Prioritising recovery, community fitness and Biohacking are just a few of the predicted fitness trends for 2025.
As someone that started their career in journalism in the Fitness & Leisure industry over 25yrs ago and worked for even longer in both the private and public sector of the Fitness & Leisure Industry, the subject of fitness trends each year always interests me. So now we’ve reached the end of the first month of 2025, I thought I’d look at what trends we will see this year.
If we look back at 2024, Virtual/Online Workouts were still very much a trend coming off the back of the COVID lockdown where gym goers flocked to the internet connecting with trainers on pre-recorded YouTube videos and live Zoom sessions, Pilates continued to be an extremely popular fitness trend with new Pilates Studios popping up all over the UK, along with Gyms putting on more Pilates classes for their members, Fitness Challenges continued in popularity, again from COVID where many of these challenges hit social media, with many going viral, and finally wearable fitness technology such as Smart Watches and Fitness Apps.
So what can we expect for 2025?…
Community Fitness and Longevity Fitness are going to be the Buzz words of 2025, wearable tech, performance recovery, biohacking, functional fitness, VR gamification and a resurgence cardio boom.
1: Community Fitness
Throughout 2024, TikTok influencers had started creating something of a running ‘Boom’, whilst local running clubs & Park Runs have been seeing a growth in numbers joining groups up and down the country.
Post COVID, Community Fitness groups have spouted up all over the UK, after two years of on off ‘lock down’ isolation, people have continued to feel a need to socialise, especially during their fitness regime. There has been a real need for support and company. Fitness classes have risen in popularity within gyms, and more and more community fitness groups have sprouted up like Swindon’s very own weekly Training in Swindon community fitness sessions that take place between 6am and 7am on Thursdays? For more details, click HERE to join their Facebook group.
Post Covid, it’s like people have more of a need for support and company. More people are working from home, so fitness classes and events are an opportunity to socialise with colleagues and friends as well as meet new people.
As more and more fitness studios and competitions hit the scene, people have realised that fitness is another way to have healthy fun as a group and raise the endorphin levels.”
2: Longevity Fitness
Longevity fitness prioritises longevity and anti-aging. Using functional exercises is a crucial role in promoting healthy ageing and longevity. Exercises in Longevity Fitness mimic everyday activities and movements, they help maintain physical health, improve quality of life, and enhance independence as we age.
Functional exercises maintain mobility and independence, targeting movements that are essential for daily living, such as squatting, bending, lifting, and reaching. By strengthening the muscles and improving the flexibility needed for these activities, older adults can maintain their ability to perform daily tasks independently. This reduces the risk of falls and injuries, which are common concerns among the elderly.
Strength and balance are critical for preventing falls, a major cause of disability and mortality in older adults. Functional exercises often include strength training and balance exercises that enhance muscle power and coordination.
Functional exercises often involve full-body movements that increase heart rate and improve cardiovascular health. Activities like walking and running are excellent for maintaining heart health, which is essential for longevity. Regular cardiovascular exercise helps to lower blood pressure, improve cholesterol levels, and reduce the risk of heart disease.
There are so many other reasons Longevity Fitness is something we should all be doing and adding into our fitness regimes, including supporting joint health & flexibility, boosting mental health & cognitive function, promoting social interaction and enhancing quality of life.
Check out Swindon’s Longevity Games, click HERE for The Longevity Games website and HERE to follow their Facebook page.
3: Wearable Tech
Wearable tech for helping you with your fitness training and goals today for many a must have tool, incorporating GPS tracker to record your run distances, timings, heart rate and routes, and record your daily steps. Downloadable apps that sync with fitness equipment in the gym. And many being waterproof to use poolside.
In today’s fast-paced world, staying fit and healthy has become a top priority for many. With advancements in todays smartwatches have made them an indispensable tool for tracking your fitness goals and maintaining an active lifestyle. Ultimately, todays smart watches help you stay motivated and on track towards your fitness goals.
4: Performance Recovery
Focusing on how to recover well can prevent injuries, enhance your performance, support your mental health and keep you exercising consistently. Today in the world of TikTok, influencers have put recovery into the conversation of peoples fitness regime, to the point of making it trendy and the must thing to do. No more is recovery seen as just resting up after a gym session or a good nights sleep.
Today through the power of TikTok, we have seen the use of massage guns, and even ice baths that seem to have become popular as a challenge video in peoples back gardens for the entertainment of viewers, as well as educating people about the benefits.
Innovation’s in compression clothing over the past decade are making recovery even more accessible and effective. During my time as a Professional Ultra Marathon Athlete in the early 2000s where an average training week would see me run over 100miles, I was introduced to compression technology for the first time, so I can say from first hand that this is no gimmick, compression clothing really does help with recovery.
5: Biohacking For Fitness
Biohacking is the process of using science and technology to optimise how your body performs, with wearable technology such as fitness trackers and smartwatches becoming ever-more sophisticated.
Clip-on devices like Garmin’s Running Dynamics Pod and smart clothing such as shorts with blood flow restriction (BFR) technology are becoming more popular as people look to improve muscle strength, prevent muscle fatigue and learn more about movement efficiency.
The rise of data-driven training technology is transforming how we approach fitness. These tools provide real-time insights into performance and recovery, allowing for more effective training programmes.
6: Functional Fitness
With fitness challenges and competitions such as Hyrox, Deka and Swindon’s very own The Longevity Games, functional fitness has become one of the biggest Buzz words in the world of fitness, with people realising how important functional fitness is to longevity in life, to be able to do daily activities without discomfort like carrying shopping bags later in life and getting down on the floor to play with the grandkids.
7: VR Gamification
VR Gamification in fitness has been gaining traction and popularity for a few years now. For many the emergence of Wii Fit on the Nintendo and other fun games like Wii Sports.
From the Nintendo Wii to todays VR Headsets and companies like Peloton have become fun, motivating and immersive fitness experiences.
8: A Resurgence of The Cardio Boom
Many people are realising the importance of a balanced fitness routine. Strength training builds muscle, with cardio a crucial part for heart health, endurance, and overall wellbeing.
For 2025, a report by PureGym concluded one in three of us want to improve our cardiovascular health, whilst also stating they struggle with endurance due to a sedentary lifestyle and lack of proper training.
2025 is definitely the year where people will start to incorporate more cardio into their daily lives such as walking or cycling to work continues to be popular with the aftermath of COVID.
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