Environmentally-friendly exercise is expected to become popular next year, according to Women's Fitness magazine.

Workouts that do not create a huge carbon footprint, such as indoor fitness equipment or cycling outdoors will be one of the increasingly popular ways of staying in shape in 2010, claims the magazine's editor Joanne Knight.

Her comments come after research by Friends Provident indicated that the recession has made people adopt healthier lifestyles, with half of Brits (48 per cent) eating less ready meals.

The recession has also seen a change in the type of exercise people are doing, with 19 per cent opting to use fitness equipment in the home or going for a run.

Meanwhile, Ms Knight added that green exercise has already taken hold in some parts of the world.

"There are already gyms in the States that are part-powered by exercise bikes," she explained, adding that she expects exercise for charitable causes will also be popular next year.