Scroll through your social media feeds and you’re likely to have come across numerous posts offering exciting new classes or the latest yoga trend! 2018 calls for an exciting year of the latest health tracking apps, wearable trackers, and booming fitness trends. So grab your shoes and check out the hottest workouts you won’t want to miss!
1. Aerial yoga
You’re hanging upside down a few feet off the ground, in a stretch you never thought you’d be able to do, swaddled in a hammock / fabric swing, and you’re thinking…”how in the world did I get here?” Welcome to one of the hottest workouts around, aerial yoga! Relive your childhood by suspending on a hammock while holding yoga poses! It’s a completely safe exercise that provides deep stretches through guided poses.
How it works
Hammocks are tightly supported with chains and can hold up to 900kg of weight, so you are definitely in safe hands. Throughout the class, you will be carefully guided through simple stretches and many familiar yoga poses, often upside down. It is recommended that you have tried a couple of yoga classes before doing this so you are familiar with the commonly practiced moves. Plus, you’ll feel less intimidated!
Benefits
Aerial yoga offers a variety of additional benefits to the regular Hatha or Vinyasa yoga. For starters, because you are supported by the hammock, it can facilitate a deeper stretch with the benefit of gravity. This allows you to achieve poses you never thought possible! It’s also a great core workout as you really have to activate your large core muscles to suspend in various poses. And, being upside down and supported by the hammock, is a little bit like being in traction – so it can potentially help lengthen your ligaments, relax your muscles, and decompress your spine.
Our thoughts – Not only is Aerial yoga one of the hottest workouts in Asia, it is a great way to mix up your usual yoga routine, and push your body to go deeper/stronger in poses that you’re familiar with from mat yoga. Have you tried it?
2. Aqua Spinning
Think pumping music, underwater cycling, and nothing but awesome vibes! A session of aqua spinning is one of the hottest workouts guaranteed to keep you on your toes and freshen up your day!
How it works
It’s cycling, but underwater! Bikes are placed in the water where you’ll be taken on an exciting, stationary journey through a series of high intensity cycles and body weight resistance exercises. The resistance of the water makes it harder than you think! An hour of spinning can potentially burn up to 800 calories!
Benefits
Due to the water resistance, there is very minimal impact on your joints, which makes it the perfect exercise for the elderly, pregnant, and people recovering from injuries. Spinning against water also provides a natural massage for your muscles as it actives both agonist and antagonistic muscles.
Our thoughts – As we’ve said with our other water workout videos available in the Active8me app, a water workout is more difficult and more effective than you think. Aqua spinning is just another form of that. It is an effective workout, with minimal impact, and changes things for a fun workout.
3. Boxing
It’s THE workout loved by the likes of Ellie Goulding and Eva Mendes. Put on a pair of gloves for some much needed punches after a long day, while picking up some useful combat skills. This hottest workout is nothing but 100% pure fun!
How it works
Depending on the instructor, a session of boxing can involve more than just punches. It often involves a mix of punches, kicks, body weight strength exercises, and some cardio.
Benefits
The synchronised punches help improve hand-eye coordination and motor skills which are useful for your daily life, like catching car keys mid-air, or grabbing that cup before it falls off the table. 🙂 On top of this, it’s a mind-body workout that improves your mental focus as you attempt to deliver the right moves with each command or combination. And of course boxing improves your overall fitness.
Our thoughts – Boxing is not new, but it is back in vogue in various forms and with various extensions. So embrace it for a great workout that will improve your stamina, relieve the stress and strengthen both your mind and body.
4. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
The hype over HIIT all around the world just keeps growing! As we’ve said before – HIIT is actually nothing new and is really just a re-branded form of what many used to call circuit training – something that athletes and gyms have been doing for decades. It is one of the hottest workouts because of the quick bursts of high intensity activity. HIIT workouts can come in many forms – from gym-based, to cycling, to sprinting, to swimming and more. But they’re popular and they’re effective.
How it works
A typical session can last from 30 – 60 minutes, depending on the intensity and structure of the workout. It involves alternating intense bursts of a series of exercises to achieve a varying heart-rate structure within the workout. Most people think of HIIT workouts in a gym context which might be a workout that involves a series of push-ups, burpees, and so on. But they can come in many forms as we already pointed out.
Benefits
HIIT workouts are time-efficient and effective. They give you a tough workout in a short amount of time. The high intensity increases calorie burn for up to 24 hours after a session (a physiological process known as EPOC (Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption) or better known as “afterburn”. Plus, the best thing – you can do them anytime, anywhere! Be it the gym, at home, or in a hotel room with no equipment.
Our thoughts – These hottest workouts not new and are really just enjoying some re-branding. But they’re time-efficient. They’re effective. And, HIIT workouts can generally be done anywhere. They’re all big positives. We like them. But, they’re taxing on both your mind and body so you need to ensure that they’re part of an overall balanced program which includes some lower intensity and recovery based sessions.
5. Barre
Interestingly, the term barre was inspired by the ballet barre that runs along the sides of a ballet studio, and was developed by a ballerina in 1959. Fast forward to the present, and the trend has picked up rather incredibly in recent times!
How it works
No leotards or ballet shoes needed here! Partly inspired by ballet moves, you’ll be taken through a series of body weight conditioning exercises, typically finish off with a core workout.
Benefits
If heavy weights and intense bouts are not your thing, you’ll love this! One of the reasons Barre is one of the hottest workouts is because of it’s lower impact and your ability to strengthen your muscles through isometric contractions. This involves muscle tension without changing the length through tiny motions and high reps. The moves also helps improve your posture and train your flexibility!
Our thoughts – Another great form of exercise to keep things fresh, interesting and fun. After all, that’s the aim.
Exercise is not some drudgery. It should be fun. It’s a way of life (healthy, active living). Plus, it’s good for you. And the best thing – you don’t just feel better after a workout – you feel better ABOUT YOURSELF!
So have some fun by trying some of these hottest workouts. Don’t limit your exercise to a boring treadmill. Start exploring your exercise options!
