Health and wellness is a constantly evolving subject that prompts people to try almost anything, from workout classes centered around drumsticks to caveman style diets. These trends and fads ebb and flow as they are tried by thousands of people, evaluated by health professionals, and either experience a dropoff in popularity or become cemented in the health and wellness world. Although many of these diets and workouts are centered around perfectly sound concepts of healthy living, they can also lead to unhealthy restriction or even just an unrealistic lifestyle that inevitably results in a backslide into old habits.

Of course, these health fads are valuable in that they continue to keep the idea of eating and living a healthy lifestyle at the forefront of people’s minds. There’s always a new way for people to incorporate healthy habits into their day-to-day life, and any combination of these diets combined with proper exercise is a great way to keep your routine fresh and new.

At Health-Ade, we love living a healthy life and keeping up with all of the latest trends. As the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the shutdown of many gyms and fitness centers, people are searching for new ways to get their fitness fix. We were curious about what health trends were making the biggest splash in 2020, so we did a little digging. Using Google Trends data, we were able to identify the top searched diet and workout fad by state… and the results might surprise you!

Even without gyms, there are still plenty of ways to workout without heading to the gym. We looked at search volume for some of the biggest overall fitness trends that have been seen in recent years and found which types of workouts Americans are looking to incorporate into their new routines nationwide.

Overall, people are realizing the benefits of weight training, and by extension, combining weights with cardio in circuit training. No fewer than 15 states had weight training as their top searched workout, and circuit training was a close second with 11 states searching for that the most. HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training), which is based on high-intensity movements in short bursts to maximize calorie burn in a short period of time came in third with 10 states searching HIIT the most.

In addition to a consistent workout regimen, it’s important to eat healthy to see the full benefit of your healthy efforts. Your diet makes up the cornerstone of your health as a whole. While there are some diets that might sound familiar, such as going vegan, gluten-free, or paleo, there are also a few options that are new to the health world. Every state had a diet they were most curious about based on their search volume, as illustrated in the map above. If you’re wondering what kind of diet your state happens to be searching for the most, you can check out the definitions below!

Carnivore Diet - This diet consists entirely of meat and animal products, including cheese and dairy.

Macrobiotic Diet - The Macrobiotic diet seeks to eliminate toxins from meat and dairy and allows mostly whole grains and vegetables.

Vegan Diet - The Vegan diet eliminates all food that is made from or comes from animals. It is entirely plant-based.

Gluten-Free Diet - The Gluten-Free diet seeks to eliminate gluten from people’s systems from bread, baked goods, and other items. However, gluten-free versions of these same items are allowed.

Paleo Diet - The Paleo Diet is designed to imitate what hunter-gatherers ate thousands of years ago. It emphasizes whole foods and cuts out processed foods, legumes, and dairy primarily.

Intermittent Fasting - This diet does not restrict the types of foods you can eat but rather when you can eat them. Typically, it includes restrictions that create a 16 hour per day fasting period and include 24-hour fasts a couple of times per week.

GOLO Diet - The GOLO diet is based on the management of insulin levels by choosing foods that don’t spike your blood sugar, such as foods high in sugar or fat.

Dr. Sebi Diet - This diet is Vegan in nature and seeks to detoxify your body by consuming a short list of approved plant-based products that will restore your body’s natural alkaline state.

Carb Cycling - Carb Cycling refers to people who adjust their carb intake based on their current training or bodyweight goals. It involves a day-to-day or week-to-week assessment and adherence to not only the nutrition but also the training aspect of their lifestyle.

Weight Watchers - The Weight Watchers diet uses points to quantify the number of food dieters should consume each day based on the health aspect of each food item, such as added sugar, carbs, or protein.

Pegan Diet - The Pegan diet is a hybrid of paleo and vegan diets, designed to be more sustainable. It focuses on high intakes of fruits and veggies and small amounts of meat and legumes.

Whole 30 Diet - The Whole 30 diet is a 30-day dietary plan that drastically restricts foods people can eat, such as real or added sugar, grains, or dairy. It’s designed to jump-start weight loss and instill good habits that can be carried over into a sustainable lifestyle.

Flexitarian Diet - The Flexitarian diet is designed to help people increase their fruit and vegetable intake without completely cutting out meat. It’s a step in the direction of vegetarian, without fully committing.

Noom Diet - Noom is an app that provides weekly challenges and virtual coaching to people trying to lose weight, as well as calculating the daily caloric intake each user needs based on their height, weight, and activity level.

Dr. Gundry Diet - The Dr. Gundry Diet is primarily concerned with avoiding lectins found in plant products that can cause inflammation. There is a list of okay foods specified to follow this diet that excludes starchy foods and processed grains.

FODMAP Diet - The acronym refers to fermentable oligo-, di-, mono-saccharides and polyols which can cause bloating and indigestion. These can include wheat, garlic, and specific fruits and vegetables.

Based on search volume, Intermittent Fasting was the most popular diet nationwide. In 13 states, it was the top-searched diet, followed closely by Vegan in 7 states and Carb Cycling in 6 states. These three diets reflect the latest in health trends in the US since people’s Google search inquiries into these trends likely reflect their interest in trying these diets.

Despite the constant change in our daily routines, health and fitness trends aren’t going anywhere. We may find new ways to do it, but the foundation of health and fitness will continue to be a large part of our lives. Regardless of how you choose to incorporate healthier habits into your life, these trends give you a starting point and inspiration to go further along your health journey. We love living healthy here at Health-Ade of course, but we also want to embrace the grind and enjoy our lives. Encouraging our customers’ healthy habits and providing them with something to make them smile while they’re making good choices is a cornerstone of why we do what we do… and it’s also why we’re so obsessed with kombucha!

The great thing about our kombucha is that you can incorporate it into any healthy diet and it doubles as a sweet treat and healthy addition to your daily nutrition. With plenty of flavors available, you’ll be able to find your favorite kombucha option and enjoy it (guilt-free!) no matter what your meal plan might look like that day.

Today's blog is written by our very own Daina Trout, MS, MPH

Daina is not just our Co-Founder, she is also a nutritionist that has spent her adult life dedicated to finding and sharing health and wellness through food. With 2 masters' degrees in nutritional biochemistry and public health, Daina has called upon her education often while leading the way at Health-Ade - from how we make every batch of kombucha, to how we talk about gut health to consumers, to even how healthy our employee workplace is! She even writes a few blogs here and there. Happy reading! :)