Move over spin bikes, rowing machines are about to get their turn in the spotlight, with rowing classes and boutique rowing studios starting to open here in Australia.

Already super-popular in the U.S., rowing classes are getting the sweaty thumbs up from fitness junkies because, quite simply, they work. Using up to 85% of your body’s muscles, this high-intensity, low-impact session is a massive calorie burner.

Engaging all the senses takes your workout to the next level and makes you feel like you’ve really escaped into another world.

Progressive studios are introducing sound, touch, sight and even smell into their sessions to heighten your experience and stand out from the crowd.

Think spin classes where you’re virtually transported to the opposite side of the planet via the massive screens at the front.

Or an essential oil head massage during a stretch class.

Or a continual grounding hum through your yoga room. Mmmmmmm.

The wearables market is set to be worth $25 billion by 2019, according to CCS Insight.

We just can’t get enough of our heart rate monitors, smart watches and fitness trackers - I know I’m a bit addicted to tracking my daily steps. Who doesn’t like numbers? Numbers don’t lie ;)

There’s even a new wave of gyms and studios using them at the very core of their workout ethos, linking your live heart rate (via a chest strap) to a screen on the wall so you can see how hard you’re working throughout the session. If you’re remotely competitive, it’s a huge motivator.

Have you noticed that gyms are changing? Yes, the big one-gym-fits-all places still exist, but in any suburb you may also find a multitude of boutique studios, everything from yoga to CrossFit, barre to boxing.

Bree Pratt, Partner Success Manager at ClassPass in Australia says ‘We are witnessing more and more studios popping up, and offering unique and niche experiences from tabata to lagree, rowing, pilates and high intensity workouts with a twist.

Studios have become destinations where you can totally immerse yourself to clear your mind and push to your limits, or meet a friend or client to bond over a sweat session. It's both inspiring and encouraging."

Following hot on the heels of the fitness pioneers in LA, more studios are beginning to offer fusion classes.

Think yoga with hip hop moves, or a spin session that incorporates an upper body workout.

This hybrid approach helps to work different energy systems within your body, keeping it guessing and entertained to prevent plateaus and boredom.

If you’ve never been on a Megaformer machine, well prepare yourself for reformer pilates on steroids. This is a killer workout that gives even the fittest of us the serious wobbles.

Invented by Sebastien Lagree, it’s a high intensity resistance training session straight out of Hollywood. It burns like cray cray and you’ll certainly feel it the next day, but is a pretty effective way to get those buns of steel.

Exercise is about more than simply losing weight or gaining muscle. And this year, you’ll see the concept of holistic fitness becoming more and more mainstream.

You may have already heard of the ‘Exercise is Medicine’ initiative where primary health providers, such as GPs, are encouraged to ‘prescribe’ physical activity as part of their treatment and disease-prevention plans for patients.

You should also expect to see meditation classes in particular becoming more and more common in 2017. Great news for all us busy busy bodies. Let’s keep our mental health in check too, and take care of our whole selves.