2018 WELLNESS TRENDS
In the absence of a time machine or sporting almanac, MH has canvassed the opinions of industry insiders to forecast the future of your health and fitness. From green-fingered training to online coaching, high-tech drugs to artificial intelligence, these
Everything you need to know to keep ahead of the fitness curve for the next 12 months
01 Your holiday won’t be a rest week
The new health tourism is not to be confused with travelling for superficial surgical work, to places where the exchange rate is favourable and the regulation light. Instead, there’s a burgeoning trend for combining city breaks and winter sun with your fitness goals. Book one of these three dedicated destinations to satisfy your wanderlust without sacrificing your wellness.
XPT Experiences in Hawaii Ice-bathe, lift weights underwater and generally live like fitness influencer royalty, with legendary surfer Laird Hamilton, his ex-volleyballer wife Gabby Reece and cutting-edge coach Brian Mackenzie. xptlife.com
Equinox Hotels in New York For Manhattanites who don’t already live in the gym, the health club group’s first hotel will open in 2018, with Los Angeles and outposts further afield – including the UK – to follow. equinox.com/hotel Rapha Holidays in, well, everywhere As usual, cult cycling lifestyle brand Rapha is at the front of the peloton, now organising excursions to France, Italy and Spain, plus less pedalled tracks in the US, Japan and Colombia – including many a bespoke option. rapha.cc
02 The next Joe Wicks will be Mr Average
In the future, everyone will be famous for 15 minutes. Including you, potentially. As the big-name, social-media ‘shillionaires’ demand bigger bucks to feature brands, canny marketers are turning to micro-influencers with smaller audiences not artificially swollen by paid-for followers. Who are, in turn, more likely to perceive said influencers as credible and actually engage with them. Apps like Takumi ( takumi.com) and Like To Know It ( liketoknow.it) make it easy to tap into the revenue stream and earn pocket money from your smartphone, if not a living.
03 Kinstretch will make a push
With mobility exercises increasingly bookending your workouts, it’s only a matter of time before they subsume your entire session. Musculoskeletal expert Dr Andreo Spina has devised group-class format Kinstretch, “essentially his answer to yoga,” explains Fitch. “But, instead of passive stretches, it involves positional isometrics and angular movements.” With a raft of US sports teams already in league and Nike showing interest, it won’t be long before you’re swapping ‘namaste’ for sports science. kinstretch.com
04 The bar for UK health clubs will be raised
The gym market continues to oscillate between boom and budget facilities. At the vertigo-inducing end of the spectrum, US group Equinox recently opened an ultraexclusive E club in London’s St James’s. The first, in New York, was accessible only by retina scanner. For an eyewatering £350 a month, you’ll have access to “an unequalled, utterly personal fitness club”. Think locker-room attendants to launder your kit, a concierge to curate your “experience” and a dumbbell butler to lift weights for you. OK, that last one is made up. equinox.com
05 Carbon will date your old workout wear
The tech-savvy likes of Team Sky have previously used superlight carbon mesh to keep their pro cyclists warm in the saddle while minimising bulk. Now, sportswear brand Castore has co-opted the element into high-performance gym gear that, for comfort and durability, outstrips anything else you’ll see on the bike. If that wasn’t enough, also in Castore’s pipeline is diamond thread, which boasts anti-odour levels more efficient than silver, while also wicking five times quicker than a non-treated garment. Handy when your lunchtime session overruns. From £90 castore.co.uk
06 You’ll keep mental fitness in shape
A healthy body doesn’t always signify a healthy mind. “Mental health is the least understood and addressed aspect of wellness,” says Ward. “Expect mindfulness sessions in gyms, with a greater focus on exercise’s mental benefits.” Sanctus, a ‘mental fitness’ community, even aims to open gyms for lifting spirits, not weights ( sanctus.io). And, with the government’s plans to overhaul legislation, plus MH’S ongoing #Mendthegap campaign, the too-often taboo subject will be front of mind.
07 You’ll take gymnastics into the bedroom
Bodyweight training placed No2 in the American Council of Sports Medicine’s annual survey of 2017’s biggest worldwide fitness trends, and isn’t disappearing anytime soon. But it is moving on. The calisthenics craze (essentially bastardised gymnastics) has ignited interest in the real, rigorous deal. But you don’t need specialist facilities to improve your form. Gymnastic Bodies, founded by former US Olympic coach Christopher Sommer and endorsed by MH columnist Tim Ferriss, is the resource for elite instruction. gymnasticbodies.com
08 You’ll pump up like Iron Man (and Spidey)
Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) is causing a buzz. But this isn’t some home-shopping channel chicanery promising an effortless six-pack. Rather, it’s a whole bodysuit that vibrates individual muscles and claims to provide the same benefit as an hour of training in just 20 minutes. Usain Bolt is a fan, as is actor Tom Holland, who plugged in to fill out Spider-man’s costume. “Having experienced rapid growth in Germany, EMS is gaining momentum in the UK,” says Armes. Teutonic market leader Miha Bodytec has already opened locations in London, which may well be the spark behind a whole new movement. miha-bodytec.com
09 You’ll beat your PB with a stick
The 2018 foam roller is much bendier and stickier. As the name suggests, Stick Mobility uses flexible poles of varying proportions and degrees of resistance in order to improve range of motion, movement and muscle activation. Trying to bend them like a mustachioed old-school strongman triggers ‘irradiation’, simultaneously firing up multiple muscles and thawing frozen ones, while also emphasising the diagonal connections between hips and opposite shoulders that are pivotal to running and rotation. Described as “a total-body, pedal-to-the-floor positional plank”, it has already been adopted by powerlifters, NFL players and pro golfers. Now is the perfect time to up sticks. From £39 stickmobility.co.uk
10 Artificial intelligence will terminate your plateau
Those “Come with me if you want to lift” Arnie T-shirts are about to take on a fresh significance, as Skynet threatens to make your PT obsolete. The makers of the Freeletics training app have already implemented machine-learning that can tailor programmes to users’ builds, goals and progress. “The biggest game-changer, though, will come in the form of Technogym’s groundbreaking project to construct an artificial intelligence-driven coaching platform,” says Armes. Underpinned by IBM’S Watson AI, Technogym aims to create a ‘human-like’ virtual trainer that can manage data, evaluate results and interact with you – presumably by passive aggressive guilttripping. technogym.com
11 You’ll take your workout underground
An increasing number of old industrial spaces are being deemed fit for more active repurposing – think spinning studio Boom Cycle in Battersea Power Station. But even this may not shock our sedentary society into locomotion. “Innovation in the way we travel will be vital,” says Ward. “This means reimagining forgotten transport routes such as canals and abandoned underground rail networks.” Design firm Gensler’s London Underline plan is to convert disused tunnels into subterranean walkways and cycle paths, interspersed with shops, cafés and gyms – which could well be your path to the future health. gensler.com
12 Brain training will be the smart move
With exercise proven to deliver immediate cognitive uplift and reverse age-related decline, the modern athleteexecutives – like Apple’s Tim Cook, who hits the gym at 5am every morning – no longer view working out as wasted time, but a productivity PED. And workplace supplements aren’t just for brawn, either, thanks to non-dodgy nootropics like Form’s Edge, a combo of neurotransmitter precursors, amino acid derivatives and ginko biloba. Not quite Limitless brainpower, but a start. £ 19 formnutrition.com
13 You’ll sweat it out at work
Just as gyms are increasingly becoming lounge spaces for laptop-toters, so workplaces are becoming more active. Google’s new London HQ houses a gym surrounded by a 90m running track, and across the board, companies are grasping the benefits – such as reduced absenteeism, which costs the UK £29bn a year – of getting workers off their backsides. “We need to address the major barriers that currently prevent people from taking the active option,” says Ward. Which is why Ukactive is in the latter stages of lobbying the government to expand its Cycle 2 Work policy to include gym memberships and fitness trackers. On your tax-free bike, rat race.
14 You’ll grow fitter by numbers
Wearable tech might (still) be the future, but many consumers are bored or frustrated with the basic functions of present devices. Companies like Orreco monitor sportsmen’s biomarkers, using statistical models to swerve injury and even model game theory. For the rest of us, the Whoop strap disrupts the notion of a fixed regime altogether. “It uses heart rate variability to assess your readiness to train on a given day,” explains Marriott. By going hard or home at the operative moment, you ensure that you’ll keep going for exactly as long as you need. £369 get.whoop.com
15 You will see even more men in tights
If you haven’t already succumbed, then prepare to get your Mr Motivator on this year. Just don’t be one of those guys who wears his skin-tight base layer without shorts – in our book, that’s a lycra-fine line away from training naked. Here are Manteit’s three picks to help you stay on trend without putting it all on the line.
16 Airport fitness will take off in a big way
Aside from purchasing a travel-sized copy of MH, constructive ways to pass the time while waiting to board your flight are severely limited; packing in fast food, Duty Free or pre-9am pints won’t do you any favours in the long haul. But Heathrow is embarking on a new venture that will enable you to put delays to good use: the world’s first airport fitness studio. Flyfit will feature cardio and yoga classes, plus kit rental and shower facilities so you don’t offend fellow passengers. Wherever you’re travelling, new routes for unloading excess baggage are sure to open up. flyfitglobal.com
17 You’ll be gassed about breathing
Air will be everywhere. “Breathing physiology is very hot right now,” says Starrett. But as the ice-diving escapades of Dutch daredevil and ‘breath biohacker’ Wim Hof demonstrate, respiration goes much deeper than endurance and posture. Breathing is being explored as a potential gateway to your autonomic (ie unconscious) nervous system, which is vastly more powerful than your conscious – essentially the reason why you can’t hold your breath, or sprint flat-out for five minutes, no matter how much you might want to. Hof-style breathing is also on the syllabus at XPT, which we think is a breath of fresh air. xptlife.com
18 You’ll put yourself in the microwave
Infrared saunas are also hot right now – but not as hot as you might think. Indeed, that’s the point: they heat you from the inside, rather than the air around you, making them more comfortable to sit in for longer. This, in turn, means professional athletes are now clocking up to half an hour post-training for scientifically backed strength, size and stamina gains. “[In 2018] the rituals and facilities associated with sauna culture will become far more creative and social, as the rest of the world catches up with the benefits,” says Armes. UK saun-trepreneurs are currently cooking up equivalents to New York’s Higherdose and brilliantly named Hotbox. Expect them to light a fire under your summer fitness plans.
19 Plant-based everything will take root
Biophilia – the science of how natural environments and materials positively impact health and happiness – is very much a growing trend. UK company Biofit is sowing the seeds with indoor gyms that resemble outdoor play areas, using equipment made from wood, leather, bamboo and rubber. Co-working space Second Home, meanwhile, is opening a London Fields location in November that will be filled with over 1000 air-purifying, stress-relieving plants and abundant natural light. If neither your gym nor office are quite as green, you can harvest some biophilic benefits with a bamboo keyboard and trackpad – your first step to going all out au natural. bamtaboo.com
20 You’ll pay to play
The best kind of exercise is usually the one that gives you at least some enjoyment. Fun is explicit in Evolve Move Play, a new ‘natural movement system’. It’s also implicit in parkour, a cousin of natural movement that is now an officially recognised sport in the UK. The Chainstore Gym and Parkour Academy, near London’s Poplar Docks, is basically one large, adults-only indoor play area. And while it might make you feel like a child again, it’s guaranteed to give you a good schooling, too. parkourgenerations.com
21 You’ll be tying one on
Occlusion training is going to reach a wider circulation. “Blood flow restriction is a crucial tool for getting swole,” says Starrett. “There’s massive data to support its use, it’s easy to do and everyone should know how.” Reducing – not cutting off – your supply of blood by wrapping your upper arm or thigh while you lift lightly (eg 30% of your 1RM) compresses the time required to augment size and strength. You wouldn’t want to do it every workout, or for more than three or four weeks at a time. But, used carefully, it could help you squeeze past that plateau.
22 You’ll join the online fat-loss forum
In 2018, more and more PTS will turn internet service provider, coaching their clients by Skype when they can’t put in the ‘ face time’. Inevitably, this has led to a slew of online training clubs like Marriott’s Brotherhood, which promote engagement by giving users a community feel wherever they are. Even some Crossfit gyms are thinking outside the box, opening up virtually to those who are too remote. WOD drive is a free, online training resource for when your schedule makes attending class a painful impossibility. woddrive.com
23 The supps market will go upmarket
While protein shakes have long since crossed over into the mainstream, their branding often seems stuck in the bodybuilding locker room. And the ingredients within, not to mention the picture of that vascular freak-beast on the label, don’t sit well with modern gym-goers. The result is higher class, often plantbased supps – like these.
24 You’ll give yourself an ergo boost
The tide of boutique fitness studios is taking an unexpected turn from the typical spinning, boxing and boot-camping. “Indoor rowing classes are about to boom in the UK,” says Howatson. As usual, the trend originated in New York, but now it’s racing across the pond, oars in hand, with Metabolic London claiming to be the first on these shores. If you have no concept of the suffering that a Concept 2 can inflict, know that rowing is an all-over workout that begets muscle and lungpower. “It’s a fantastic low-impact cardio option for people with joint pain,” adds Howatson. It just hurts in other ways. metaboliclondon.com
25 Listening in will be, well, in
While podcasts are hardly new, they’re newly popular on account of their portability, quality and ability to save dead time. Earmark these three for your next run-commute.
Men In Blazers AKA Michael Davies and Roger Bennett, two Us-based Brit pundits who put out top football analysis, replete with laugh-out-loud moments and insightful Game of Thrones analogies. meninblazers.com
The Tim Ferriss Show The biohacker quizzes world-class performers in business and fitness alike for the replicable secrets of their success, from morning routines to favourite books. tim.blog/podcast
Jocko Podcast A gravel-voiced former Navy Seal commander, Jocko Willink is as uncompromising as the name of his podcast, which covers leadership, working out at 4:30am and why all your excuses are lies. jockopodcast.com
26 Your diet will be vindicated
Lucy Mountain (AKA @thefashionfitnessfoodie) posts pictures of avocados alongside Lion bars to challenge the misconception that foods can be inherently ‘good’ or ‘bad’. “The # fitspo movement has increasingly been criticised for putting the focus on aesthetics over health benefits, creating an elitist culture,” says Ward. “Expect to see greater focus on heart health over waist size as the democratisation of fitness continues.” Vive la révolution.