Every year the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) brings out a report that predicts the top trends in the health and fitness industry. They survey lots of fitness professionals from around the world to gather their data. This survey is now in its 7th year.
It would be very boring just to simply regurgitate their findings so what I thought I would do is pick some of the top ten and then shed my opinion on how I think these will help you.
Now it might be quite clear to those of you reading this who are currently a fitness and health professional but for the exerciser or fitness enthusiast it can be very unclear and confusing.
Before I go too much further , some of you may be reading this not knowing me and thinking who is this guy to be predicting how the fitness industry can help me in 2013. So let me ease you a little.
In January 2012 I opened a bespoke personal training studio that offers both 1-1 coaching and semi private or shared personal training.
This combined with the writing of my first e-book, The Equestrian Athlete Plan helped me to win The UK’s Most Innovative Fitness Entrepreneur 2012 as voted for by my peers.
Then in September 2012 I co-authored an International Best Selling Book, The Fad Free Fitness Formula.
Now that’s all great, but it wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for the systems I have built up over the last four and ¼ years to get results like these.
And…..these would not have been possible had I not invested in my education during that time, which now is in excess of £20000. A lot of money, but trust me its worth it when you see the happiness it creates day in day out and the emails I get each week from people across the world doing my programmes.
So with that said and done, you know I am not some joker who plays in this game. Its for real, I am about results, unbelievable experience and empowerment.
The expression “What goes around comes back around” is certainly true in the fitness industry, if you look at many of the old fitness books form post world war 1 you will see lots of body weight, free weight (dumbells and barbells) and rope climbing.
Right now, people are looking for options that they can do at home, in an environment away from the gym and at times that fit in with work and family life.
For this reason bodyweight training has really taken a major leap up the ACSM findings. This year is the first year in the surveys history that it has been in the top 10. I have witnessed the value of this first hand at my Blast Fitness Camps this year, recently we have added more resistance band training to take this to the next level, but the conditioning levels that this creates with just the human body as a tool , the best tool you have by the way so look after it, is truly brilliant.
The one that came in at number 1, is the education of fitness professionals. This is crucial, as the fitness industry is rapidly growing, more and more people enter it each year. We need to keep the standards high. I have always prided myself on investing in my education and passing this to my clients. One thing that does concern me though is the education system can be a bit behind the times, so for new fitness professionals trying to find courses that actually deliver great , useful content rather than just jumping through loop holes is something they need to be aware of. My other concern is that as more people try to get into the fitness industry courses will pop up everywhere, with people running them who don’t really know what they are talking about and expectations lowered, allowing the less committed to be “qualified”!!
All I am saying to budding fitness professionals is choose your education wisely from people who deliver results not points or boy scout badges and if you think you are going to run a course you better be delivering great results yourself.
So jumping 10 places to number 10 was Group Personal Training sometimes labelled Semi Private as we do at FA Fitness. This I believe will be the biggest benefit to the consumer in 2013. Why? Because if the trainer has the right skills set, you can get the same results as 1-1 training but you get to share the experience and importantly cost with a training partner or buddy. I have been doing this in 2012 and there really is a great atmosphere and sense of accountability about the programmes. It is particularly useful for those who would liked to have had personal trainer but because of the current economic climate that just wasn’t possible. Allowing them to train in a coached environment that pushes them and encourages them and provides the progression needed to bust through platueaus.
Now I wont bore you with all of them but in at number 2 was strength training. This was in exactly the same place last year. I recently wrote an article about the benefits of strength training for both men and women which detailed how simple this can be but how overwhelmingly important it is in disease and injury prevention. I have seen clients of mine at the studio this year complete personal bests in marathons, half marathons and triathlons and represent national teams. I myself ran a half marathon in June and September, using a reduced volume running programme and strength and conditioning programme that involved 4 times as many strength sessions as running sessions. I knocked 3 minutes off of my time in the second half marathon and ran 8 times in the last 4 weeks and put on 6Lbs of muscle whilst doing it. Now this is not a world beating time, but it does illustrate that not only for health, but also in performance. I see strength as this biggest missing component of most peoples programmes and I feel that the coach who has a good understanding of the principles of strength and conditioning being the most successful in 2013.
So with these findings in mind I thought I should make a few educated predictions.
I predict that if your goal, your “why” as we call it in my company is big enough you will not need to write down your new years resolutions in order to stick to them.
I predict that you will be far happier, if you write down the top 50 things that make you happy and try to make them happen more often than not!
Seriously powerful, I learnt it from my mentor Dax Moy.
I predict that if you focus more on the things that you engage in day in day out then you will be happy.
I also predict that the sky will not always be blue and from time to time things may slip off the rails a little. That’s life, but knowing where you want to end up will help you get back on the wagon much quicker than if you just meander through 2013.
I predict that if you are respectful of your health, your health will be good to you. Do not take it for granted. Treat your body with respect, educate yourself on what is good for you.
I predict that if you stick to some firm scientific and applied principles you will be far more successful than the people who just chase the lastest fad.
I predict that the opinions and doubts of the people around you will determine how successful you are. If you “hang around” with negative people, if you let them into your life, be ware, they will sap your energy beyond belief.
So in a time that there seems to be so much doom and gloom in the media, there actually seems to be an awful lot you can do about how you look, feel and perform day to day.
To your health, fitness , happiness and success in 2013.
Your friend and coach,
Matt Luxton
p.s. If you want to view the full findings of the report then please head to this LINK
Matt Luxton, also known as ‘The Functional Training Specialist’, is a health and fitness expert that is regularly sought after by his communities both in his home region in the South West of the United Kingdom and online for his systems that really work when it comes to health, fitness and fat loss. Matt is the founder of Functionally Aware Fitness Personal Training Studios, creator of the Hot to Trot Nutritional Plan and author of The Equestrian Athlete Plan and Hot to Trot Cookbook. Matt has also written articles for his readers through paper and magazine articles. He is known for his holistic approach to health that places his clientele’s long-term wellbeing as paramount with fitness and fat loss a natural occurrence through his training systems.
Matt founded FA Fitness Personal Training back in 2008 and since then has gone on to create the Blast Fat Loss Formula. This has manifested itself in the Blast At Home Fitness Camp, a 28 Day Online program that empowers clients to make health based decisions for the rest of their lives without needing a gym membership.
The forthcoming book will feature top advice from health, fitness and wellness experts from across the globe on the subjects of total body health, fitness and nutrition. The Fad Free Fitness Formula: The World’s Leading Fitness Professionals Reveal Fad Free, Tried and True Strategies to Become Lean, Fit and Healthy will feature topics such as setting up a training system, the best exercise for fat loss, reducing stress, aging and training myths, fitness as a form of health care, interval training and helping entrepreneurs fit fitness into their work day, among others. The book was an amazon best seller in 3 different categories.
To learn more about Matt Luxton, visit http://www.fa-fitness.co.uk/
