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Manhattan | Wellness > Health

If Pilates Princess is Out, then What’s the New Gym Aesthetic? 

Emily Babio Student Contributor, Manhattan College
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Manhattan chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Creating a new gym lifestyle is crucial to the beginning of the new year. Getting yourself up, putting on a cute matching set, and grabbing your headphones to blast all the girly pop music you need to get through that 10-minute stair master is what I call the start to your Wellness Workout. Pilates Princess is so last year. Wellness Workout Woman has a better tone for 2026! 

What makes you become a Wellness Workout Woman? To start your new gym aesthetic, wake up with the sun (meaning super, super early) and eat a nutritious, filling breakfast. Maybe reach for the yogurt bowl or the avocado toast; whatever you eat is your fuel till your after-gym snack! Wellness Workout has nothing to do with what you physically do at the gym, but EVERYTHING to do with how you feel at the gym. Planning ahead is the second step. Create a plan and stick to it, with 2-3 days of rest and mental reset. Those rest days are what make the addition of “Woman” relevant to the title of this new gym aesthetic, because what is a woman without her hobbies? There’s work, there’s crafts, there’s cooking, there’s family and friends, and a woman balances all these tasks with grace.  
 

Making a new gym aesthetic a part of your new year’s resolution is a great way to kick-start 2026. Maybe you aren’t heavy lifting anymore, or running 3 miles, or doing arm pulses, or maybe you’re just getting started on all three! That’s the part of Wellness Workout that makes it elite; you get to create your own workout that involves what you need at this time in your life. New gym aesthetics also mean new gym attire. My go-to is a baggy t-shirt with spandex shorts. Or flip it around and do a sports bra with sweatpants. Finally, always wear a pair of sneakers that are kind of old/kind of new, unless you wouldn’t be bothered by a hole slowly forming in your shoes from how hard you’ve been working.  

Wellness Workout Woman is in, grab your cute gym bag, fuel yourself, and make 2026 the year of the wellness workout! 

Emily Babio

Manhattan '27

My name is Emily Babio and I am currently a junior at Manhattan University studying childhood special education and English. My educational background includes interning throughout my four years of high school, as well as the past two summers, in the Life Skills classroom at Brewster High School. I also organized a convention titled Stanton-Anthony Symposium where we honored influential women of Hudson Valley during women's history month. I currently work in the Advancement Department at Manhattan University, which involves planning events, communicating with Alumni, and organizing events on campus.

Some personal interests of mine include baking, painting, self-care, working out, and volunteering. I was also a dancer throughout my childhood and into college up until my sophomore year. I really enjoy spending time with my family, as they are the most important thing to me. I grew up in upstate New York, a small town surrounded by beautiful greenery, farms, orchards, and wonderful small businesses and school districts. I am a very family oriented person and will forever put them first. As Taylor Swift says, "Home is where the heart is!"

Writing is a huge passion of mine. I chose to have an English minor along with my education major based on the love I have for writing. I believe the journalism world is full of diversity, character, and opinions that improve my knowledge on current events.