As we bid farewell to the eventful year of 2014, we cant help but reminisce the memories it has given to us. It has indeed been a year of fitness, from celebrity weight loss to start of a whole new genre of workouts, this year has given us more then we demanded. As an ode to this brilliant year, we bring to you the best it had offered:

Workouts that found their spot

2014 witnessed a surge in workouts and fitness options in India. While someone gained popularity and touched the heart of millions, others are still on their path of upliftment. Music coupled with fitness is like adding sugar to your tea (better: protien to your milk), it just goes hand in hand. This led to dance workouts still being the popular choice and Zumba still being the most favoured. Masala Bhangra that originated in Los Angeles spread its wings in India and instantly became a hit.

On the endurance and strength training frontier, the ball rolled into the courts of High intensity interval training (HIIT), Functional Fitness and its likes. Crossfit – an offshoot of Functional Fitness was among the highest searched fitness options in 2014!

Last but not the least, the evergreen Yoga still retained the sweet spot it has held for years. However, it is facing a threat from Pilates – celebrity loved fitness alternative that is meant to strengthen your core.

From the Bollywood Bandwagon

The celebrity weight game:

This year Bollywood witnessed stark ups and downs in average weight. While there were a lot of actresses that lost considerable amount of weight, there were some who surprisingly swung the other way (pun unintended). Parineeti Chopra and Sonakshi Sinha’s much needed, yet miraculous weight loss shut the mouths of many of their critics. World renowned beauty Aishwarya Rai also showcased here new look during the Cannes film festival after losing all the fat she gained during pregnancy.

While there was the happy fitness news, there were also the nightmares! Neha Dhupia a star particularly known for her body and sincerity towards fitness, seemed to have lost her touch. While acclaimed actress Vidya Balan surely seemed like she was enjoying her new marital bliss.

Trainers and their spotlight

Bollywood surely seemed to have made 2014 a year about fitness and trainers. Celebrities have knocked the doors of many fitness experts to help them achieve their much-gushed-about looks for their films. If you all are thinking about Sonakshi Sinha and weight loss, then you have to divert your mind to Dheepesh Bhatt -  Crossfit trainer who helped her get a new body, while Farhan Akhtar got his lean (read: hot) looks and talent through Samir Jaura and Neville Wadia.

Kris Gethin, started his career in Bollywood fitness with Hrithink Roshan, but this year he has found his fans in Ranveer Singh, Arjun Kapoor, Imran Khan and Karan Johar. The Bollywood heartthrob who has invaded the dreams of many girls, John Abraham, found his match in Vinod Channa; while, on the other side divas like Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Alia Bhat, Kareena Kapoor and many more stuck to the Yasmin Karachiwala camp.

Diet plans that reached many stomachs

Do you believe that balance nutrition is the only diet? Well we are here to break that bubble. Nutrition and unique diet plans were constantly being fluttered. Some hit the bullet on the head and some just lost their way. Paleo diet that was followed by celebrities like Miley Cyrus and Megan Fox, hit the Indian market at jet speed. Who could deny the sudden surge in popularity for Vegan diet when it was propagated by Bollywood favourites like Amitabh Bachchan, Kangana Ranaut and Vidyut Jamwal.

Known for its extreme cleansing and weight loss properties, juice cleanse diet and fruitarian diet found a lot of followers. However, it is far from being considered an everyday diet, nonetheless, here to stay.

Fitness studios that made their first entry

We weren’t the only ones who feel that 2014 was a year of fitness. Several international gym and fitness chains spread their branches to India with multiple outlets. Fitness First, Snap Fitness and Anytime Fitness were among the few that even managed to gain instant follower base.

Reebok, the popular sports brand, launched its first ever Functional Fitness and Crossfit studio in Mumbai. It was welcomed with wide open arms and inaugurated by Bollywood heartthrobs John Abraham and Nargis Fakri.

Most of all – the trends that we got most excited about are:

With so much happening, finding the select few favourites has to be difficult, but we managed it. No one can deny the excitement brought in with the launch of the Equal Street Movement in Mumbai, following its success in other cities like Delhi, Bangalore, Bhopal and Pune. It provided a podium for all fitness enthusiasts to come on the busy street without the fear of being run over.

Considering the lack of open space in Mumbai, the outdoor workout stations at the DM Fitness were a breath of fresh air. Launched by Dino Morea, it brings the international workout style to India.

However, our personal chart topper is undoubtedly Fitternity’s launch in Mumbai. (www.fitternity.com) Making fitness discovery easy and hassle-free has managed to get a lot of Mumbaikars on track with respect to their fitness journey!

Wishing all of you a Happy New Year and hope to have 2015 supersede the prodigy set!

(We wish to expand the list and add things we missed – please share your ideas & comments)

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