FITNESS experts reveal the fitness trends to watch. According to a recent study at the American College of Sports Medicine, the workouts we’ll be huffing and puffing away to in 2011 are a move away from calming, relaxing routines such as Pilates and balance training.

Instead, we’ll be sweating and swearing outdoors at boot camps, pumping iron and even, returning to the fad of 97, spinning.

According to the lead researcher Walt Thompson, people are going "back to basics" with more regimented exercise programs as opposed to ones that require specialized instruction such as Pilates.

“There’s a move towards group-style training,” agrees Michael Cunico, Fitness Manager for Fitness First Gyms.

“It’s a reflection of our addiction to social networking to want to exercise with our friends. We’re so busy these days, that for time-poor people, a session with friends is a good excuse to catch up.

Plus, group sessions with a personal trainer makes it much cheaper,” he says.

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The new military fitness workout

Outdoor training sessions have been growing in popularity during the past few years, but are set to soar in 2011.

"Outdoor training is a fantastic motivator and you get more out of the sessions than if you were doing a similar routine yourself,” says Cunico. Fitness First are introducing an outdoor training programme for groups of no more than 15 people per instructor.

“It’s great for those who don’t want an military-style workout, but still want the results you get from a regular outdoor workout which uses your body to exercise, rather than static gym equipment,” he says.

These are a combination of cardio and strength-training using equipment such as suspension cables, boxing, medicine balls and resistance bands.

“Without equipment it’s hard to train your body, so using just a few pieces makes a difference,” says Cunico.

“The idea is to build up fitness levels and increase participants strength and motivation, rather than exhaust them in their first session.”

>> further info: A 12-week session costs from $15 per session. call Fitness First on 1300 55 77 99 to find a class in your area.

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If you’re tired of your Pilates floor work or machine-based classes, then check out a new type of session combining the expediacy of a Power plate machine with Pilates exercises.

“by using the Power plate machine to ‘fire’ the muscles more effectively and in a shorter time frame, it assists the user to tone and target core and other specific muscles quicker,” says Catherine Giannitto, director of Polestar Pilates.

While Power plate classes are already popular, Giannitto believes that this marriage of the two workouts will be extremely popular with time-poor clients as sessions are only 30mins.

“this will be the most time-efficient, and physically-efficient way of working out,” she says.

“The intensity of your workout is magnified and your metabolic rate is increased as one of the many benefits of the vibrational frequency of the plate.”

>> further information: Classes will be rolled out nationwide next year. call 1300 411 495.

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Virgin Active Health Clubs

Recognising that people are time-poor, as well as its 30-minute Express classes Virgin Active will be introducing ‘fusion classes’, which combine at least two forms of exercise to ensure that your 50 minute burn works out your entire body.

“We’re introducing yoga, combined with a cycling class to give a more well-rounded, and holistic approach to exercise,” says Christian Mason, National Operations Manager for Virgin Active.

Other fusion classes include a combination of Power plate with boxing, “to work the upper and lower body” and a boxing and cycling combination.

And keep your eye out for the new kid on the block: FreeFORM. You stand on a disc the size of a flattened soccer ball, which is balanced on wheels (similar to those on rollerblades), and perform the exercises led by an instructor.

“The freeform allows you to twist, squat, lunge, using your body weight to perform the movement,” says Mason.

eveloped by a yoga and martial arts practitioner, the focus is on strengthening the body with little stress on the joints.

>> further information: to find a Virgin Active Health Club near you call 1300 975 688.

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Want to bend it like Beckham or get a glow like Giaan? If you’ve exhausted your WiiFit with your current workouts, then there’s a new personal training programme, EA Sports Active 2, which promises to provide customisable workouts for users.

Using arm and leg straps, which have built in motion sensors and heart rate monitor, you can keep track of calories burned and how much harder you need to workout. choose from more than 70 workouts, including aerobics or mountain biking and choose how hard (or not) you want to work.

>> further information: RRP$149 from all leading retailers.

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What the Celeb trainers say

James Duigan, personal trainer to Elle MacPherson and author of The Clean and Lean Diet (Simon & Schuster. The Australian RRP is $27.99). “Pilates has gone out of fashion and there has been a shift toward getting the body moving and sweating. We’ve been working with actors getting them in shape for action movies, using Brazilian jiu jitsu and boxing drills to give the guys and girls that "don’t mess with me body".