There’s nothing Americans love more than creating trends. Because I’m old, I think about the things I begged my mom to get me – Parachute pants, Tretorn shoes, the Barbie Dream House…or, remember the Easy Bake Oven?

I had one and, thinking about it, I probably baked more when I was 6 than I do now.

Exercise is its own category and there have been some weird trends over the years. The Thighmaster, that ab chair thingee where you basically do the same motion that used to happen when your lounge chair buckled underneath you…so many ab thingees.

Fast forward to 2018 and we have a whole slew of trends, some that are interesting and some that are just plain old weird.

• Plogging – I’m guessing that millennials made this one up because they seem so much more socially conscious than my generation. Plogging is also known as ‘Trash Running,’ which means the purpose of your run is to pick up trash during your jog. It’s a great idea, but I think I’ll leave them to it.
• Aerial Yoga – This, if you don’t know, is when you’re suspended by this sort of hammock-type material and you do yoga poses. It kind of looks like some sort of suspended ballet…both weird and fun. I think if I had a class nearby, I’d probably try this one.
• Peleton – This involves having a spin-bike at home and you can follow spin classes on the connected screen. Now, there’s a part of me that wants to try this. But then I remember that Spinning is just plain old hard. Oh and there’s a $2000 price tag for the bike, so that does help one decide on this one.I think hardcore spinners and cyclists with cash on hand would like this one the best.
• Goat Yoga – I get it – goats are cute and baby coats are even cuter. Do I want to do yoga with them? I actually get plenty of animals all over me with my cats, so I think I’m good on this one.
• Aqua Mermaid – Okay, when I was a kid, I did what was called water ballet. I guess that eventually turned into synchronized swimming…and then mermaids? Just thinking of wearing that tale makes me claustrophobic.
• Orange Theory Fitness – This is part of the whole High Intensity Interval Training frenzy everyone seems to be in right now and I actually tried it, so I can at least give my impressions. The idea is that you have a heart rate monitor and you can see your heart rate on screen as you do through different phases of the workout – The rower, treadmill, TRX and weights. You try to get your heart rate into the ‘orange’ zone for a certain amount of the workout. The idea here is fine, I just got bored with the workouts. Even though they change, you still use the same equipment. Also, I injured my shoulder..too much HIIT almost always causes problems.

What do you think? Would you try any of these trends? Have you ever tried something really weird? Do tell!