Gyms were among the most well-documented collateral damage of COVID-19—but there are signs of recovery for the sector, and large chain Planet Fitness provides an intriguing case study.

A new report from Placer.ai shows that while most major gym chains are feeling the effects of the COVID crisis, they also saw major boosts in monthly visits in January 2021. Planet Fitness, a brand Placer.ai is bullish on, saw a 47.3% month-over-month increase in visits in January compared to December, a decrease year-over-year but impressive numbers nonetheless. Other chains saw similar, though not as pronounced, drops, but the data indicates that the current COVID crisis is "likely obscuring even more impressive growth potential moving forward," according to the report.

Year-over-year, January visits in 2021 dropped 34.7%, but that gap was only 19% when compared with January 2019 levels. That's the most significant difference among the other gyms Placer.ai analyzed—including LA Fitness (-54.5%), Anytime Fitness (-21.4%), Workout Anytime (-11.3%), Gold's Gym (-46.7%), and big loser 24 Hour Fitness (-81.6%)