How fitness has evolved this year so far

10 July 2019

Every year brings with it new fads and trends in fitness as people find different ways to stay fit and active. You probably have your own routine by now, but it’s still interesting to take a peek into what other people are doing to stay strong.

Pokémon Go and smart tech

Less for the die-hard fitness fanatics and more for the casual population, Pokémon Go is a revelation. It’s a fitness app that actually works. It gets people who’d normally live sedentary lives to get up and move. There are two incentives to encourage people to move and get fitter. The first is the quest to find new Pokémon, which spawn in designated locations: exploring more of your city means you’re more likely to run into new species. The second is that in-game egg items require a certain distance walked in order to hatch – and hatching eggs may also yield more Pokémon.

It’s part of the trend of including technology in fitness. Apps and tech have made counting calories or steps much easier. Wearable devices like Fitbit have soared in popularity, and the Apple Watch is also popular. Apps can be loaded onto the smart watches to keep track of a variety of data points, making them an easy and desirable piece of kit for any fitness buff. Heart rate trackers may be the most popular, with some classes now entirely based around the idea of monitoring your pulse as you work out.

CrossFit

It launched in 2000 in Seattle, but 2016 is looking to be the year of CrossFit. If you haven’t already heard, CrossFit is a bizarrely cultish Marmite-esque workout that promises a different challenge every day. It focuses on building up all muscle groups through a variety of different exercises – reps, strength training, gymnastics and callisthenics are all involved. Many of them are given female names, to feel more cutesy, but there’s nothing adorable about intensely drilling reps.

There’s a competitive element to CrossFit, as trainers keep track of participants’ performances, but it’s also communal. You’re sweating with other people who want to get stronger, so you push each other on and achieve your goals together. Part of its popularity lies in its practical aspects: it teaches you to be prepared for everything, and strong enough to tackle obstacles (sometimes literal ones) in your daily life.

Boot camps

Their popularity may wax and wane, but boot camps remain a way to get results fast. From bridal boot camps designed to help ladies slim down before the big day, to retreats aiming to improve your body and mind, there are boot camps for all niches. Want war paint and a drill serjeant making you feel like you’re in the army? There’s a package for that. Want intensive training in beautiful surroundings? There’s a bunch of packages for that.

The hard work and community are part of why boot camps are still popular. The outdoor surroundings can be more motivational than gyms, especially if you’re one of those people who prefers jogging outdoors to running on machines. Feeling the wind on your face – or the mud on your face – can be the extra spur you need to try your hardest and push yourself to the limit. Boot camps in 2019 are less about being deliberately cruel and more about finding ways to help you be your best, and encouraging you to think more about your lifestyle. Boot camps are great ways to kick-start weight loss and improve fitness, but the routine afterwards is important to maintain those results.

Bikram yoga

While it was popularised much earlier, Bikram Yoga remains one of the most popular forms of exercise this year. Pushing your body in hot rooms makes for a powerful, energised workout and many other classes are trying out the super-heated element too. From pilates to barre classes, incorporating heat is one of 2019’s hottest (literal) trends.

Yoga, as we know it today, is an updated version of an ancient Indian practice which often promoted spirituality. Bikram yoga is a far more recent invention, moving between 26 poses and including two breathing patterns. However, it’s best known for being practised in hot and humid rooms of around 40 degrees Celsius. This intense heat makes practitioners sweat more, and thus is seen as adding an extra layer of oomph to the yoga class.

No matter what your favourite way to stay fit is, what matters is that it works for you. A routine you can maintain matters more than trying out every new fad – though there’s nothing to stop you trying something new! And who knows what next year may bring…