On the hunt for something new to add the fun back into your fitness routine? As part of their second annual Fitness Report, PureGym has again revealed the workout trends set to take the year by storm, with wall Pilates leading the way as the workout we should all be trying in 2024.
By analysing the current number of monthly Google searches for over 175 different fitness trends versus the same period one year ago, PureGym has detailed which are seeing the biggest spikes in interest as we head into 2024.
Wall Pilates takes the top spot as the fitness trend that has seen the greatest increase in interest as we reach the close of 2023, with a huge 4,461% increase in interest year-on-year. With other forms of Pilates such as reformer also seeing surges in popularity over recent years, and Pilates as a whole becoming a favourite amongst content creators on TikTok, it’s clear that Pilates is having a moment in the fitness world.
Macallum Livock, personal trainer at PureGym Leeds shared their thoughts on the workout, as well as some tips for any beginners looking to take up the big trend: “Wall Pilates is very similar to the standard Pilates workouts that we may be familiar with – though with the addition of a wall to provide both stability and resistance to the movements. Doing so can help to put greater focus on certain muscle groups during each movement and give a greater challenge to anyone who wants to go a level up from the basic Pilates moves. However, wall Pilates is also great for beginners, as the wall will provide stability and enable them to build up confidence with the movements, while being more supported than with bodyweight alone. For anyone looking to start wall Pilates, it’s always best to begin with the basics, so wall-assisted glute bridges and wall sits would be good exercises to ease yourself into this new way of working out.”
With another steep increase in interest, Tarzan movement ranked as the second fastest-growing fitness trend, thanks to a 529% surge in popularity towards the end of 2023. Also known as ‘primal movement’, the trend which has been spearheaded by Victor Manuel Fleites encourages people to embrace their ‘inner ape’, by heading into the outdoors to walk on all fours and climb trees, among other movements. If this seems a little out there, there are plenty of animal based movements like bear walks that you can incorporate into your gym routine to improve functional fitness and mobility.
Elsewhere, the top 20 suggests that we’re actively looking for more efficient ways to exercise and make improvements in our fitness, with trends such as HIIT (+83% increase in interest), micro meditation (+50%) and exercise snacking (+190%) all proving popular. Based on the method of structuring exercise into short 5-minute bouts, repeated twice a day, ‘exercise snacking’ is an easy way for anyone to exercise more – with the movements easy to complete for all abilities, without the need for a warm-up.
The 20 Fitness Trends With The Highest Growth In Interest For 2024
Rank | Trend | % Increase (Jul-Sept 2022 vs. Jul-Sept 2023) |
1 | Wall Pilates | +4,461% |
2 | Tarzan movement | +529% |
3 | Pvolve | +512% |
4 | Hyrox | +233% |
5 | Exercise snacking | +190% |
6 | Cycle syncing | +124% |
7 | Wrestling class | +90% |
8 | 75 soft | +83% |
9 | HIIT | +83% |
10 | 75 hard | +82% |
Similarly to PureGym’s findings last year, the popularity of Hyrox workouts is going nowhere fast, with the fitness race-style workout maintaining a position in the top five once again and seeing another impressive increase in interest year on year (+233%). Other workouts such as 75 soft (+83%) and rock climbing (+50%) also continue to show good growth.
However, for every new trend that rises to the top, an old trend falls out of favour and confirms its place as a ‘fitness fad’. Though weighted hula hooping topped the charts as the biggest trend for 2023, this was short-lived with the trend seeing a 55% decrease in interest over the past 12 months. The tide has also turned on stroller fitness (-19%), despite the trend ranking in the top 10 trends previously in 2021 and 2022.
Outside of this, forehead workouts (-64%) are the biggest loser overall, with evening workouts (-47%) and punk rope (-35%) also making it into the top four trends with the greatest decrease in interest year-on-year.
The 10 Fitness Trends On Their Way Out For 2024
Rank | Trend | % Decrease (Jul-Sept 2022 vs. Jul-Sept 2023) |
1 | Forehead workout | -64% |
2 | Weighted hula hoop | -55% |
3 | Evening workouts | -47% |
4 | Punk rope | -35% |
5 | VR fitness games | -33% |
6 | Eye yoga | -19% |
7 | Backwards running | -19% |
8 | Stroller fitness | -19% |
9 | Virtual fitness classes | -19% |
10 | Functional fitness training | -19% |
Stephen Rowe, Chief Marketing Officer at PureGym commented: “This is the third year that we’ve taken a deep dive into fitness trends, and it continues to be interesting to see which trends are short lived fads, in comparison to those that stand the test of time.
Our Fitness Report highlighted that for 1 in 5 people who don’t exercise, it’s because they dislike exercise. Trends, even short-lived ones, can help people find something they love. Trying something new and having fun can keep us all motivated and help build that all-important long-term exercise habit.”
For the full fitness report, which alongside more information on 2024’s emerging fitness trends, includes insights around people’s current attitudes towards health and fitness, as well as up-to-date gym usage statistics, visit: https://www.puregym.com/blog/uk-fitness-report-gym-statistics/