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Top 10 Worldwide Fitness Trends for 2012
 The
2012 ACSM Worldwide Survey of
Fitness
Trends in the commercial (for-profit), clinical (including medical fitness),
community (not-forprofit), and corporate sectors of the industry confirmed
some trends revealed in previous surveys. Some of the trends first
identified for 2007 have moved up and stayed in the top 10 since the
original survey was published, whereas some new trends seem to be emerging
for 2012, and others have disappeared out of the top 20.
The BMI
report of fitness users at Women
Fitness
shows 38.7 % users as underweight, 23% fell into the healthy weight
category, with 1.5% and 3.6 % obese and extremely obese for the year
2011. WF health and fitness experts are committed to the task of
bringing about a positive change in the health & lifestyles of women all
over the world for the twelfth consecutive year.
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Trends have been defined as a general development that takes some time and then stays for a period (usually described as a behavior change). Check out this year's fitness trends.
 Educated,
Certified and Experienced Fitness Professionals-
Holding on to the no. 1 spot for the last 5 years,
this is a trend that continues with education and certification programs that
are fully accredited by national third-party accrediting organizations for
health/fitness and clinical professionals. The need for qualified fitness
professional continues to be on the rise with need of the hour.
  Strength
Training-
Strength
training moved from no. 6 on the list in 2007 to no. 4 in 2008 and remained
in that position in 2009. For 2010, strength training moved up to the no. 2
position on the list and, in 2011, dropped slightly to no. 3. This is a trend
for both men and women to incorporate strength training into their
exercise
routines. For many years, and for a good number of health clubs (both
for-profit and not-for-profit), a central theme remains strength training.
Historically, there are many clients who train exclusively using, and there are
still those who lift weights for
body building.
However, today, there are many other individuals (both men and women, young and
old) whose main focus is on using weight training to simply increase or maintain
strength.
 Fitness
Programs for Older Adults-Falling from no. 2 in 2007 to no. 6
in 2008, 2009,and 2010 and then rebounding to no. 2 in 2011, fitness programs
for older adults remain a strong trend for 2012. Falling to no. 6 between 2007
and 2008 was a bit of a surprise, considering all the discussion about the baby
boom generation rapidly approaching retirement
age. However, this
trend continues to be strong, making the top 10 in each year of the survey. It
is assumed that in retirement, people typically have greater discretionary money
but have a tendency to spend it more wisely and have more time to engage in an
exercise
program.
The more active older adult
can enjoy golf and even an inspired game of pickle ball. The highly active older
adult (the athletic old) also can be targeted by commercial and community-based
organizations to participate in more rigorous exercise programs including
strength training. Even the frail elderly can improve their ability to
perform activities of daily living when provided the appropriate quality and
quantity of exercise.
 Exercise and
Weight loss-Exercise and weight loss is a trend toward
incorporating all weight
loss programs with a sensible exercise program. This has been a growing
trend since the survey began. In 2009, exercise and
weight loss was ranked no. 18, moving to no. 12 in 2010 and no. 7 in 2011,
and now sits in the no. 4 spot. It seems as though people who are in the
business of providing weight loss programs will incorporate regular exercise and
caloric restriction for weight control. There also is increasing amounts of
evidence that shows exercise is essential in weight loss maintenance.
 Children and
Obesity- The problem with
childhood and adolescent
obesity continues to be a major health issue. As school systems face the
reality of cutting programs, such as physical education and recess, to spend
more time preparing for standardized testing in this challenging economy, this
is a trend toward more programs and a potential new market for commercial and
community-based organizations. Teens who watch more than two hours of
junk food television ads a day had more fat than those who watch less, according
to the National Institutes of Health.
 Personal
Training- Although there are some
minor variations of personal training (e.g.,
small groups as opposed to one-on-one), respondents to this survey believe that
personal trainers are here to stay and will continue to be an important part of
the professional staff of health and fitness centers. Personalized
attention is a must for no two people are born same or have similar lifestyle
pattern.
 Core
Training-
Core training typically
includes the muscles of the
hips,
lower back, and abdomen, all of which provide support for the spine and
thorax. Exercising the core muscles may enable the client or patient to improve
the overall stability of the trunk and transfer that to the extremities,
enabling the individual to meet the demands of activities of daily living and
for the performance of various sports that require strength, speed, and agility.
Building Core Stability is absolutely essential before, during and after
pregnancy to prevent back injury and alleviate discomfort.
  Group
Personal Training-This trend allows the personal trainer to
still provide the personal service clients expect but now in a small group of 2
to 4, offering potentially deep discounts to each member of the group.
Training two or three people at the same time in a
small group seems to make good economic sense for both the trainer and the
client.
Zumba and Other Dance Workouts- ZUMBA! requires energy and
enthusiasm from the instructor and the participants, which combines Latin
rhythms with interval-type exercise and resistance training. ZUMBA! and other
dance workouts first appeared on the list of potential trends in 2010 and ranked
no. 31 of 37 potential trends; in 2011, it was ranked no. 24 of a possible 31
choices. In 2012, it jumped to the top 10. Clearly, the popularity of ZUMBA! is
growing with this rapid escalation in popularity.
 Functional
Fitness- Functional fitness is
defined as using strength training to improve
balance, coordination,
force, power, and
endurance to improve someone�s ability to perform activities of daily living.
The exercise programs reflect actual activities someone might do as a function
of their daily living.
Check out the fitness trends for 2012 and in any
case you are not into a routine dedicated to your fitness, its high time you get
enrolled into one.
Note: The 2012 worldwide survey of fitness trends is now in its
sixth year. It assists the health and fitness industry in making critical
programming and business decisions. The results are applicable to all four
sectors of the health fitness industry V
commercial, clinical, corporate, and
community fitness programs. Although no one can accurately predict the future
because of the continued uncertain economy all over the world, this survey helps
to track trends in the field that will assist owners, operators, program
directors, and personal trainers make important business decisions.
-
WF Team
Dated 31 December 2011
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