Approaching the start of a new year is always exciting. A new year brings a fresh sense of purpose, goals, and probably some cute new workout gear. We’re ready to say goodbye to 2024 and hello to these exciting trends that just might help us be fitter, healthier, more balanced, and, dare I say–hot.
Sleep Maxxing
Getting more and better sleep has been a focus for the past few years. We’ve been cutting our caffeine and booze intake, sipping Sleepy Girl Mocktails, keeping our bedrooms at the perfect temperature, making our sleep environment more conducive to rest, and trimming down our exposure to tech and blue light to help us fall asleep faster.
If you’ve made all of these adjustments and tweaks and are still struggling to get optimal sleep, take note because 2025 will be the year we take our rest to the next level. New sleep systems from Eight Sleep and others promise better, longer sleep without you or your partner snoring (hallelujah!) and automatically adjustable settings that promise at least an extra hour of sleep. The best part? You don’t need to invest in a new mattress, and you can leave your phone outside the bedroom and wake up to gentle vibrations instead.
Eight Sleep
Self-Care Gets Social
Taking a relaxing bath (or even a cold plunge) solo is so last year. The latest way to unwind and recharge is to do it in a social setting. Clubs like Remedy Place and Love.Life encourage individuals to engage in self-care practices like chilling in a cold plunge tub or sweating it out in an infrared sauna with like-minded people around them. It’s like a gym, but instead of doing cardio, you might get an Niagen drip (to speed recovery) followed by a session in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber. Other social wellness sanctuaries include the ultra exclusive Continuum and Othership.
Ice Barrel
Exosomes
In case you’re not familiar with the term, exosomes are extracellular vesicles that are derived from stem cells. They contain growth factors that communicate with cells in the body to stimulate healing and regeneration. Exosomes are used to target specific areas where you want to see rejuvenation and can be used on the skin, scalp, joints, and other targeted areas.
At medispas, exosomes are being used in conjunction with microneedling. The small cuts in the skin that are created during microneedling allow the exosomes to penetrate the skin more deeply to improve skin tone and elasticity and help reduce the appearance of scars. They can also be used to promote hair growth and accelerate recovery after surgical cosmetic procedures.
For home use, you can find a range of products powered by exosomes, such as face serums, creams, and sheet masks.
Big Hair Is Back
If you grew up in the 90s when BIG, sexy, voluminous hair ruled, get excited because it’s coming back, baby! Think Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, and Karen Mulder.
Amelia Drummond, Director of Hair, Sun & Strategic Initiatives at Bluemercury, shared the secrets to achieving the trending look at home. She suggests starting with a good root booster, then styling with the combination of a heated blow-dry brush (the new ones are much more gentle on hair), texturizing spray, and lightweight hair spray to hold the look. Viva la volume!
T3
Betting on Blue
Also reminiscent of the late 80s and early 90s, blue eyeshadow, mascara, and eyeliner will be resurfacing everywhere next year. Back in the 90s, celebrities from Reese Witherspoon, Princess Diana, and Madonna to iconic models like Kate Moss and Linda Evangelista sported the trend with matte skin.
The 2025 blue eye will be softer than previous iterations and paired with glowy skin. The range of cerulean hues will run the gamut from vibrant to more muted denim shades. Feel like you can’t pull it off? Not so, says Lauren Marzoli, Director of Merchant Luxury and Core Skincare at Bluemercury, noting that the right shade of blue can look fabulous on any eye color or skin tone.
Innovative Ways to Recover Post Workout
It used to be that if you did a long run or had an intense strength training sesh, you also signed up for at least three days of pain afterward. But in 2025, new products will help us recover and reduce pain-causing inflammation faster than ever. You’ll see shoes that help your feet relax while providing support and stimulation with raised nodes in the footbed. Look for gummies, drinks, and other products to help dial down inflammation and get you back on track faster than a deep tissue massage.
AI Enters Fitness in a Big Way
If you’ve integrated artificial intelligence into your work and home life, you’ll be excited about AI innovations in fitness. From a workout system from Tonal with an AI-integrated trainer that can spot you to tools like Whoop and Oura that enhance real-time data use to highly personalized at-home fitness, we’ll see numerous AI applications get fitter and stronger. And, apps that you may already be using, like MyFitnessPal, will continue to help maximize nutrition on recovery days by suggesting nutrient-rich foods like berries, salmon, flax, and chia seeds to help you get those all-important antioxidants to support post-workout recovery.
Fitness, But Make It Fun
If you’re a Peloton fan, you may have tried out their recent Lanebreak feature, which helps turn your cycling session into a video game experience. Elisetter Carlson, founder of SMACK Media, says that we’ll see more gamification of fitness in 2025. Video games like Supernatural from Meta and FitXR create adaptive challenges to help keep fitness enthusiasts coming back for more. Look for platforms that offer more badges, themes, and challenges to keep us motivated.
Protein on Protein
If 2024 was the year that people got serious about getting enough protein, then 2025 is poised to be the year that store shelves are stocked with products that make it easier to get that elusive 100 grams per day. Foods that we usually consider to be great protein sources are already getting boosted, from almonds enrobed with pea protein powder and chocolate (7g per ¼ cup) at your local CVS to 20-gram Greek yogurts from Chobani and Oikos Pro. Look for a protein drink from Chobani in early 2025 with a whopping 30 grams of protein per serving.
In addition to everyday athletes who want to hit their protein goals to get those gains, eating a high-protein diet has become more of a focus for women going into perimenopause, as well as people taking GLP-1 medications like Wegovy. Due to the appetite-minimizing effects of these drugs, people who are taking them need to pack as many nutrients as possible into each meal as they eat less food overall. Product lines from Vital Pursuit and Daily Harvest aim to help consumers on weight loss medications get the nutrients they need.
Sustainable Food Dupes
With coffee beans facing the effects of climate change and deforestation, a slew of startups are making coffee-like brews without the beans. One brand, Sip Herbals, uses chicory and dandelion root, plus coconut sugar, ground vanilla bean, and sea salt, to create its Faux Joe product. This particular product is caffeine-free, but others, like Atomo and Voyage, create beanless blends that include a kick of caffeine from green tea.
And for those with the finer tastes in life, like caviar, you can relish the flavor and texture of fish eggs while knowing you’re not contributing to the overfishing and poaching of sturgeon. Caviart makes “caviar-style” seaweed pearls that can be enjoyed just like traditional sturgeon eggs, with creme fraiche on blini. The seaweed is harvested from the coast of France and is formed into certified vegan and kosher pearls in a special generator.
Read the full article here