Pull-ups, the new Pilates and “vagus nerve” tech: here’s what will be hot both in and out of the gym this year.
After the festive slump, now is the perfect time to get fit. But what to do? We’ve rounded up the best of the new trends both in – and out – of the gym. Ready, set, sweat!
1. The new gym brag? Pull-ups
Forget how heavy a weight you can squat, the latest gym brag is how many pull-ups you can do. And as they are one of the most challenging bodyweight exercises, doing even one is something to show off about.
“Being able to do a pull-up has become a popular fitness benchmark because they require minimal equipment and the perfect combination of strength and body control,” says personal trainer Gareth Thoo. And it’s worth more than Instagram likes too. “It’s an excellent test of upper-body strength and engages multiple muscle groups, including the lats, biceps, shoulders and thecore,” Thoo says.
Where to start? First, it’s crucial to build up your upper-body strength, so focus on exercises that target the back and core, such as lat pull-downs and rows, before building your way to bar work such as “eccentric” pull-ups (lowering yourself down from the chin-over-the-bar position) and hanging knee raises. When you feel confident enough to try a full pull-up, follow Thoo’s steps for perfect form. Start with a shoulder-width or slightly wider grip on the bar with your palms facing forward. Then, from a hanging position with your feet off the floor, pull up your chest towards the bar until your chin clears it, maintaining a tight core to avoid swinging. Finally lower yourself with control to complete the rep. And repeat.
2. Meal prep mania
CRB (chicken, rice, broccoli) seven days a week? Puh-lease! Hitting your macros no longer needs to be bland and boring thanks to a new wave of foodie-focused meal prep companies.
If those don’t take your fancy, follow Dan Churchill on Instagram for inspiration. Churchill, the “performance chef”, is the man behind Chris Hemsworth’s meal plan. Or for a glimpse into meal prepping for the A-listers of LA, look to Brooke Baevsky, aka @chefbae. Her TikTok videos include some celebrity favourite recipes and $5000 supermarket trips for her clients. Yikes.
3. Swap reformer pilates for Gyrotonic
Fed up with Reformer classes? Try the lesser known, but just as good for you, Gyrotonic Method. Developed by the former dancer Juliu Horvath in the 1970s, his method was originally called Yoga for Dancers (who made up most of his early students) and was beneficial for rehabilitation and recovery from injury. The technique uses specific movements and equipment to increase range of movement, stimulate the nervous system and create functional strength. “Exercises are composed of circular and spiralling movements, focusing on spine mobility and joint articulation,” says Elaine Puren, who was the first Gyrotonic teacher in the UK. “These movements address the body as a whole and the equipment can help to support and enhance the body’s natural movement patterns while providing weighted resistance to help correct imbalances.”
Similar to Pilates and yoga, it’s taught in one-to-one sessions or small group classes, and there’s a big focus on co-ordinating movements with breath, helping to improve control and awareness of the body. Sessions use five key pieces of equipment: the archway, leg extension unit, jumping-stretching board, pulley tower and the GyroToner, which helps to improve hip and shoulder articulation.
The focus on alignment and mobility will translate to other forms of training, and between sessions can be practised at home using Gyrokinesis, the equipment-free version of the method.
4. Sweat … but make it snappy
Missed your alarm for the gym this morning? No problem! Lunchtime workouts are back and they’re better than ever. London boxing gym Kobox has introduced Lunchbox to its Marylebone studio, featuring crunched-down, 40-minute technique and form-focused classes. Barrecore has BarreExpress, a 40-minute, sped-up version of its bodyweight, isometric-focused workouts. At King Street Gym, Manchester, meanwhile, classes ranging from strength training to cycling are kept to a 30-minute limit.
5. Callisthenics is a buzzword (again)
Wondering why you keep seeing people attempting one-armed handstands in the gym? It’s because we’ve all gone crazy for callisthenics, a type of strength training that uses your body weight and gravity to improve your strength, co-ordination, flexibility and endurance. Notable fans include Lenny Kravitz – the musician has been seen hanging off gymnastics rings in his jeans on Instagram – and exercises can range from simple press-ups to more complex moves such as the human flag.
With a history going back at least as far as ancient Greece, callisthenics can be done anywhere and without specialised equipment. Some of the exercises look more suited to professional gymnasts than average gym-goers, but you don’t have to be a pro to give it a go. “We have tools like bands to help as well as partnered exercises,” says the callisthenics instructor and personal trainer Andrew Julien. “Community has a huge role to play in callisthenics – it’s all about helping and encouraging each other to achieve movements.”
That said, if you’re new to callisthenics, don’t attempt a one-armed handstand straight away. Julien recommends beginning by mastering dead hangs (hanging from a pull-up bar or rings with an overhand or neutral grip), press-ups and hollow holds, an abdominal exercise in which you lie on your back and lift your legs, shoulders, arms and head off the floor – harder than it sounds. Follow the Instagram accounts @beth_fitnessuk and @calisthenics.bypaulina for tips.
6. Va-va-voom your vagus nerve
Can’t sleep? Feeling anxious? Stimulating your vagus nerve, the longest nerve of the autonomic nervous system, which runs from the brain to the large intestine, could be the answer – or at least the wellness crowd think so. This year will see the rise of vagus nerve-targeted tech. New to the party is the Kineon Calm+ (£275, or around $600). This wearable device is placed on the neck and provides electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve to calm the nervous system, improve gut function and relieve stress. You can sign up now, but it’s not expected to ship until July.
There’s also Sensate (£349), a pebble-shaped pendant that rests on the breastbone and claims to use infrasonic vibrations to stimulate the vagus nerve and de-stress the nervous system within 10 minutes – one to keep on your work desk. Also see Nurosym (£599), an earpiece that delivers targeted electrical impulses to the brain via the vagus nerve to improve everything from brain fog to gut function.
You don’t have to be a big spender, though – a gentle yoga sequence is also claimed to regulate the vagus nerve, and there are lots of exercises to try on TikTok and YouTube.
7. Boxing in a, um, box
The days of legs, bums and tums are long gone – 2025 is all about technology-led boxing, thanks to the new class concept Box12 (box12fitness.com). The 36-minute workout is like a pop-up boxing studio – each person has their own individual station (a bit like a parking space), with a punching bag and a screen with a virtual trainer for instructions, and you can turn up and start training at any time. There are 12 three-minute rounds that mix skill-based techniques and boxing combinations with HIIT drills and skipping. You don’t need to have tried boxing before to have a go: it’s great for anyone who wants to fit in some cardio but can’t stand the thought of running on the treadmill, as well as for those who want to brush up on their boxing skills.
Three personal trainers to watch
1. Aimee Victoria Long
@aimeevictorialong An expert in Pilates and barre, Long has an extensive personal training client list that includes actors such as Bridgerton’s India Amarteifio and members of the royal family. Training plans are bespoke to each client but follow a blend of disciplines including Pilates, barre and strength and conditioning training, in person or online.
2. Warren Whitely
@wozldn Meet the man behind Maya Jama’s training plan – the television presenter follows a programme of resistance training combined with core work and some cardio. Whitely has also trained the actor Daniel Kaluuya, and his new app, Shred with Woz, offers on-demand daily workouts and meal-plan recipes.
3. Ruth Raper
@ringsidewithruth Who do celebrities call when they want to hone their boxing skills? The former Team GB boxer Ruth Raper, whose longtime clients include the pop star Ellie Goulding. Raper is passionate about getting women into the sport, whether that’s participation or spectating, so, as well as boxing drills and essential warm-up routines, her Instagram account offers analysis of all the big matches.
Written by: Roisin Kelly
© The Times of London
