Top Fitness Trends

What are the top fitness trends for 2018?

How do you plan your fitness routine for the week, month, or year? Do you go off the popular trends, wing it, or maybe a combination of both each time they go to the gym or down to the home gym basement. Whatever your preference, one thing many fitness experts and average Joe’s of the gym seem to agree upon are that there are certain forms of exercise that continue to becoming more popular each year. This year, we have reviewed the literature and studied the gyms and came to the same conclusions as many…

The current top fitness trend, to little surprise, is HIIT. What is HIIT you say? High Intensity Interval Training. Still not sure what this means? Let us dive a little deeper into the fitness ideology of the term HIIT. HIIT routines or exercises require, by definition, short bursts of high energy followed by short periods of lower exertion. For an exercise to be considered “high intensity” it must be performed at >70% of your max heart rate (MHR) and up to 90-95% MHR. (To learn more about heart rate goals check out our blog on What Aerobic Zone You Should Exercise In and Why.)

HIIT

This high burst of energy can last anywhere from 20 seconds to 2 minutes and must be followed by a period of lower exertion, about 40-50% of MHR. This period of semi-rest often lasts longer than the high energy burst, anywhere from 40 seconds to 3 minutes, but should not be extended beyond this time or the max benefit from a HIIT exercise (keeping your heart rate up) may be lost. A HIIT exercise routine typically lasts no longer than 30 minutes, but benefits can be achieved in as little as 10!  That’s why, in this today’s world of go-go-go, HIIT made it to the top of the 2018 fitness trends list.

Bodyweight Training

Not too far down the top trends list, we find bodyweight training. Bodyweight training is nothing new, no hot fad, and no genius ploy. It is simply good, old-fashioned push-up, sit up, pull-up exercises. The convenience of bodyweight training cannot be denied and neither can the results! With motivation and dedication, any bodyweight routine can lead you to your goals.  Even a simple piece of home equipment like the T3 Total training Tower can help turn ordinary bodyweight training, into exceptional results.

Strength Training

To no surprise, strength training has made our list as well. We are not only talking about that scary place in the gym where few with a bicep circumference less than 12 inches venture into. We are talking about strength training with dumbbells, kettle bells, medicine balls, machines and even cardio equipment. Strength training is an anaerobic activity that leads to break down and then build up of lean muscle mass. It is well known that muscle increases metabolism, leading to more efficient energy use and better health. So, what’s stopping you? If you have not added this important part of fitness to your life, start now! And if you have started, check to make sure you are getting the most from your strength training routine by taking this short quiz.

Functional Fitness

This fitness headline may be last on our list, but it is certainly not least. Functional training. This term has come into wide popularization in the last few years. But what exactly is functional training? Well, by our definition, it is training and working the muscles you use everyday. It is training and building muscles you use for your functional activities. This can be as simple as lunges to assist in climbing stairs or as specified as practicing your swing for golf on a short bar. Whatever your definition of function is, we want to help you achieve it. Functional training includes any training that helps you build core strength, balance and endurance to promote an improved quality of life. Check out BODYCRAFT’s line of functional trainers today.  Functional fitness helps you feel stronger, both in the gym and in your everyday life.  Life fit, live strong, live BodyCraftFit.

 

Check out the BODYCRAFT VR400 rower and SpaceWalker tread desk on The Morning Show’s version of Top Fitness Trends for 2018:

 

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