As we get ready to meet up for the first time in-person as a team in NYC (so excited), we wanted to check out some of the top wellness trends in the city and beyond! Wellness continues to be a growing hot topic and NYC is a place that stays ahead of the curve when it comes to trends.
Here are our favorite wellness trends/practices that are thriving in NYC (some options are currently only operating remotely):
Self Pleasure is Self Care - Sexual Wellness is growing in popularity and normalization. We are starting to release the shame and stigmatization that has existed around this topic for so long. A couple of weeks ago, Smudge did a really dope session called Queer Sex: Transcending Shame to Find Freedom, Love, and Self-Acceptance. It was a much needed and beautiful conversation, now available on our Youtube, that held space for a different dialogue than we usually have on the subject. It is so wonderful to feel comfortable talking about and shopping for sex in an opening and affirming way instead of feeling like shopping for my physical pleasure is somehow dirty or wrong.
Here are some of the top sex shops in NYC -
Babeland is a friendly sex-toy boutique—run by women and skewed toward women, but welcoming for all. At Babeland you are welcome to do some hands- on shopping (I imagine they mean hands-on the merch, no getting frisky in the store lol).
Eve’s Garden is billed as the first sex shop for women, by women, that wants to steer female sexuality away from novelty and into real pleasure and enjoyment.
Rainbow Station is a dope adult store catering to the LGBT crowd and serves its core demographic with pride.
Romantic Depot is three times bigger then other shops, the largest sex toy store in NYC, and the only one in the Bronx.
Exercise Outside - Over the past few months, as different cities and states were moving towards reopening, many of the big gyms started to take it outside. As outside begins to fully reopen, it is looking like the outdoor workouts are here to stay. Many locations are expecting this to continue and expanding their outdoor workout spaces.
Barry’s, 305 Fitness, Fhitting Room, SoulCycle, and SLT, all offer what is now being named “Al Fresco” workout options.
Check out this great list from Sweats and City for outdoor classes in NYC.
Youth Wellness - The kids have had a rough go of things, and while they are resilient beings, there has also been an increase in youth focus wellness to try and help them navigate. Even before the pandemic there was a growing rise in youth wellness as people recognized the good in teaching children these tools as early as possible. One of the things that got me excited about teaching yoga was a youth program in Baltimore spreading in public schools that continues to show steady results and growth. This trend continues in New York, through the Brooklyn-based Yoga Foster, a non-profit dedicated to providing educators and students with yoga and mindfulness resources like Wellemental - to “make wellness elementary.” https://www.wellemental.co/
Another notable program for kids is the upcoming partnership for the meditation app Headspace with Sesame Street. And in addition to its robust remote programming targeted on New York's LGBTQ+ community, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center will be opening its doors again soon.
Rest & Restorative - The pandemic was hard for a lot of people. It made folks rethink our ideas around hustle culture, success and rest. People, including New Yorkers, turned to resources like the Atlanta-based The Nap Ministry, which was founded in 2016 after Tricia Hersey learned about the role rest and sleep play in healing trauma. People are moving back into yoga and other restorative and restful practices. Folks are viewing rest as part of the resistance and I could not agree more. I never want to be as tired as I was in 2020. According to ClassPass, yoga has seen a 25-percent increase in interest on the platform this year. Many virtual content makers are noting an increase in requests for restorative or mindful practice. Our time inside has made a lot of people look within.
While the Nap Ministry is not based in New York, if you are looking to follow in the footsteps of its practice while there, check out Nap York. You have to book at least 8 hours in advance so plan ahead but it might but just what you need to squeeze in a midday rest session.
Also check out Classpass to find some great rest and restorative options in NYC.
