Fitness-related activities when coupled with an incentive-based health insurance wellness program can lead to lower health care costs, a new study finds.

The study, published in the January/February issue of the American Journal of Health Promotion, a peer-reviewed journal, investigated South Africa’s largest private insurer, Discovery Health, where 62% of its 948,974 adult members registered for its incentive and reward-based health promotion program, called Vitality.

The study found that those members who enrolled in Vitality had shorter hospital stays and fewer hospital visits compared to those not enrolled in the program, according to researchers.

In the U.S., a number of health plans have been encouraging their members to participate in wellness programs as a means of cutting costs for employers and their plans.