Fitness Trends 2018

We’re over half way through the year already – eek how did that even happen! – so we’ve dug out our trusty crystal ball and taken a look at what we predict will be trending in the world of fitness during 2018.

Taking inspiration from our fitness friends in the US, using our knowledge of what’s already been popular with you lot this year, and putting our own cheeky spin on things, we reckon 2018 is set to be a fun-packed, fitness fuelled year.

Novelty Yoga

Seriously I’m not even too sure what’s left, because it certainly feels as though everything has been given a yogic twist this year. There’s been…

Goat Yoga

You’ve heard of dog yoga (the experts like to call it ‘Doga’)…well the next level up is goat yoga (does that mean it’s called ‘Goga’?). Basically it’s a load of people doing yoga outside in the presence of some goats. Riiiiiight….and the benefit is what exactly? Well, the organisers say that the goats help create more feel good hormones, lower anxiety, provide comfort and reduce loneliness. OK so let’s get this straight, you’re doing downward dog and a goat jumps onto your back and that is….relaxing?..pleasant?..painful?…The goats are certainly having a lot of fun jumping around in a human playpark, but we’re not entirely convinced that the risk of being pooped on by a goat is all that worth it!

Beer Yoga

Really? Yes…really! Originating in Germany, the land of beer…but perhaps not yoga, the idea is that by swigging from a bottle of beer whilst practicing yoga it helps to encourage participants to relax more in an environment they feel more familiar and at home with i.e. the pub. We think this could really take off, especially in terms of getting more men out there trying yoga. What next…? Gin Yoga? Jäger Yoga? Proseccoga?

Couple Yoga

Grab your partner and get up close and personal with them whilst flowing through some yoga positions. Take a fitness friend by all means, but if you don’t know them well you’re certainly going to after one of these sessions! We think yoga is verging on the tantric anyway, so we see this getting big in 2018 among the trendy fit couple crowd. Apparently couple yoga improves levels of communication, encourages trust and is the ultimate way to add some sparkle back into a relationship.

Floating Yoga

The ultimate in core stability, float yoga is all about perfecting those tricky yoga positions whilst balancing on what is effectively a surfboard. Can be done on or off the water, depending on how good you are and whether you mind getting wet, but if you want next level yoga then this is deffo it. We think this will become a huge thing in 2018, especially as all the trendy fitsters are trying it out in LA…it’s only a matter of time!

And the list could seriously go on and on, there’s…Disco Yoga, Rooftop Yoga, Chromayoga (colour therapy yoga), Yoga on Ice (Snow-ga), HIIT Yoga, but we reckon it’s all about the animals. Hey if you can have Goat Yoga surely there’s a need for…yoga with frogs (Froga) or how about yoga with alpacas (Alpacoga), deffo gonna be a ‘thing’ 😉

Boxing Mash Ups

What do you get if you combine Pilates with Boxing? Why, only Piloxing that’s what! Yep the genius brainchild of Swedish dancer and celebrity trainer Viveca Jensen, Piloxing has been proper popular this year, because well you know…Pilates AND Boxing, there’s honestly nothing not to like about that combo.

Boxing is fab for increasing speed and agility, plus it’s mega amazing for increasing mental ability and smashing away any kinda stress, so combining it with some of the more flexible, gentler exercises is the perfect formula for a tip top workout.

2018 will see this continued interest in boxing mash ups with more classes popping up such as Boxerina (Boxing and Barre) and Virtual Boxing from The Boxx Method, which allows participants to follow an online workout programme from the comfort of their own home – just make sure you’ve moved your mum’s best vase out of the way first!

Slacklining

Imagine a tightrope, but instead of spanning way up high in the air, it’s tied just a couple of inches off the ground…that’s slacklining. But other than a bit of fun, is there much point to it?

Well yes, because not only does it help improve your balance and therefore engage those all important core muscles, it can also be done anywhere, by anyone and relatively cheaply. All you need is a couple of strong supports (trees are spot on), a slacklining starter kit and you’re good to go.

The line has a degree of bounce and stretch to it, which means once you’ve mastered the basic ‘walking across it in one go’ you can start to show off with some tricks. And hey guess what? You can even do yoga on it…well we did say novelty yoga was gonna be big!

What with the rise in popularity of exercising outdoors we predict this will be huge news in 2018, so watch out UK parks, slacklining’s coming to get you!

For more information check out the UK Slackline Association website.

Bounce Off

Make sure you’ve got a decent sports bra ladies, because things are about to get bouncy! From the mini trampoline workouts of Boogie Bounce, to Air-Obics (see what they did there!?!), right through to the intense combat classes that make boxing bouncy, if you’re not bouncing you’re not burning.

Using a trampoline in your workout helps to lower the impact of exercise on your joints, but don’t go thinking you’re getting it easy, because your body will still be getting a full body workout! In fact some classes have been seen to burn off up to 1000 calories an hour, and not only that you’ll also improve your cardiovascular endurance, core strength and flexibility all whilst having a damn good giggle and perhaps occasionally letting out a teeny tiny bit of wee (if you’ve had children you’ll know exactly what I mean!)

Expect more bouncing in 2018 with more combination classes and a huge emphasis on FUN. Because let’s face it, if it’s fun you’re gonna do it again, right!?!

Napping

We’ve paid more attention this year to just how important sleep is in terms of creating the ultimate healthy body and mind, to the extent that napping has become its very own fitness thang. Yep 2017 saw the introduction of Napercise at David Lloyd gyms across the UK in which for 45 minutes you can take a nap on your own single bed in a room that pipes out atmospheric sounds and is heated to ambient temperatures that apparently help promote calorie burning whilst you zzzzzz. Sounds too good to be true right?

We’re loving the idea, don’t get us wrong, but struggling to imagine that we would ever be that tired, or that relaxed enough to truly benefit from a 45 minute nap. However, the importance of good quality sleep is set to continue to be top of the fit list in 2018 and we predict that no doubt there’ll be some yoga sleep combo that’ll get everybody talking in their sleep.

Water Workouts

After our recent dabble with Aquafit during our day at Nuffield Health Gym in Guildford the other week, we can totally see this being one of the top fitness crazes throughout 2018. Any cardio movement carried out in the water feels so much harder because of the resistance, so it means you’ll be doing the same exercises as you’ll have grown to love (or hate) in your HIIT class, but you’ll be burning more calories and toning up like a beaut. But not only that, if you have suffered an injury, but can’t bear to stop working out, the support of the water allows you to gently workout without straining your joints.

We predict that owing to the extreme popularity of fitness clubbing among the trendy fitsters this year, that classes like Aquafit will get a makeover in 2018 and become the places to be seen. We’re thinking strobe lighting, club beats and neon swimwear, not to mention a retro pimped up swim hat.