I'm getting to the point in the year when I start thinking about the fitness trends I see coming for the New Year. I actually never really stop thinking about where the fitness industry is headed but maybe I strain my brain a little bit more near the end of the year.
The American College of Sports Medicine publishes a list of their predicted trends every year based on a massive survey of worldwide fitness professionals. I love taking a look at their survey results because I know I live in a bit of a bubble off to the side of the traditional fitness industry.
The College surveyed more than 19,000 fitness professionals to come up with worldwide fitness trends for 2011, a survey the group has been conducting since 2007.
Their full findings haven't hit mainstream media yet (if you find them let me know!) but USA Today wrote a little piece just a few days ago highlighting the survey findings as follows:
Boot-camp workouts, strength training and core exercises are among this year's top 20 trends. Pilates and balance training, listed in the past, didn't make the cut this time.
1) Boot-camp workouts
These structured, high-intensity workouts, modeled after military-style training, include cardiovascular, strength, endurance and flexibility exercises. The classes often combine sports-type drills and calisthenics.
"These workouts are not for the faint of heart," Thompson says. "Expect the workout to be led by a drill sergeant who has little to no patience for people lagging behind."
The programs are designed for the more experienced exerciser who wants or needs some additional motivation, or to try something different to spice up the workout routine, Thompson says. Class members move from one exercise to the next with little or no rest.
2) Core training
This trend stresses the strength and conditioning of the stabilizing muscles of the abdomen, back and chest, Thompson says. The workout emphasizes everything but your arms, legs and head.
Many fitness experts believe people with a weak core have poor posture, and those with strong core muscles can function better in all aspects of their daily lives.
Core exercises are an element of many popular fitness programs.
Push-ups, sit-ups and curl-ups are examples of basic core exercises, but some fitness professionals now use such novelties as kettlebells and stability balls, he says.
3) Strength training
Most people have a vision of bulky men as being the only people who lift weights, but everyone from teenagers to the elderly should be strength training, Thompson says.
The government's physical activity guidelines recommend that adults do muscle-strengthening activities at a moderate- or high-intensity level for all major muscle groups two or more days a week.
So what do I think about the trends listed above? I think most of us who work out on a regular basis would agree to a certain extent. But I'm going to hit this 2011 predicted fitness trends hard in the next months with more specificity and detail based on what I've seen shift at Urbanfitt in the last few years. Stay posted!
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