dietary preferences and restrictions, like vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and lactose-free.
Emily promotes a balanced lifestyle, focusing on building strength and confidence rather than unrealistic body standards. Her social media presence shares personal stories, motivational content, and fitness tips, inspiring her followers to embrace both physical and mental health in their fitness journeys.
Jenna Louise
@jennalouise_jl // 127 k followers
N/A
holistic wellbeing, fitness challenges, holistic health, lifestyle
jennalouise.com.au
JL Elite
Jenna Louise is a Canberran fitness influencer and personal trainer known for her emphasis on functional training, mental well-being, and holistic health. She is a Master Trainer and Nutrition Coach and graduated from the Australian Institute of Fitness.
Through her online presence, she shares diverse workout routines, including strength training, HIIT, and mobility exercises, designed to improve everyday fitness. She often challenges her followers to try out the “Move of the Week” and share their experiences and offers lots of longer challenges as well.
Jenna’s approach is centred on empowering individuals to build physical strength while nurturing a positive mindset. She focuses on creating a balanced and sustainable fitness lifestyle, encouraging her followers to prioritize both physical and mental health.
She has even competed in Seasons 1 & 2 of Channel Nine’s ‘Australian Ninja Warrior’ so you know she walks the walk! Lastly, she also has an app called JL Elite for training and nutrition.
Tanya Poppett
@tanyapoppett // 350 k followers
N/A
pregnancy and post-partum workouts, lifestyle, no-equipment workouts, recipes and nutrition, functional training
mytxo.com/tanya-9
Train with Tanya
Tanya Poppett is an Australian Institute of Fitness Master Trainer Graduate based in Sydney. She is known for her dynamic approach to training, emphasizing functional movement, mobility, and overall fitness. She shares a variety of workout routines, including bodyweight exercises, HIIT, and strength training, aimed at improving flexibility, balance, and endurance. She found this type of exercise after becoming injured as a long-distance runner.
Tanya promotes a balanced and active lifestyle, encouraging her followers to find joy in movement and exercise. Her content focuses on making fitness accessible, whether at home or outdoors, and she often shares tips for maintaining consistency and staying motivated. Her practical, holistic approach has attracted a dedicated following in the fitness community. You can check out her app, Train with Tanya.
Chloe Ting
@chloe_t // 2.5 m followers
@ChloeTing // 25.5 m subscribers
free workout programs, recipes and meal planning, lifestyle
chloeting.com
Core by Chloe Ting
A Melbourne native now living in Singapore, Chloe Ting is most known for being a YouTuber offering free workout programs and viral fitness challenges. Her short, easy-to-follow workout videos, often focusing on core strength, HIIT, and bodyweight exercises, have made her popular worldwide. She now has an app called ‘Core,’ where you can learn from the popular female bodybuilder Instagram.
Chloe's programs, such as the "Two-Week Shred Challenge," popularised on TikTok, have gained millions of followers seeking quick and effective home workout routines. She emphasizes accessibility and positivity, encouraging people of all fitness levels to join her challenges. She is also well known for talking about the ‘unsexy’ topics in fitness, such as how people can post to make their bodies look different than usual which can cause unrealistic body goals for the rest of us and how SIBO can cause bloating and stomach cramps.
Rachel Finch
@rachel_finch // 321 k followers
N/A
apartment-friendly workouts, wellness, exercise variety, healthy eating, nutrition, positivity and motivation
N/A
Body by Finch
Former Miss Universe Australia, Rachel is from Townsville City. She is known for her holistic approach to health and well-being, emphasizing balanced nutrition over dieting, mindfulness, and regular physical activity. Rachel co-founded Kissed Earth, a wellness brand focused on natural supplements and healthy living.
Through her social media and online programs, she shares a variety of workouts, including yoga, Pilates, and functional training. Rachel's philosophy centres on living a balanced lifestyle, nurturing both physical and mental health. Her workouts and meal prep videos in her app Body by Finch tend to be about half an hour long, making them more accessible to busy people with little time in their schedules or who have little motivation.
Amanda Bisk
@amandabisk // 637 k followers
@AmandaBisk // 36.1 k subscribers
yoga, holistic wellness, lifestyle, motivation, recipes, vegan recipes
amandabisk.com
Fresh Body Fit Mind
A former elite pole vaulter, Bisk is now an exercise physiologist, personal trainer, and certified yoga teacher. Hailing from Perth, she is now known for her focus on mobility, yoga, and bodyweight training, offering a holistic approach to fitness that combines strength, flexibility, and mental well-being.
After her athletic career was cut short due to chronic fatigue right before the 2012 Olympics, Amanda turned to learning how to handle her condition before teaching others how to find balance in their fitness journeys. She shares her workouts and wellness tips through her social media and her online program, Fresh Body Fit Mind. Amanda’s content emphasizes the importance of listening to one’s body and fostering a positive mindset.
Stephanie Sanzo
@stephaniesanzo // 3.5 m followers
@StephanieSanzo // 983 k subscribers
lifting, powerlifting, retreats, confidence, podcast, lifestyle
N/A
LIFT it
Stephanie Sanzo is among the most well-known Aussie fitness influencers, a strength coach and fitness influencer known for her expertise in powerlifting and functional training as well as for being a fitness model. With a focus on empowering women through strength training, she shares workout routines, educational content, and motivational insights across her social media platforms. Lately, she also hosts retreats like the Women’s Fitness Academy trip to Bali.
Stephanie emphasizes the importance of building strength not just for physical appearance but for overall health and confidence. As a coach, she offers online programs tailored to various fitness levels, helping individuals develop their strength and achieve their fitness goals. She uses her experience as a mum with older kids to show that you can have a family and strive for fitness, too.
Chontel Duncan
@chontelduncan // 1.1 m followers
N/A
weightlifting, functional training, nutrition, fun and inspiring, lifestyle
N/A
NeuForm
A certifiable fitness influencer, entrepreneur, and personal trainer known for her energetic approach to health and fitness, Chontel is from Brisbane. She gained popularity through her engaging social media presence and online fitness programs, which focus on strength training, HIIT, and functional workouts. She is an unofficial female bodybuilder Australia.
Chontel has a gym called HIIT Station, located in Capalaba, and was a featured creator on Kayla Itsines’ app.
This gym influencers content emphasizes body positivity, self-confidence, and maintaining a balanced lifestyle. Chontel’s relatable and motivating style has inspired many to embrace fitness as a fun and empowering journey.
Felicia Oreb & Diana Johnson
@basebodybabes // 502 k followers
N/A
lifestyle, weightlifting, strength training, holistic fitness, recipes
N/A
Base Body - The App
These fitness sisters from Sydney are known for creating engaging workout routines, nutrition advice, and wellness tips, emphasising a balanced approach to fitness. You can also see from their Instagram that they are quite the aesthetes as well as athletes!
Their passion for fitness is to go back to the basics and focus on functional movements, strength training, a well-rounded diet, and a generally healthy lifestyle. They aim to teach women how to effectively and safely train with weights for all-over health. You can train with these wellness influencers Australia via their app or IRL at the Base Body Studio in Sydney.
Soph Allen
@sopheallen // 411 k followers
@SophActiveLife // 65.7 k subscribers
training, nutrition, lifestyle
trainwithsoph.com
Train with Soph
Known for her DITL (Day In The Life) reels on IG as well as her fitness tips, vlogs, and travel posts, Soph’s social media only offers bite-sized offerings of her fitness acumen. On her website, you can find more information about coaching, ebooks detailing a cardio programme as well as a nutrition guide, and more. Her comprehensive app has a lot to offer, including challenges, personalized workouts and recipe planning, community support, and mindset coaching.
While her YouTube is no longer being updated, it still has a lot of lifestyle videos that can be inspiring as well as exercise videos.
Ashy Bines
@ashybines // 999 k followers
@ashybines // 126 k subscribers
lifestyle, parenting, podcast, recipes
ashybines.com
Balance by Ashy Bine
Ashy Bines is a Gold Coast-based lifestyle and fitness influencer. These days, she focuses her social media mostly on life and parenting and her podcast Grow and Glow, but has some dashes of fitness and workout mixed in.
Her apparel company Baseline closed earlier this year due to many circumstances piling up including a brain aneurysm diagnosis and treatment. You can find tonnes of exercises on her app, including programmes like 28 Day Dance HIIT, 28 Day Pilates, 28 Day Box Fit, and more.
Michelle Bridges
@mishbridges // 267 k followers
@MishBridges // 4.25 k subscribers
fitness for older women, exercise and diet for menopause, pregnancy and post-natal, holistic wellness
12wbt.com
N/A
Michelle Bridges is a well-known Australian fitness influencer who has made a significant impact in the health and wellness space. She first gained fame as a trainer on "The Biggest Loser Australia," where her energetic approach inspired many. Over the last 20 years, Michelle has built a strong presence on social media and created various fitness programs that promote balanced nutrition and regular exercise. She's also authored 17 bestselling books and launched popular fitness apps. Her highly successful Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation online program has been popular for about 15 years.
Michelle's message focuses on empowerment and resilience, highlighting the importance of mental well-being alongside physical fitness, which has resonated with countless people looking to improve their lives.
Dani Stevens
@danistevens // 147 k
@Danistevens // 709 subscribers
post-natal fitness, diet and recipes, everyday exercise, lifestyle coaching
danistevens.com
N/A
Known now as a lifestyle coach, Dani Stevens was once a record-holding discus thrower in the Olympics, becoming the youngest female to win gold in 2009. She has participated in many official games, including the Commonwealth Games thrice and another stint in the 2017 Olympics, where she won silver. So, you know she knows a lot about training and fitness!
Her blog offers a wide array of great posts about fitness, lifestyle, nutrition and recipes, yoga, and more! You can find her popular 30 Days of Fitness and Food eBook on her site.
As a mother of four, she has a lot of first-hand knowledge about losing weight and getting back to your pre-birth fitness level post-partum. Her blog and social media are full of general lifestyle wellness ideas.
Emma Ceolin
@emmaceolin // 20.6 k followers
@Yogaventures // 1.12 k subscribers
yoga, parenthood, travel, lifestyle
emmaceolin.com
N/A
A natural daredevil and generally active person, Emma Ceolin is a freediver, scuba diver, skydiver and surfer who began practising yoga as a way to ease anxiety and depression. While her business ventures have pivoted in recent years away from the fitness side of things, her previous endeavor Yogaventures has a lot of backlog offering some amazing yoga classes for free on YouTube.
No matter the time of year or where you are in life, you can begin your personal relationship with fitness. One of the ways to get inspired is by finding social media personalities who you resonate with. Do their fitspo pictures give you the motivation to get started? Or do you like their personality and are drawn to their workout videos because of it?
No matter what your preferences are, there is an influencer out there who can help you keep up on your health and fitness journey!
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