by Allison Van Dusen
Like many Americans who sit behind a desk for 40 hours a week, Adrienne Sharp didn't feel healthy.
Working in marketing for the San Diego-based Garden Fresh Restaurant Corp., Sharp didn't belong to a gym, found herself going out to lunch all of the time and hitting happy hours with co-workers. She didn't know how to get fit--until her company began offering health coaching a little over a year ago as part of her benefits package.
After getting steady nutrition and fitness advice over the phone, Sharp is eating better, regularly working out, feeling less stressed out and has lost five pounds. And that pick-me-up coffee she used to crave around 3 p.m. each day? She no longer needs it.
"I had a partner that was there for me and could help me get on a program that worked for me," she says. "I feel like we're really lucky to have this."
Corporate health coaching is just one of several fitness trends expected by industry experts to be big in 2007.
Research has shown that by investing in the service, companies may not only help people lose weight and live healthier lives, but also reduce medical claims, says George DeVries, CEO of Healthyroads. DeVries, whose company provides health coaching for employees of midrange up to Fortune 500 companies, predicts business will double this year.
Restaurants across the country are also expected to start taking into account Americans' obesity problem by serving more low-calorie and reduced-fat foods this year, says Robin Steagall, a registered dietician and nutrition communications manager of the Calorie Control Council in Atlanta. New York City will lead the way, thanks to recently passed legislation phasing out the use of trans fats and requiring calorie information about standard menu items to be posted. With other states considering similar legislation and consumers now on the lookout for trans fats, Steagall predicts large chain restaurants will get ahead of the curve and start displaying more nutritional information.
As people continue to get smarter about their diets, thanks in part to so much health and diet information available on Web sites such as WebMD.com and on television channels such as the Food Network, Steagall predicts "functional light foods" will gain in popularity too. These options promise benefits beyond basic nutrition, such as increasing your metabolic rate, aiding digestion or improving the immune system.
A prime example is Beverage Partners Worldwide's drink, Enviga. Introduced late last year, it contains green tea extracts, calcium and caffeine, and claims to work with the body to increase calorie burning.
"It's multi-tasking food for a multi-tasking culture," Steagall says.
In the world of fitness, more people, especially men, are continuing to discover mind and body exercises such as yoga. But some fitness industry experts say gyrotonic techniques that get the whole body moving may be the big trend in 2007. While yoga is a series of held postures, gyrotonic moves get the body working in circular patterns, while strengthening and stretching the muscles.
"You're going to feel a lot more energy because it's working your whole body," says Jennifer McCasland Daly, studio owner and master trainer for the New York gym Kinespirit, which offers gyrotonic training using a weight and pulley system.
Another technique getting buzz is the Fluidity Bar, created by founder and CEO of Fluidity Fitness, Michelle Austin. A reinvention of the classic wall-mounted ballet bar that's height-adjustable and portable, it gets people using movement by the whole body to develop muscle balance--much like a dancer.
Of course, as in years past, none of these products, exercises or services offer the elusive magic bullet consumers look for to turn around their health. In order to have any impact on the recent dramatic increase in obesity, people will have to use them to make changes in their lifestyles.
"You don't have to make drastic change," Steagall says. "Increase your physical activity, lower your calories. That's what's going to work for you over time."
