Deductions & credits

Some weight loss expenses are deductible.  Your gym membership is not deductible, but if you pay extra for specific weight loss activities, that might be deductible.  Whether you could justify your trainer as a specific weight loss activity instead of for general health, strength and flexibility might depend on the trainers qualifications and specific activities you engage in.  

Weight-Loss Program

You can include in medical expenses amounts you pay to lose weight if it is a treatment for a specific disease diagnosed by a physician (such as obesity, hypertension, or heart disease). This includes fees you pay for membership in a weight reduction group as well as fees for attendance at periodic meetings. You can't include membership dues in a gym, health club, or spa as medical expenses, but you can include separate fees charged there for weight loss activities.

You can't include the cost of diet food or beverages in medical expenses because the diet food and beverages substitute for what is normally consumed to satisfy nutritional needs. You can include the cost of special food in medical expenses only if:

  1. The food doesn't satisfy normal nutritional needs,

  2. The food alleviates or treats an illness, and

  3. The need for the food is substantiated by a physician.

The amount you can include in medical expenses is limited to the amount by which the cost of the special food exceeds the cost of a normal diet