Fitness Trends -- Getting Results On A Budget

Recently the American Council on Exercise made some fitness predictions.

“Consumers will really look to maximize their workout results while maintaining a close eye on their budgets this year,” said ACE’s Chief Science Officer Cedric X. Bryant, Ph.D. “Along with financial constraints, we understand that people are busier than ever and will look for workouts that offer the results they seek while fitting within their already jam-packed schedules.

They believe that the economy will affect people's choices for exercise, and that is a reasonable prediction of fitness trends. They say that the economy will limit the use of personal trainers and that more people with be using group fitness classes.

Individuals will scale back on personal training sessions to take advantage of small-group training and group class participation as another way to save on expenses. Health clubs may alter some programs to better suit the needs of larger groups. Likewise, individuals may find that the group setting offers additional motivation and support of their fitness efforts.

Now, it's not so important where or how you exercise, whether in a class, with a trainer or alone. But for improved health and a longer life it is vital that regular exercise is a part of your life. And it doesn't have to be expensive. Walking was encouraged by Thomas Jefferson -- and it's still a "best exercise" today.

Another prediction is the move toward workouts for "time pressured" Americans.

Shorter yet higher-intensity workouts will be more appealing to those with busy schedules because they can reap significant fitness rewards with relatively minimal time investment.

This move to shorter workouts is not a positive development. Why?

First, because the efforts toward shorter workouts are a retreat from living life. Things that keep you from living life are not good fitness trends. Movement and exercise are part of living.

These human bodies are supposed to be used. That's why you deteriorate if you don't exercise. And by the way, that's why retirement is so dangerous.

To some degree the time efficient workouts are just a way to try to avoid working out at all.

And for those pressured by time, what they really need is to turn off the TV and the video games and take some time for something real in their lives.

By integrating fitness-based video games into their programming, clubs will offer unique exercise sessions for game-lovers and those looking for variety within their workouts.

Workouts with WII? This is not a good development. We live in a world where kids don't go outside to play anymore. They go from house to car to school and don't get outdoors.

And it only gets worse as they get older.

When the internet first came to public light there was talk about taking "vacations" on the internet. After all, you could see the redwood forests on your computer screen, so why bother to go there?

Well, go there some time and you'll see the difference. Life is meant to be lived. And standing in front of a video game is not living. It is plugging into an imitation of life.

The best advice, despite these trends? Get out. Take a walk. Go for a run. Ride your bike. Get some air in your lungs. Look around. It will have a remarkably beneficial effect on you -- physically as well as mentally.

via http://www.acefitness.org/pressroom/443/time-and-cost-conscious-workouts-are-among-the/