Goodbye (and good riddance) to 2021.
2022 is here, and I think I speak for all of us when I say we are so ready for a new year, and what will – hopefully – be the beginning of the end of the whole Covid-19 saga – and the pandemic restrictions we have been living with for close to two years now.
That said – having lived through a global pandemic has no doubt made many of us rethink what health means – and how we can all live in a way that is not only healthier for ourselves and our own bodies, but also in a way that promotes health for the planet we live on.
And with that – here are three wellness trends experts think will continue to grow – and end up defining – this new year we have just entered into.
Mocktails and alcohol-free living
It seems despite reports dinking at home increased during the pandemic (with pubs and bars closed in many countries around the world), many are eager to re-think their relationship with alcohol and how we interact with it.
According to a Nielsen report, non-alcoholic beverages sales increased by 33 percent in the last year alone. And with more of us seeking out alcoholic alternatives that provide a fun social drinking experience without the buzz, hangover or addictive tendencies, more non-alcoholic products are hitting the marketplace to fill this void.
As well as that, Pinterest is bursting with utterly delicious ‘mocktail’ recipes you can test out, and honestly – count us in. Refreshing, Instagrammable ‘cocktails’ without the hangover? We are in.
Walking
During those first, long lockdown days of 2020, many of us took up walking – simply to get out of the house, and literally keep our sanity intact.
However, even when lockdowns ended, many of us kept up our newfound habit of going for daily walks. Heck – Vogue even talked of the phenomenon of the “silly little walk,” describing it as “a solo outdoor stroll taken with no real purpose, no direction or tacked-on errand; just a vague desire to be out among the living again after a year of isolation.”
Walking, it seems, is in Vogue, and for good reason. It keeps us fit, makes sure we get fresh air, and can even help connect us with our neighbourhoods and communities.
“Walking is the most popular physical activity in the world, and one of the healthiest things we can do for our bodies,” Apple’s senior director of fitness technologies Jay Blahnik, told Vogue.
“Even throughout this challenging period of time, one activity that has remained available to many is walking.”
Mindful, plant-based eating
Plant-based eating has been on the rise for the last few years now, and the trend isn’t going anywhere in 2022.
More and more of us are realising just the difference eating plant-based makes to our overall health and feeling of wellness, and knowing how eating this way is not only kinder to animals, but also our planet too, well, it makes it an easy choice.
As well as those ditching meat full-time, there is a growing amount of people who define themselves as ‘flexitarians’ and ‘reducetarians’ and one thing they both have in common is: eating fewer animal products.
As a result, the plant-based market is continuing to boom, and it’s becoming increasingly easy to find worthy alternatives to the animal products that used to be consumed more regularly.
