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6 hot health trends for 2016

woman lifting weights fitness trends to stay by Healthista

What are the big health trends for 2016? We’re predicting vegganism, online workouts, fitness rewards and BCAAs

 

Go ‘Veggan’: Vegan with eggs

salad with eggs, fitness trens of 2016 by Healthista

In the past year we’ve seen an increasing number of vegan hybrids from Flexivegans, who eat animal-free part time, to Pegans who flit between paleo and vegan and raw-till-four tribe, who follow a raw food diet until 4pm.  But 2015 also saw a huge wave in protein-aholics, those obsessed with protein shakes and bars and chicken breast. So how do you combine veganism with an increase in protein? Enter “veggan”. That’s the trend for vegans eating eggs if they know that they’re cruelty-free. ‘I like the philosophy and health benefits of veganism, but I like to add extra protein, so I choose organic free-range eggs, I see lots of people choosing this route,’ nutritionist Rick Hay tells the Telegraph.

 

Get fit at home: The online workout

online workouts fitness trends to stay in 2016 by Healthista

The rise of the online workout is increasing in the digital, with work and family commitments making it even harder to get to the gym in the dark and rainy January months we welcome the trend. From online yoga to fitness apps, here are our favourites:

Yoogaia.com: is the only live and on demand yoga platform that allows users to join a live yoga class for the comfort of their own home. With hundreds of classes available on demand at all times and live classes on throughout the day you will never need to worry about getting to your yoga class again. Yoogaia is £14.99 for a month, you can also try seven days free.

Body.Network: is an online streaming service for personal fitness training with an aim to be the ’Netflix for Fitness’. Body.Network offers classes from the world’s best trainers, including those known for training celebrities such as Amanda Holden and Naomi Campbell and teaching with organisations such as The Third Space and Yogasphere. Body.Network is £15 a month or £3 a class.

Barre Virtual: Offers online classes for only £4 per view which are available to watch and follow for 48 hours. Barre Virtual’s classes are designed to get you toned and in shape in a fun and new way. 2016 launches the brand new PRIVATEbarre class which enable users to have one-to-one sessions with the trainers to help you achieve optimum results. The hour long sessions will allow you to interact with your instructors privately from your own home.

netWOD: Meaning net Workout Of the Day, netWOD offers a live work out and personal training service via a monthly subscription. HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), Body Weight and Kettle Bell are examples of the classes that they offer. netWOD offer the options to workout live or via a recording. Monthly subscriptions are from £11 per month (for a 12 month contract) or £19 for a one off month.

Rewards for running: Earth Miles

young fitness woman runner running on trail

 

We are already obsessed with getting our air miles but now there is a way to get fit and get rewards. The new Earth Miles app available free from itunes links to your fitness device such as FitBit, Runkeeper, MapMyFitness and more to give you points depending on how active and healthy you are. You get points for the distance you cover whilst walking, running or even biking which are converted into ‘Earthmiles’. These points add up to reward you with treats and vouchers from leading stores such as GAP, House of Fraser, Boots, River Island, Tesco and more.

 

Protein shakes out, BCAAs in

protein shakes fitness trends to stay by Healthista

Protein powders were a staple part of many gym goers’ diets in 2015, with more and more fitness enthusiasts opting for a protein shake over a smoothie. 2016 is set to see more advanced supplements, such as (BCAAs) taking over.

BCAAs, known as Branch Chain Amino Acids, are becoming one of the most used supplements in sports nutrition. They can be taken on their own or can be found in most good whey protein shakes. BCAAs are made from three essential amino acids called leucine, isoleucine and valine.

But what do they actually do? ‘Branched chain amino acids stimulate protein synthesis whilst helping with the breakdown of protein,’ says trainer Matt Hodges, founder of The MPH Method. ‘Basically BCAAs are used to help stop catabolism’ (the breakdown of muscle tissue during exercise) as they act as an energy source, Hodges states.

So who should be taking them? ‘They are especially effective for people who go for long periods without eating, have low protein diets, do fasted training or train and forget to eat afterwards,’ advises Hodges.

Choose: MYPROTEIN’s Berry Blast flavour of BCAAs £13.29. Mix two small scoops (around five to ten grams) with water pre or post workout. MYPROTEIN’s BCAA’s taste like a slightly bitter blackcurrant drink.

 Spin gets spiritual: Soul Cycle

couple spinning on a bike, fitness trends for 2016 by Healthista.comA brand new trend that involves a group of people cycling in a darkly lit room with only lit candles for light is the latest craze for our fitness diaries. Celebrities including Michelle Obama are already fans of the workout and regular attendees at SoulCycle in Washington.

SoulCycle is indoor cycling re-invented, the class is 45 minutes long and is said to completely transform the way you feel not just the way you look. Like most spin classes it is great for burning fat and has even added a weight workout to give your arms and core a workout too, but you also get motivation mantras and an atmosphere like no other. Although SoulCycle isn’t yet launched in the UK, there are rumours it’s coming.

Psycle in London is well on it’s way of catching the trend, with a similarly dark room, clip in spin bikes and hand weights all it is short of are the candle lights, and plenty of motivational mantras to get your brain in line with your body.

MORE: Read our Pyscle review now

Lifting heavy (it WON’T make us manly)

woman lifting weights fitness trends to stay by Healthista

Why are we still questioning that lifting weights will make us look manly? After going from 20 kg squats to 60 kg squats and only getting slimmer I am a firm believer that lifting heavy is here to stay. Both myself and Healthista editor Anna Magee are heavy lifters in the gym (and we’re both a size six!).

fitness model posing, fitness trends in 2016 by Healthista
Blogger: Zanna Van Dijik

‘Weight lifting is so important for supporting your muscles, bones and joints as well as being a very self-aspiring and motivating form of training, explains Zanna Van Dijk, personal trainer and fitness blogger. ‘It has become a stereotype that women do cardio and men do weight training.’ But why are women so scared of lifting heavy weights? ‘Women are scared of getting bulky, but we are not built that way, if it was that easy (to gain muscle and get bulky) I would be huge as I have been lifting weights for three years now, but I am still the size of an average woman’, says Dijik. Lifting will help build lean muscle and that increases metabolism so you burn more calories at rest. Ha! That got your attention.

 

And what we’re leaving behind in 2015…

 

Bone Broth


bone broth, health trends of 2016 by Healthista.com

Bone broth has been a controversial topic over the last year, traditionally made with animal bones and stock. The bones are typically roasted first to improve the flavour then simmered for a period of time normally between 24 hours and three days.

The steamy hot liquid is said to produce gelatin from collagen-rich joints and to also release minerals from bones many health enthusiasts swear by it as a means to healing the gut. However, with the vegan trend continuously on the rise how beneficial is bone broth really? ‘I think bone broth is a fad, we can’t cure inflammatory diseases with someone that comes from an inflammatory source’, explains nutritionist Rick Hay. ‘People are eating too much meat, 60 per cent of the population are over weight, many suffer with arthritis, high stress levels and depression, do you really think boiling bones will do it?’ says Hay.

So what should we be doing to heal our gut instead? ‘First we need to concentrate on lowering our stress levels then we should follow a non-allergenic, alkalising, plant based way of healing our gut. We don’t have canine teeth so we shouldn’t be ripping bones apart,’ states Hay. ‘I would recommend soothing alkalising foods accompanied with probiotics, digestive enzymes and a soup type diet that is primarily vegetarian based,’ advises Hay.

So how long can we expect to be on this diet for, before we notice changes? ‘It depends how affected your gut flora is, most people see results between two weeks and two months whilst others may not notice results for six months,’ Hay reveals. ‘You can reintroduce foods as the months go on, but the best advice I can give is to tell somebody to eat as close to nature for the region they are in’, Hay says. ‘This would mean avoiding mango in winter for example.’ Hay advises.

Rick Hay’s brand new book: The Anti-Ageing Food and Fitness Plan (£11.99) is available on Amazon.

Bulletproof Coffee

cup of fatty coffee with butter Health trends in 2016 by Healthista

The butter and oil coffee drink popped up on the health scene back in 2014 and has been a subject of very mixed reviews. The bestselling The Bulletproof Diet by Dave Asprey swears by a cup of coffee blended with butter from grass-fed cows. You eat 50 to 70 percent of your daily calories from good fats and vegetables fill out the rest of your diet.

We can’t deny it sounds like a heart attack in a cup but what do the experts think? ‘If you are someone who is stressed or anxious or worried about your weight, having coffee and no solid food until 2pm could send you over edge’ says Rick Hay.

‘The caffeine rush will cause your adrenals to kick in and in my opinion will make it much harder to the body to break down’, says Hay. But does it work at helping us lose weight? ‘Yes, you will lose weight, however you are losing weight via a stress mechanism, your body is running on adrenaline and stress so you are losing weight but on a short term basis,’ states Hay.

What are the consequences to our health in the long term if we follow this diet then? ‘It is not sustainable, if you follow this on a long term basis you will cause problems with your blood sugar levels and you may also lose your menstrual cycle,’ says Hay. ‘Coffee may have a weight loss property however it is much more sensible to follow a low GI (Low-Glycemic Index) diet, Hay advises. ‘If you eat as close to nature as you can and try to move more you will be okay’, Hay reveals.

 

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