Pranay Jain, CEO and Founder, BodyFirst
As we continue to fight the battle with COVID and its many strains, enhancing one’s physical health and mental health has become paramount. Two years ago, we saw the onset of a global pandemic. Lockdown was enforced around the world and leaving the house was limited to emergencies and basic necessities. The world continues to discover strains of Covid and the lockdown is still being imposed in many countries, albeit not as strict as the initial one. One of the biggest realizations during this time has been one relating to health. This onset shifted the priorities of the majority around the world. People around the world have become more health-conscious and shifted to either living or expressing to live a healthier lifestyle. People realized the importance of following a good fitness routine and building up body immunity. Better diets with increased consumption of organic food, fruits, and vegetables, exercising, and following a fitness routine are some of the things that are trending ever since. Healthy diets filled with immunity-boosting food were examined globally. Some of these recent trends are simple yet revolutionary stratagem used against Covid.
Fitness-tracking Wearable Technology:
Fitness trackers and activity trackers are continuing to pioneer the wellness sector. There are multiple technologies and added features that are being integrated into the wearable trackers. Added metrics like body temperature, stress levels, heart rate, and sleep hours have made wearable technology a rising trend in 2022. Tracking one’s stress levels, sleep patterns, calories burnt, and heart rate can allow the apps to collect data and aid an individual in getting analyzing their overall health and wellness. The advent of new metrics has enabled users to review the data and use that to enhance one’s health while reaching out to health providers and fitness trainers for a better and healthier lifestyle consultation.
Mini Workouts:
As lockdown restrictions get lenient and workplaces have started opening, schedules have started changing. A lot of people do not have the time or energy for 45-50 mins of workout. However, they continue to be health-conscious and actively try to add workouts in their everyday. This is where mini workouts started coming into the picture. People started looking for quick and effective workouts like no-weights strength training. Mini-workouts is a solution for time-sensitive people as well as people who feel unmotivated to do a full workout of 45-55 mins. Mini workouts are usually between 5 to 15 mins and are spread out throughout the day. They usually can be done within the comfort of one’s home. Mini workouts boost metabolism and immunity while increasing the body’s capacity.
Smart Home Gyms:
With busy time schedules and the development of newer strains of Covid, people started working out at home. Multiple streams of workouts like strength training, Pilates, bodyweight training, were all performed at home. The concomitant of this was the inception of smart home gyms. The idea existed before the pandemic but took serious root with accelerated adoption during the past couple of years. One can easily get all the services of a gym within the comfort of one’s home. With the advent of smart home gyms, multiple fitness equipment companies started unifying these gadgets with technology to come up with better and more efficient equipment that is home friendly. Price and space continued to be an issue for smart home gyms in the past year, but the accelerated advent of integrated fitness and technology has enabled various companies to come up with a solution for the same. This has put smart home gyms on the rise and made it a trend of 2022.
The fitness industry has witnessed a huge breakthrough in the past couple of years. The shift from quick fixes for weight loss and fitness to sustainable fitness routines has been a revolutionary one. Technology and growth in demand have driven this market to a new height. With the growing adaption of wellness routines, there has been a prodigious evolution within how fitness is viewed by the masses. With a rise in consumer demands for better and sustaining fitness routines and health benefitting habits, there is a vast space for this industry to develop and grow through technology in the coming years.