Fitness Trends in 2023
Where are we headed in 2023? To and infinity and beyond? Who knows!
At Endurance Zone we certainly have some thoughts and theories on this as we engage with both brands and consumers on a daily basis to understand their needs as some continue their fitness journey whilst others are just beginning theirs.
There are themes emerging across the active industry that we can pull from these, namely being the personalisation of time crunch, technology led workouts that focus on both mind and body in the delivery of a holistic and conscious lifestyle.
In this article we want to draw your attention to 7 areas that we at Endurance Zone think will be driving both brands and consumers in 2023.
Wearables - Measure everything.
Do we do it because it is useful or do we do it because we can? I don't think anyone can answer this honestly, but with the now reduced price of a wrist based HR monitor and awareness of metrics like ‘resting HR’ through to their trending ‘HRV’ they are certainly becoming more engrained in our society.
Fitness has often led the line on being a data rich environment to drive understanding and improvement, this is becoming increasingly more accessible. One thing we would guard against however, is measurement for measurement sake, there is still a requirement with this data to act upon it in the sensible way, just wearing a fitness tracker doesn't make you fitter! We can see the likes of Whoop, Wahoo and Supersapiens really hitting their stride in 2023.
Out of Gym Integrations
Gyms have taken quite a battering over the last couple of years with the lockdowns, then through to the cost of living crisis, but like so many other industries, it is those that are able to pivot and innovate that are able to deliver best value to their consumers and therefore thrive in some difficult environments.
Gyms being able to harness technology is really where they are able to stand out. Building workouts, advice and useful tips into a phone based app as well as remaining constantly engaged with their user base is becoming increasingly more important.
We have identified that Gyms are having to become smarter about how and where they engage their user base, offering at home solutions for those that don't want to train in the gym building, providing rewards for everyday items as well as fitness equipment and offering mental health solutions as well as physical health solutions.
Gyms will also have a place for social interaction, team building and specific training, but more and more are starting to offer services outside of their bricks and mortar solutions.
Mind and Body fitness
Mental health has risen to be front and centre following the pandemic and it is now identified as a real growth area for the whole industry.
At first we have seen the rise of such apps as Calm and Headspace and now we can see these sorts of workouts and mindfulness exercises being integrated across the board into all fitness apps. Often overlooked the mental strength and resilience of an individual has a massive impact on the person's physical ability to perform or improve.
In 2023 we see this to be a huge growth area for the industry with more and more offerings of resilience training or the alignment of mental health with physical health.
Holistic Viewing
This is nothing new and it combines a number of the trends that we have mentioned already, from being able to measure more and more to having an understanding of both mental and physical health. The Holistic view will take into account everything to provide the best solution for any given individual.
So often programmes are prescribed and they are usually a one-size-fits-all solution to a complex problem. Now with understanding being developed in a number of areas, a more personalised holistic view of a single individual can be curated with an associated training to support their needs, aims and goals.
Boutique Gyms
Gyms come in all shapes and sizes, all offerings and all price ranges. As we have engaged with our audience and brands this year we have identified that the fitness space is moving back towards a more bespoke service vogue for gyms and clubs.
We are riding another of those waves where the consumer is looking to prioritise their health and therefore happier to pay a little more for a better, more bespoke to them service. Whilst there is still a place for it, we have moved away from massive gym spaces where you stack the equipment high and the users even higher at a low price.
More and more brownfield site gyms are being created to offer different experiences to their users. This extends out to different types of exercise also, with the likes of spin classes now demand their own gyms and other Hydrox based, crossfit-centric gyms also taking shape. This is tailoring the gym experience right down to a specific exercise for the space.
Diet to Support Workout
We hear about a new diet ever other day here at Endurance Zone, how it is going to revolutionise how we put food in our mouth and help the world build more muscle and burn fat simply by eating it. You can class us all as sceptics, but we believe a lot of hard work, balance and resilience goes into a health diet.
That is not to say that there can be different horses for different courses and that is where we believe the final trend in 2023 will come from. The use of a diet to support a specific in-season aim for an athlete, or shifting over to a more plant based diet to aid recovery. The tailoring of the diet across a whole year to support an aim. We believe this to be down to two key reasons, the accessibility to more foods and the understanding of what each of those foods impacts on physical and mental health is. With a better understanding about how diets can affect performance, we believe this information will become available to the masses and the professionals will hone their diets to support their desired achievements in 2023.
HIIT - High Intensity Interval Training
It is nothing new and has been used by time poor people for years, however it will continue to grow in prominence as people look to fit more and more into their busy lifestyles in the 2023. With the uncertainty of the last few years behind us, people will be looking to get the biggest bang for their time buck when it comes to fitness and working out.
This has been a whistle stop journey around what we think will shape the sports and fitness industry in 2023. If you would like to explore any of the points in more detail we would welcome that discussion. You can get hold of us at [email protected]. Just bring your fitness tracker for the mental workout that is the discussion of where our industry is headed!