Navigate the New Year with 2025’s top wellness trends to know

The new year often inspires wellness-related resolutions — some stick, others don't. Yet, the prospect of a fresh start motivates us to adopt healthier habits. As we look to refresh our routines, the wellness industry also evolves, bringing forth new trends shaped by scientific advancements, traditional therapies, and even social media buzz. (though you might want to consult with a professional before hopping on the latest fads).

With the overwhelming amount of information available online, Vogue Scandinavia has done the legwork for you. Ahead, we’ve spoken to a range of experts to uncover the top wellness trends of 2025 that you need to know:

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The yearning for community is a standout wellness trend for 2025, extending beyond family and work circles. Experts note a shift towards shared experiences in looking after our bodies and minds.“I see that now, with the global pandemic behind us, people want to experience things together again – doing activities in a group, whether it be a wellness retreat or a hike,” says Eva Estlander, Finnish yoga and sound bath instructor.

Dalton Wong, a celebrity performance coach at Nexus Club, whose clients include A-listers like Jennifer Lawrence and Elizabeth Debicki, agrees. “More people are looking for more interaction, and the community aspects of exercise are becoming just as important as the health aspects,” he says. “Yes, we might have our own personal goals, but when we do it as a community, we all strive to do better.”

Engaging with others in wellness settings can take many forms, be it participating in sought-after group classes like pilates, yoga, or spinning or joining a local running club for an extra boost of motivation. Julia Oravisto, founder of the Helsinki-based Pilates studio Bay, also observes a growing demand for social interaction in fitness. “The demand for guided classes is bound to keep growing, and the desire for social interaction is undoubtedly on the rise,” she says. “People want to combine seeing others with physical activity, especially since we spend so much time on the computer during the weekdays, working from home – life has become quite digitalised. There’s a longing for genuine interaction.”

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As Wong puts it, “Wellness is a 360-degree thing.” This holistic mindset is increasingly embraced by those who recognise that feeling good is influenced by multiple factors: exercising, sleeping well, eating nutritious food to forging meaningful connections and keeping your mental health in check. In 2025, instead of more superficial wellness goals like losing a certain amount of weight or gaining muscle (though it’s worth noting that these aspirations won’t disappear), a healthier, more holistic outlook appears to be on the horizon, with the focus shifting toward the all-encompassing notion of feeling well.

“The new clients that I'm seeing are now more focussed on overall well-being and being strong and healthy in every aspect, which includes as much self-care and self-love as it does physical exercise,” says Oslo-based wellness coach and Barry’s trainer Susanne Herlofsen. “Fewer people have purely physical goals. Of course, some do, but it’s not only about being the strongest or lifting the heaviest. It’s actually more about just having a good routine and doing what makes you feel good, inside and out.”

This sentiment is echoed by Wong. “What I firmly believe as a trainer is that there is a significant shift toward participating in exercise rather than solely focusing on results.” Oravisto adds, “It’s about holistic well-being – I’ve noticed that [exercising] has become a bit less focused on appearance and results-driven goals, like doing things through gritted teeth. The goal should also be to support endurance and, most importantly, mental balance.”

Speaking of mental balance, mindfulness has been steadily gaining traction for some time, and our experts predict it will become even more popular in 2025. In today’s fast-paced, demanding world, mindfulness and other mental well-being practices are increasingly vital for calming our nervous systems and clearing our minds.

“Stress-related ill-being is still on the rise, so it’s crucial to help people unwind and gain perspective on life,” says Karolina Heimer, the spa manager at Stockholm’s popular wellness destination Yasuragi. In the rush of daily life, it’s easy to overlook the simplest foundations of well-being—like breathing. “I think sound healing and more mindful practices are going to be really important,” says Wong. “And breathwork, especially, is so crucial. You’re breathing out, reducing stress – your breathing can help you feel better. And it’s free. But the challenge is, you just have to practice it.”

According to Estlander “The idea [of soundbaths] is to activate our parasympathetic nervous system – it’s kind of like guided meditation but with sounds,” she explains. “Instead of just focusing on your breathing, you have the sounds and chords that your mind can focus on. It’s a really effective relaxation technique.” If your body feels too restless for meditation, breathwork and sound baths (though you shouldn’t knock them until you try), movement-based mindfulness practices like yoga and Tai Chi may be a better fit.

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Longevity has been a buzzword in the wellness industry for some time now – and who wouldn’t want to maximise their time on this planet? “I see clearly that the interest in longevity is a trend, and creating a long and healthy life can be approached in many different ways.” Heimer says. “Perhaps people have always had this longing, but it’s at this point in history that we truly have the research and technologies to prolong our lifespan in a healthy way.”

Oravisto concurs, noting that a wellness aspect many are now honing in on sustainability as an aspect of wellness. “It’s no longer just about thinking in the moment like ‘I need this workout now, and I have to train and eat a certain way right now,’ but rather about considering it in the long term.” The basic building blocks of health – eating and sleeping well, physical activity, stress management, and mental balance – are at the core of longevity. However, some are keen to bolster their chances through methods like biohacking, saunas, cryotherapy, IV therapy and hormonal optimisation.

“We’re going to be proactive in our health rather than reactive,” Wong says. He also reminds us of the pitfalls of living too much in the future, emphasising that achieving good health and extending our lifespan requires us to consider the actions we’re taking right now. “Normally I really hate the ‘now’ – social media is about the now, the quick dopamine hit – but what I’m saying is, let’s take your fitness back and think about the now: where am I at this moment and where would I like to be in a certain amount of time? What can I do today or tomorrow to achieve that? Rather than thinking, ‘I’ll worry about that when I’m 60,’” he says.

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Whether we like it or not, technology is becoming an increasingly integral part of our lives, driven even further by advancements in AI. Unsurprisingly, this progress is shaping the wellness industry as well, offering both opportunities and challenges. “I definitely see that, as we’ve already noticed in the past year, devices measuring performance will likely become even more prominent,” Estlander says. “Oura rings, smartwatches, and similar gadgets, with AI in some way becoming a part of that ecosystem.”

Then there’s the wealth of health apps, which have been around for quite some time. Oravisto highlights the excellent offerings in breathwork and meditation, with popular options like Calm, Headspace and Breathwrk worth giving a go.

However, Oravisto and other experts caution against becoming overly reliant on wellness technology, especially performance-tracking gadgets like the Oura ring and Whoop Straps. “I think those can be great because they keep us accountable to whatever we’re going to do, but what I’m finding in a lot of my clients is that they become so pedantic about their readings,” Wong says. “I think what’s happening, along with understanding what sustainability is, is just to be able to enjoy exercise for what it is.”

Just as technology advances, so does science, with pharmaceutical progress increasingly influencing the wellness industry. As medical interventions in wellness become more prominent, it’s a trend worth acknowledging. People are incorporating methods like weight management medications, hormone optimisation, IV therapy, and supplements and peptides into their wellness routines.

The challenge, according to Wong, is to merge pharmaceuticals and wellness in a “positive, natural and honest way.” He adds, “People in my industry have to know that this is what’s happening, and we have to be able to educate people on how to use these, when to use them, and how to integrate them into a healthy lifestyle.”

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