1. Buck the trend:
(v.) To differ in opinion to most others. To go against the grain, to be an exception to the rule.

At a time when most people seem eager to jump on the latest “fitness band-wagon”, and new workout fads and complex training systems are popping up by the minute, it can be challenging to sort through it all and find out what really is effective versus what is fluff.  It seems ironic that while the mainstream fitness industry is booming, the number of people who are out of shape and suffering from health issues such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and stroke, is still on the rise.  With so much access to health-related information, and so many popular fitness options available, one might think that these problems should be disappearing.  Or maybe this information overload is part of the problem.  Does getting in shape really need to be complicated?

There are a growing number of fitness professionals, including myself, who are gravitating back to the basics rather than following the status quo.  There are many popular fitness trends that need to be challenged.  One should be wary of blindly following the newest fitness fads just because “everyone is doing it”, just as one should be cautious about pursuing an exercise routine simply because “it’s been done that way for years so it must be right.”

Let’s take a quick look at some of the current popular fitness industry trends that may need to be re-evaluated:

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