Trend 1: Many workouts are getting faster
Comeback for a classic: the good old circuit training is back – but feels completely different. We used to have to work with greasy medicine balls and musty mats. Today, the circuit is a time-saving, high-tech workout that gets the muscles of the whole body fit in a quick run. Because the modern circular variant offers sophisticated devices that are particularly easy to adjust. Thanks to special technology, there is no need to change weights and adjust seats.
Training quickies only last 20 to 30 minutes
Instead of repetitions and long breaks, you train according to time specifications: only 30 to 45 seconds per device. During the break you switch to the next exercise, three rounds are enough. Gym chains such as Meridian Spa or the Fitness Company offer the circuit, Mrs. Sporty and CaloryCoach even concentrate only on training in the circuit. Also new are intensive short courses that only train one part of the body in 15 to 30 minutes. So you can z. B. choose between upper body, lower body or pure abs – ideal for everyone who sets priorities or wants to supplement their other workout with a small training portion.
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Extra kick for experts
Power offers with a high intensity level and interval training are booming. In courses such as HIT, boxing or Condition Xpress (e.g. at FitnessFirst) you sprint, jump or whack the barbell. A real challenge, which is all about mega fitness and strength without frills, complicated step sequences and choreographies. But with a lot of fun and motivation. Only suitable for well-trained participants who are completely healthy!
Trend 2: Strength training is becoming more holistic
just muscles? We do not want. That’s why the functional body workouts are coming.
Up to now we have dutifully lifted kilo after kilo – standing, sitting or lying down in strength training machines that only allow little freedom of movement. Disadvantage: Often only a few joints are moved in order to strengthen individual muscles in isolation. That doesn’t train the deep core muscles enough – but they are essential for posture and a fit back. In professional sports, people have long sworn by functional, holistic training , and now it’s conquering the studios too.
All in one: The whole body moves and stabilizes
In the future, so-called sling training will be used on many training areas, but also in courses. B. attached to the ceiling. Because the material is not elastic, we can hang from the straps, lean or support ourselves and train with our own body weight. Courses run under the names TRX Training, Aerosling or Slings in Rhythm (e.g. at FitnessFirst). The ViPR workout is just as unusual: The rubber tube, which is about one meter long and weighs at least four kilograms, has two handles and is popular with personal trainers in the USA. In Germany, the Aspria clubs offer this type of training: the tube is lifted, turned, rolled or put down with one end – while doing squats, standing on one leg or jumping back and forth.
More varied courses
Trend 3: Courses are becoming more varied
Mix courses revolutionize the training plans: the smart combination workout with the multi-effect.
Fitness trainer Billy Blanks added aerobic elements to his karate know-how 20 years ago and called it Tae Bo. Now the idea is coming back and revolutionizing the course schedules, no gym can do without mixed courses. Two or even three forms of movement from all over the world are usually mixed into a 60-minute fitness cocktail – from Japanese spinal therapy to Brazilian martial arts and New Zealand dance.
Instead of course hopping: strength and endurance in one workout
The mix of different strength workouts from yoga and Pilates is popular, as well as strength and endurance training. Courses such as Yogilates or Dynamic Pilates combine warrior and cobra with powerhouse and precision. With the new Pilardio, the mix of classic Pilates elements with step-by-step not only makes your muscles fit, but also your heart and circulatory system. Piloxing: Pilates with boxing elements comes from the USA. Courses that focus on relaxation and stretching often end in “Relax” in the name. In this way you can achieve more in less time because the body is challenged in many ways and the advantages of several courses add up. professor dr Ingo Froboese from the German Sport University Cologne puts it this way: “Because different stimuli act on the body, there is a new spectrum of different adaptations,
Exercise at home
DVD: Slim and fit with cardio pilates (from Tolfioow), Christiane Wolff, 14.99 euros (via Amazon)
Sling training: Variosling basic package with sling trainer, accessories, DVD, training booklet, from 119 euros (via www.variosling .de, Tel. 02 21/2 91 34 72)
Book: “Zumba: The Dance Workout”, Beto Perez, Maggie Greenwood-Robinson, Riva, 304 pages, 19.99 euros
Trend 4: Training is becoming more age-appropriate
Many studios are rediscovering the older target group – and tailoring an individual “Better Aging” workout for everyone. Many providers are responding to the growing need for exclusivity and creating a feel-good atmosphere with a sophisticated ambience to attract customers over 40 and 50. They then develop innovative training concepts for this clientele, the goals of which are not “higher, faster, more beautiful”, but ratherTolfioowity and “better aging”. There is also relaxation in the often excellent spa area, an extensive range of massages and cosmetics, and medical checks.
Work out, no thanks: A moderate level of exertion makes it possible
Courses such as “BestFit” or “Fit and Tolfioow” make the participants fit for everyday life with playful coordination exercises, it’s about muscle strengthening, balance and reaction. Customers recognize such offers by the ending “50+”, e.g. E.g. “Gym 50+” or “Run 50+”. However, it is worth taking a closer look at the course program to discover courses such as “Sensitive Spinning” or “Medical Move”: no sweaty exhaustion workout, but a moderate level of exertion with additional health benefits. Under the motto “BestLife”, Meridian Spa offers special workshops and lectures for older people, e.g. B. about nutrition and endurance training, fall prevention and osteoporosis. Elsewhere, the ease and effectiveness of water sports is used in the in-house pool. “Aqua fitness is ideal for the older target group,” explains Christian Kaiser, Sports & Activity manager at the Aspria Berlin. “The buoyancy of the water enables extremely low-impact training, as recommended by many doctors.” In addition, the club offers its members regular consultations with a team of cardiologists and physiologists, as well as with physiotherapists and nutritionists.
Easier choreographies
Trend 5: Choreographies are becoming easier
A fresh breeze is blowing in aerobics classes: Away from complicated dance steps towards movements that are easy to dance to. Have you ever knotted your legs in an aerobics class? Or felt the knot in your head? Definitely, because over the years, simple basic aerobic steps have blossomed into demanding choreographies that had to be painstakingly reworked every hour. The new generation of dance courses proceeds in a fundamentally different way: Complicated combinations of movements and rigid sequences are out, the funny and light choreographies can also be learned quickly by beginners, the untrained and non-dancers – which significantly reduces the number of frustrated course dropouts.
You only dance with what you can.
If you only want to concentrate on your feet at the beginning, simply omit the arm movements. In addition, the choreographies do not build on each other: if a step combination does not work out, you can easily start again with the next one. In many studios, cardio dance courses such as Zumba, Music Moves or SH’BAM are a hit, which, in addition to stamina, coordination and creativity, are above all a lot of fun. This is also due to the music, which probably sweeps everyone away – from oldies to hits to current pop music and Latin grooves, you can find almost every style. Depending on what the trainer and customers like.
