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Trend Report: How You Can Expect Your Workout to Change in 2021
Fitness
Published Thursday Jan 07, 2021 by Denise Prichard

Trend Report: How You Can Expect Your Workout to Change in 2021

Well, we can officially say goodbye to 2020 and hello to 2021 (thank goodness). I think we can all agree the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic presented wasn’t what anybody expected—and we certainly weren’t prepared for it. I know I wasn’t the only one leaping from Target to Target to stock up on boxes of pasta and toilet paper. (Okay, and maybe a little bit of wine, don’t at me.) 

On top of that, our go-to second homes (AKA: fitness studios) were forced to go through multiple openings and closings to help keep our communities safe and healthy. When that happened, us fitness-minded folks also needed to pivot the way we get our daily workouts in— routines abruptly changed overnight. One day we’re toweling off after our favorite spin class, the next day we were looking for an at-home spin bike—and finding a decent one was like winning the lottery.  

But amid all this chaos, fitness studios near and far worked fast to make sure all of us fitness junkies didn’t turn into Netflix-binging couch potatoes by providing us with virtual fitness classes. From sweating it out in a virtual HIIT class to getting our asana at-home in virtual yoga, people all over the country were able to get a healthy dose of fitness whenever they needed it. This just goes to show, that even though we’re going through a pandemic, our wellness routines will always be there for us no matter what.  

So, as we shut the door on the dumpster fire that was 2020, these are the fitness trends you can expect to see in 2021: 

virtual fitness is here to stay
1. Virtual fitness is here to stay (and will continue to evolve). 

Even though fitness studios in some states are currently allowed to host in-studio classes, the convenience of working out from home is something that most folks can’t pass up. Not to mention, virtual options are typically cheaper and require zero commute time. So, for those of you who hit the snooze button at least twice before getting up, you can still get the morning workout in before the workday starts—or if that late afternoon meeting runs a little late, you can still make that yoga class.   

Another advantage? You can also get a taste of new types of fitness classes that might not be offered in your area. I certainly jumped on the bandwagon ASAP and figured it was the perfect time to switch up my regular workout routine. Check out my articles on the virtual classes I tried: 

And you can check out these articles from some of my esteemed colleagues here: 

snackable workout classes
2. ”Snackable” workouts will grow in popularity and abundance.  

The COVID-19 pandemic turned our day-to-day routines upside down—even our work schedules changed with loads of people now working from home instead of going into an office. However, with the slew of lockdowns triggered by coronavirus, this means childcare, work, and our fitness routines are all now happening in the same place. With so much going on at home at any given time, we're forced to get a sweat sesh in whatever little free time we have.  

That’s where bite-size fitness classes come into play. In fact, nearly four in ten Americans say their workouts are now a half-hour or less. Shorter fitness classes are also helping folks stay motivated while working out at home. I don’t know about you, but I find myself getting distracted or suffering from screen fatigue once that Pilates class hits that 30-minute marker. Instead of focusing on my abs, I start wondering what’s for dinner or tapping out early to enjoy a glass of rosé.  

But with more and more fitness studios adding shorter workout classes to their schedules, we can all stay on top of our fitness goals and still have time to juggle the many responsibilities that come with sheltering-in-place. 

gymtimidation
3. We’re conquering Gymtimidation together. 

Hey, we’ve all been there—trying out a new type of fitness class can be a scary thing. I’ll be honest, gymtimidation (gym intimidation, get it?) is the main reason I haven’t tried an in-person HIIT class yet. But one I can do by myself in the comfort of my own home? Now you’re speaking my language. If you also feel this way, please know you’re not alone. In fact, 56% of Americans are right there with you. So, if getting in better shape or the fear of the unknown have been what’s holding you back from trying that spin class or starting your yoga practice, virtual classes can help ease you into your fitness journey until you’re ready to strut your stuff in an actual studio.

Change is tough, but the way the fitness industry changed to help us all stay on-track with our wellness goals was nothing short of inspiring. Now, missing a fitness class because it didn’t fit into our schedules or because we were stuck in traffic are things of the past.  

Ready to make 2021 the year you actually stick to your resolution of being a happier, healthier you?  

Browse Mindbody to find one that fits your schedule!    

Want an even more in-depth look into the fitness trends you can expect to see in 2021? Check out this blog. 
 

denise prichard
Written by
Denise Prichard
Marketing Content Specialist
About the author
Denise Prichard is a certified yoga instructor (RYT-200) and an experienced content marketing professional with a penchant for writing compelling copy within the health, wellness and beauty industries. When she isn't writing or editing, you can find her teaching yoga classes, at a spin class or hanging out with her rescue pups.
headshot shanila sattar
Fitness
Published Monday Dec 21, 2020 by Shanila Sattar

Practical Tips to Ground You Through the Holiday Season and into 2021

As we are heading into an unconventional holiday season and approaching a brand-new year in 2021, it's going to be more important than ever to ground, center, and align ourselves. This year’s energy is less about resolutions and #goals. It’s about creating intentionality, peace, and grounding within ourselves first. 

The season’s energy can bring about grief for a plethora of reasons outside of our current times, the nostalgia of how we were accustomed to spending our time, and the people we were surrounded by. Putting a few grounding routines and mindfulness practices into the new daily life can make a huge difference in emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

Here are a few practical tips that you can take with you for the next few weeks as you ease into 2021 feeling grounded, intentional, and inflow with your energy.

Adapt a breathing routine into your daily life

Check out this article where I share with you a few non-fussy and easy breathing techniques that you can try out anytime. Mindful breathwork is the #1 way to regulate our body’s natural healing systems. It helps us calm down our body especially during a time where we are experiencing a lot of transitions. It also helps our body release and regulate feel-good hormones that we might be lacking, especially during seasonal changes.

In times of lower daylight and sun exposure, we have to take extra caution to allow our bodies to produce some of the feel-good hormones, and we can do that by mindful breathwork. 

A breathing practice doesn’t have to be complicated. We aren’t talking about going into an hour-long shamanic breathwork session. We’re talking about adopting a 30-second to a three-minute routine that you can repeat several times during the day as you wish. This is a gamechanger for how your body releases and processes hormones, promotes calmness and peace, and regulates flow within the body. Find one to two breathwork techniques that feel doable and implement them into your daily life right away.

Allow grace and gentleness with yourself

In this unconventional year, nothing has been normal. You might feel that your routines, your patterns, and even your identity have changed in the last few months. With so many things in flux, we could experience something known as a spiritual hangover. This is when you’ve been doing a lot of mindfulness and inner work, self-reflection, and getting hyper intentional about what you’re creating in your life. Because of this, you very well may be exhausted.

Now, our natural inclination is to fill up our time, to create more projects, to be busy, to surround ourselves with more stimulus and to-dos. And as much as we may want to do that, it’s okay if we just allow ourselves to be exhausted. 

No one is expecting you to be a super person at a time where we are all doing the best that we can. So, what would it be like for you to give yourself time and permission to rest? This may be a radical idea, but try clearing out your time, even if you have to schedule it in your calendar. Remind yourself—I’m going to do nothing but rest and serve my soul in a way where I do something that feels energetically nourishing rather than depleting. For you, this might be literally sitting and watching TV. It might be working in the garden. It might be listening to music. It might be a breathwork dance party. Find the form of rest that aligns with you and catch yourself if the habit of creating busy work starts to creep up.

Reflection as elevation

In 2020, we cheekily called it 20/20 vision—The Year of the Vision and played that one to the ground. But this year really did clear up the vision for many of us. Now is a great time for you to be very intentional about habits, thoughts, patterns, and even people that you may want to separate yourself from going into the next season of 2021.

Reflect on where your precious time, energy, and resources have been going and if it aligns with what you envision for yourself to experience in the upcoming year. Your energy is more valuable than ever. We have experienced working from home, separating from our families and friends, changing routines, adapting new roles, and so much more. The time, the energy, and the resources you will utilize going forward must come from a place of absolute intention.

Ask yourself:

  • How have I changed this year?
  • What are the big realizations I’ve had?
  • How do I want to integrate and adapt these realizations going into 2021?
Last but not least, let’s not forget the power of play

You must involve play and joy back into your life. Staying in a state of worry, sadness, and grief can become extremely harmful to your overall well-being. Yes, we absolutely do need to process and acknowledge it as a collective, AND we get to find ways where we can still have fun. We have so many blessings to count; we have so many things to be grateful for and it’s okay if you give yourself permission to do something that makes you crack up. 

In fact, go ahead and place both your hands on your belly and laugh like you heard something hilarious. I mean it. Laugh like you heard the funniest thing in the world. Put on that comedy and laugh. Tell that dumb joke to your friends. Tell yourself something that brings you joy. Dance. Move your body. Express yourself. Let’s fingerpaint.

Not only is this energetically healing, when we laugh and find joy, we actually produce the feel-good hormones right here in our own body. When we laugh, we’re essentially pumping out our gut hormones that have oxytocin, serotonin, dopamine. Turns out, 95% of our neurotransmitters are produced in our gut flora; When we allow ourselves to move, have fun, and play, we’re not only having a really good time, we’re also giving our body a dose of amazing feel-good hormones.  

Notice if your relationship with joy and fun have been compromised in the last few months. If you’ve been going through it or if things have been tough, maybe you have felt guilty for having fun. Maybe you’ve been feeling guilty for doing something that brings you joy like playing outside with your pets or laughing like a maniac. Right here, right now we get to do something completely radical—we get to give ourselves that permission to play. We get to know that we are living, we are alive, we are well, and we have the opportunity to decide to be intentional about the vibration and the energy we are wanting to bring with us into 2021. 

So as you ease into the flow of 2021, breathe, be gentle, reflect, and have fun.

If you’d like to try breathwork, mindfulness, or play classes with me, check out these workshops and training sessions that work with your schedule. For other breathwork classes, browse Mindbody.

Shanila Sattar
Written by
Shanila Sattar
Founder, AlwaysPlay Studios
About the author
Shanila is a sound healer, breathwork coach, women’s researcher, and speaker. She trains sound healers and breathwork facilitators through her mobile studio, AlwaysPlay Studios, and is the founder of the Integrative Wellness Leaders based in Los Angeles. She practices integrative wellness - considering a person's emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual wellbeing. Her background is in tech, having co-founded an award-winning web agency, and in women’s research, specifically in mindsets, implicit bias, perfectionism, women's health, and societal experiences supported through the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Health, and several universities. She has implemented several health and wellbeing programs in underserved populations throughout Los Angeles. Shanila mentors women who are wellness entrepreneurs and on their confidence journey.