5 fitness trends to watch this year

The best way to be fitter and healthier in 2026, irrespective of what influencers and marketing campaigns try to tell you, will remain a pair of dumbbells, barbell, pull-up bar, pool and a running route. Having said that, we are still going to come across plenty of innovation in the wellness and fitness space in the next 12 months. Here are five trends to watch out for:

AI WILL DESIGN IT FOR YOU

In the coming year, AI will become more embedded in the wellness and fitness world. While it won’t do the workouts and eat for you, it will very much decide all of it for you. If you are among those who turn to apps for your training, it will be AI designing your exercise regimen. Garmin and Strava’s Runna already provide running training using AI coaches that tweak the programme based on performance, effort, intensity and frequency. Even personal trainers are likely to turn to AI to help them design work outs for their client in 2026.

Today, even exercise equipment comes embedded with cameras and an AI coach. While these workout machines are currently limited to high-end gyms, they are likely to become more commonplace as cheaper alternatives come out in the new year. Advancements in AI also means getting nutritional help on an app will become more convenient. Healthify has already launched a voice-enabled Open AI-powered coach that can provide nutrition guidance in real time.

HYROX FEVER WILL SPREAD

Hyrox debuted in India with events in Mumbai and Delhi in mid-2025 as a way of testing waters. That India has an appetite for one of the world’s fastest growing fitness races is evident in the fact that Hyrox will hold its first two-day event in India in Bengaluru, next April. It will also return to Mumbai and Delhi.

While it isn’t surprising to hear fitness fanatics training for Hyrox, which is a very challenging event, no doubt, even fitness enthusiasts are getting serious about signing up. Run club members are switching schedules to train for the race and a lot of gyms are making tweaks to provide Hyrox training owing to rising demand.

WHOOP WILL SEE A DROP IN POPULARITY

Here’s an unpopular opinion: Whoop is set to receive a whopping whooping in the next few years. A wrist-check as much as it is an activity tracker, a user recently told me he that wouldn’t be renewing his subscription of the 24/7 wearable once his current one expires.

“After the initial enthusiasm, I stopped checking my data. As it is I couldn’t make much sense of all that info. I had fun for a bit but I won’t pay again,” he said. Another complained that the device sits on the wrist like a watch but doesn’t even tell the time. “Neither does it look good with what I wear when I go out,” she said. These two aren’t the only ones with such complaints. A lot of Indian cricketers have already stopped sporting it — a sign of things to come. Remember Jawbone and Fitbit? Whoop is going the same way unless they innovate.

GEAR WILL GET SMART

There has been little noteworthy innovation in sports shoes since 2017, when Nike launched carbon plated shoes. After taking a huge hit in its market share and financially, too, the brand is back to innovating, but this time it is not limited to footwear alone. Nike has developed self-inflating coats, skin-cooling T-shirts, shoes that influence your state of mind and a pair of motor-powered running and walking shoes. While the self-inflating coat will be seen as early as February at the Winter Olympics in Italy, the skin cooling tees are likely to be spotted on several sports teams soon. This is going to drive competition to launch similar products, ultimately making them accessible and less expensive.

Another exciting product that we will see a lot of are smart glasses. Yes, they are finally a reality and Ray Ban and Oakley have each launched a few partnerships with Meta. The most basic use of the glasses is to record videos and click pictures. But the Oakley sports glasses can integrate with Garmin and Strava and give you data without having to look at your phone or watch. Watch out for more such glasses as cheaper Chinese versions come into the market in 2026.

WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS WILL BECOME CHEAPER, BETTER

With patents for semaglutide expiring next year, weight loss drugs are set to become a lot more affordable in 2026. They are also set to become better and more efficient as newer versions are close to completing trials. Pills are also on the way, which will increase the reach of these vital drugs in a nation that is home to the second highest number of obese people in the world.

Shrenik Avlani is a writer and editor and the co-author of The Shivfit Way, a book on functional fitness.