The Fitness Trends That’ll Transform Your Health In 2021

As our recent exploration of terms like sleep yoga has clearly shown, health and wellness in 2021 are shaping up to be particularly interesting. New trends are emerging already, and those in the know are making their predictions on what is likely to take off this year.

When it comes to fitness in particular, the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic has been a lasting one. Whether it’s been taking your gym workouts home or shifting to regular runs in the park – the unpredictability of this year has meant many of us have had to be flexible in our approach to exercise and unsurprisingly, new trends have taken off as a result.

But what should we expect for the new year? Well, according to the Australian Institute of Fitness, a fair bit.

The Aussie training institution released a list of its top 10 fitness trend predictions for 2021, and, well… they make a lot of sense.

Check them out below:

AIF’s top 10 fitness trends for 2021

1. Wearable Technology
2. Exercise is Medicine
3. Mind and Body Training
4. Virtual Fitness
5. High-Intensity Interval Training
6. Functional Fitness Training
7. Health and Wellness Coaching
8. Personal Training
9. Group Training
10. Outdoor Activities

Australian Institute of Fitness CEO, Steve Pettit offered some insights into these trends in a statement on the list.

He explained that among the above, there’s a good chance we’ll also see a jump in Training With Free Weights, Body Weight Training and Fitness Gamification.

But most notable on the list, he shared, were the trends on Wearable Technology and Exercise is Medicine. According to Pettit, “wearable data is increasingly being used as a valuable tool to shape and track fitness, health and wellness progress”. These kinds of devices are gaining popularity among all kinds of demographics with folks using them “to monitor their steps, sleep, heart rate,” both in regard to fitness and general health.

He added that big advances in tech are expected this year, which should help this trend pick up speed:

“Also, keep an eye out for hearables with biosensors,” he said.

“Rumours have been circulating that next year’s Apple AirPods may include heart rate and blood oxygen sensors. If these do hit the market in 2021, expect big uptake from Australian fitness communities.”

With respect to Exercise is Medicine, Pettit shared that this comes off the back of more attention being placed on the link between exercise and mental health.

“…we know that poor fitness and physical health boosts risks associated with mental illness and chronic disease,” he said.

“There is significant collective work to be done on the road to recovery and, with such, we expect to see an increasing emphasis on proactive referral and collaboration between medical professionals, health care providers and fitness professionals.”

So, in short, more people are going to be looking at fitness as a means to achieve both physical and mental health – rather than just an access point to a slimmer figure. To that, all I can say is: more, please!

How do you expect your approach to fitness to shift in 2021? Let us know in the comments below.

LifeHacker AU

The Australian Institute of Fitness

At the Australian Institute of Fitness (AIF), we are no stranger to the competitive and evolving nature of the fitness industry. That’s why we remain the #1 fitness educator since 1979. We continuously raise the bar by providing the best education and resources through dynamic and hybrid training methods that mould to your lifestyle. We are strong believers in evidence over fads, so you can be assured your training with AIF will solidify your career for the long-term.