Top 5 fitness trends to get you in shape for 2017

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- It's the new year, and a lot of us have exercise on the mind, and in 2017, what's hot in fitness won't lock you into a gym membership you'll never use.

FIRST TREND

The number one trend of 2017 isn't actually an exercise at all, it's a device.

Dr. John P. Higgins is a Sports Cardiologist at the McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) and he says invest in a fitness tracker.

"What gets measured gets managed, and what these devices are doing are measuring people's activities, and they are able to see what they are doing, set goals and set changes," says Higgins.

Fitness trackers measure everything from steps and exercise, to sleep and diet.

They even measure how long you're sitting. Higgins says sitting is the new smoking.

"Prolonged sitting - and that's sitting for one hour or more during the day - it's associated with high risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity," Higgins explains.

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So, after sitting for an hour, the tracker alerts you to get moving.

SECOND TREND

The next trend is body weight training.

"Body weight training is using your own body for the weight of your training. So, the nice part is you don't need to buy a membership. You just use your own body," says Higgins.

Exercises like lunges, sit-ups, and push ups will get the job done.

THIRD TREND

"Number 3 - high intensity interval training. So what HIIT does is get you your required benefit in 15 minutes," adds Higgins.

An example of HIIT would be sprinting for one minute and then walking for one minute.

FOURTH TREND

The fourth trend is hiring a personal trainer to learn form and function. Higgins says a popular personal trainer trend is partner workouts.

"To cut costs, personal trainers are allowing a session with two or three individuals sharing a personal trainer," he says.

FIFTH TREND

Finally, strength training rounds out our fifth fitness trend for 2017.

"We've known for some time that Aerobic exercise is important. Resistance training is just as important. In fact, with good resistance training, you will strengthen your ligaments and joints, so you are less likely to get injured when you are doing those activities," explains Higgins.

So, whichever methods you choose, make sure to be realistic in your goal setting. Starting out by exercising four days a week is perfect. Don't try to do too much at once, so you don't injure yourself or get burnt out.