Resolve to make 2021 your best year yet with these health and wellness trends.
Health and wellness trends can feel like they move at a mile a minute. Maybe you remember the Jazzercise era, or you’ve tried a juice cleanse or two in your day. Trends aren’t automatically good or bad just because they’re popular, so make sure to consult your doctor before starting a new diet or exercise routine.
The trends of 2021 aren’t about fads or gimmicks. Instead, they encourage a more balanced, considerate, and holistic approach to health.
Here are some up-and-coming health and wellness trends to keep your eye on:
- Cooking with meal kits
- Being cautious of extreme fad diets
- Exercising outdoors and online
- Ethically conscious eating
- Monitoring progress with wearables
- Nourishing the microbiome
- Caring for mental health
Let’s dive into why these health and wellness trends are getting popular and how to jump on board yourself!
Cooking with meal kits
With people spending more time at home and doing a lot more of their own cooking, meal kits experienced a popularity boost in 2020. That trend will likely continue through the rest of the 2020s, with meal kit services forecasted to be worth almost $20 billion by 2027. People love the minimal prep work and the fact that everything is pre-portioned—no more buying an entire bunch of herbs when you only need three leaves for your recipe and letting fresh veggies rot in the fridge. Services like Purple Carrot, HelloFresh, and Daily Harvest focus on healthy, unprocessed ingredients.
Being cautious of extreme fad diets
There have been quite a few food trends through history, some of which are still around today. From expensive and ineffective weight loss pills or powders to fad diets that limit you to a specific group or type of food, it can be easy to buy into hyped-up dietary trends that wind up being more unsustainable than they are healthy. Trends show that today’s consumers are getting savvy and skeptical about fad diets and choosing slow-and-steady natural, balanced diets to meet their health goals.
Exercising outdoors and online
In 2020, many of us chose outdoor and online, at-home workouts out of necessity. Now, we’re coming around to their perks and will keep the trends going in 2021! During the winter, a home gym or winter sports can keep you active (see our exercise tips for cold weather). In the summer, take safety precautions while enjoying outdoor activities like nature walks, biking, and swimming. You can also tap into these free workout apps to keep you on track.
Ethically conscious eating
The consumers of the 2020s are more curious and concerned about where their food comes from than previous generations. The plant-based market has been exploding, driven by concerns about climate change and animal welfare. Oat milk will likely continue its surge, and there are new meatless proteins like Impossible burgers and Beyond sausages coming out all the time. 2021 is bringing the debut of even more, including plant-based steak!
Monitoring progress with wearables
For many people, seeing success in their 2021 wellness plans will be easier than ever with wearables that give us the power to monitor our health and track results for ourselves. Experts forecast the wearable tech market to more than double by 2024, thanks to trackers that do everything from monitor our heart rates to calorie burns to sleep quality.
Nourishing the microbiome
The link between our gut health and immune systems is more apparent than ever, so the 2020s will be about taking care of ourselves and preventing illness from the inside out. A report from ADM says that products containing probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics will likely continue gaining popularity for this reason.
Caring for mental health
Finally, one more insight exposed by the stresses and anxieties of 2020 has been that we all could use a little more self-care and make our minds and emotions a priority. Mental and physical health are intimately connected, so you can give yourself a head start just by getting regular exercise and eating plenty of nourishing, mood-boosting foods. Here are some other tips to improve your mental health in the new year.
As long as you equip yourself with the right knowledge, it can be fun and fulfilling to join in and share the hottest new health and wellness trends! Keep reading our health and wellness blog for more information on maximizing your health and happiness in 2021.
