The Future of Exercise

Exercise is constantly evolving. From exercise trends to different purposes to exercise, to fitness guidelines, there is always something new happening in this area. With new innovations in technology and as more scientific discoveries are made, the world of exercise is likely to continue changing.

The latest of these changes is the Metaverse, a trend that has gained huge popularity very quickly. Businesses and consumers have taken notice of this latest technology and are primed to make the most of this opportunity. The Metaverse is here to affect every part of our lifestyle, not only in exercise. When changes like this occur, people become ready to adapt.

In an ever-growing and changing world, we are going to discuss how this affects exercise and what the future holds for us in the fitness realm. But before we get into the future of exercise, let's recap its history, and how it has developed into what we know today.

The History and Development of Exercise

The concept of exercise, as you may well know, dates back to before we even knew what to call it. Before we began exercising for appearances, health, or as part of a lifestyle, humans were forced to move around simply for survival reasons. As time went on and civilizations were built, the purpose of exercise was to prepare for war.

As humans developed, reasons for exercise went from survival to war, to what is today, a lifestyle. Not only is it a lifestyle, but exercising regularly is also a trend– people are becoming more active again. More gyms are being built and even fitness centers that are specific to certain types of exercises are gaining popularity.

Exercise has developed massively over our history and has always changed with technology and in a way that suited human lifestyle at the time. In the following section, we will discuss what ways exercise is likely to change in the future.

Joining a gym won’t be necessary 

Regardless of the Metaverse, working out at home has been widely popularized due to gyms being temporarily closed as a covid-19 lockdown measure. Due to this, Virtual Fitness has become widely popular in the last couple of years, and of those that have converted, many have come to realize that maybe going to the gym isn’t even necessary. A survey from Mindbody found that after gyms reopened in the US, 60% of usual gym-goers have not returned and have stuck to virtual exercise.

This is not to say that gyms will die out, there are still many who go to the gym or take classes at gyms. This is however an indication that many customers are unsatisfied with the current model and some changes may need to be put in place. Businesses have noticed this, and many have begun to adopt the hybrid model. It incorporates virtual fitness into its offering, allowing customers to join classes physically at the gym or attend at home through a video call or an app. A WSJ article has also theorized that hybrid models are the future of exercise.

Personal trainers will be online 

Online personal training is nothing new, however, it has become popularized post-pandemic. When gyms closed, people had to adapt and get their training advice online. The advantage of working with your trainer online is that it is more convenient. Gone are the issues of having to go to the gym, the commute, and scheduling. By working out at home, you can exercise anytime. The ease and convenience of it are likely to make more and more customers prefer this way of training.

Other than personal trainers that you can hire to train you virtually, there are also a plethora of YouTube channels that you can use for advice or follow along. Today, there are so many types of exercises and training styles available for free online that also deliver results. Some of these channels get huge followings and millions of views on their videos. FitnessBlender for example, has over 6 million subscribers. They offer workout videos that viewers can follow along with and even recipes for healthy meals.

With all of this being online, you can easily have access to the best trainer that suits your body and your goals and learn the proper way to work out. All of this is without the obstacles of location, commute, or schedule. The technology surrounding an online personal trainer is bound to continue to develop, and we are excited for the next step in this evolution.

Enter competitions from anywhere

The problem with competitions that are open to anyone, is the location. Anyone wishing to join the competition or event will have to travel to the location where it is being held. But this doesn’t have to be a problem anymore, because today it is possible to organize a competition or event virtually. Participants can enter from anywhere in the world without any border restrictions. Currently, there are virtual tournaments, both small and large, for you to take part in fun challenges throughout the year. For those who don't want to spend money on participating in big tournaments, you can even organize competitions with your friends or within your community through certain applications for free.

Whether it's a virtual event or an application that allows you to enter challenges with your friends, these exercises tend to be related to running or cycling– something where distance or time can be measured. But in the future, when the Metaverse is fully functioning, it is inevitable that more exercises will become available for you to compete or work out virtually with your friends.

Exercising for health and financial investments

Before, the only people that would really make money from exercising were professionals such as pro athletes or trainers. But today, the opportunities to make money by exercising have grown. With blockchain technology and the growth in use cases of cryptocurrencies, the concept of "Exercise to Earn" is born. With Exercise to Earn, you can submit activity results that you have tracked on your smart watch or application, and earn cryptocurrency. These coins can be kept as a long term investment or traded to make a profit.

The good thing about this is that if you exercise regularly anyway, you would be passively making an income on the side by doing something you enjoy. On top of this, you will have even more motivation to stay active. Exercising to earn is definitely something to keep an eye on in the future.

Conclusion

Most of the concepts covered in this article are things that have already begun happening and have the potential to become mainstream in the future. In any case, the future is always uncertain and therefore you may want to stay up to date with the latest trends in exercise as well as new ideas that surface in order to adapt quickly, make the most out of these new opportunities, and stay inspired to work out.