State of Wellness: A Market In Motion
Key trends impacting the wellness industry for 2025
Executive Summary: Wellness & Fitness Evolution (2024–2026)
This report tracks the high-velocity transformation of the $2T wellness economy across the 2024–2026 period. The overarching narrative of this triennium is the professionalization of personal health: a shift from aspirational "self-care" to rigorous, data-backed "biomanagement."
I. The Three-Year Macro Arc
Throughout this period, wellness has transitioned from a luxury vertical into a fundamental pillar of the global economy, characterized by three distinct phases of maturity:
2024 (The Pivot): The "Great De-Gendering" and "De-Hype" of wellness. Consumers began rejecting "clean" clinical labels as mainstream wellness expanded to include previous fringe items such as functional mushrooms and experiences such as soundbaths and cold plunges.
2025 (The Integration): The rise of the "Self-Investment" mindset and AI-driven personalization. Wellness became a daily "stack" of functional foods, wearables, and biomonitoring.
2026 (The Standard): Metabolic health and nervous system regulation become the universal metrics. AI-driven personalization is no longer a perk but a baseline consumer expectation. Previously luxury wellness become accessible as items such as I.V. vitamins, personal saunas become splurge items.
II. The Core Convergence: "Athletic Wellness"
The most significant market movement between 2024 and 2026 is the total dissolution of the wall between Fitness (Performance) and Wellness (Longevity).
1. The Growth Sweet Spot
Growth is concentrated in "Hybrid" formats that provide high-intensity physical stress followed by intentional recovery:
Strength-Longevity: Strength training is the primary anchor, but is now measured by metabolic health and fall prevention rather than just aesthetics.
Thermal & Sensory: Rapid expansion of hot yoga, infrared-enhanced lifting, and contrast therapy (sauna/cold plunge) as standard components of a gym membership.
Social Training: A move toward "workout socializing," where run clubs and communal recovery spaces replace traditional social venues.
2. Metabolic Ecosystems (The GLP-1 Factor)
A defining trend across this three-year window is the massive economy built around GLP-1 medications. This has created a permanent new market for:
Muscle Preservation: Specialized resistance training and high-protein/fiber "support" nutrition.
Metabolic Tracking: The move of Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) from clinical tools to mass-market wellness wearables.
III. Multi-Year Trend Scoring Matrix
Cumulative impact scores (1–10) based on citation consistency and consumer sentiment from 2024 through the end of 2026.
IV. Growth vs. Stagnation (2024–2026)
The "Accelerators" (Highest Growth)
Biomonitoring 2.0: Moving from steps to HRV, blood sugar, and sleep stages.
Brain Fitness: Nootropics and cognitive training for professional longevity.
Wellness Travel: "Restorative" retreats (sleep/nature/circadian) replacing "active" vacations.
The "Decliners" (Losing Relevance)
"Healthwashing": Vague marketing claims without peer-reviewed data.
Punishment Fitness: Extreme HIIT and "no pain, no gain" messaging.
Isolated Tech: Subscription apps that lack a human coaching or community element.
Strategic Takeaway
The 2024–2026 period has proven that wellness is no longer an "extra"—it is the frame through which consumers view food, travel, work, and community. The market now rewards brands that treat the user as an "athlete of life"—someone who needs to train hard, recover deeply, and see the data to prove it’s working.
Ryan Edwards, CAMINO5 | Co-Founder
Ryan Edwards is the Co-Founder and Head of Strategy at CAMINO5, a consultancy focused on digital strategy and consumer journey design. With over 25 years of experience across brand, tech, and marketing innovation, he’s led initiatives for Fortune 500s including Oracle, NBCUniversal, Sony, Disney, and Kaiser Permanente.
Ryan’s work spans brand repositioning, AI-integrated workflows, and full-funnel strategy. He helps companies cut through complexity, regain clarity, and build for what’s next.
Connect on LinkedIn: ryanedwards2