In the last few years, there have been a number of innovative developments in the world of tech, specifically relating to fitness.
Many of these are promising to make getting in shape easier and more efficient than ever before, which has been met with much enthusiasm from the millions of Americans that are looking to lose a few extra pounds.
These innovations run pretty much across the spectrum – ranging from wearables, the introduction of ‘smart’ exercise equipment, online fitness training/coaching, along with active wear.
Indeed, there is much to be excited about here, and we’ve already seen several trends starting to form, as consumers flock eagerly to get on board.
In this article, we’ll be highlighting 5 of the most noteworthy ways that tech has been changing the world of fitness in recent years, so that you can hopefully employ some of them to make getting in shape that much easier!
1) Wearable Fitness Technology
This has truly been one of the most exciting categories in fitness-related tech, with lots of new products coming out each year.
For those of you who aren’t familiar, wearables will monitor various aspects of your health and fitness – including heart rate, steps taken, and calories burned.
They also integrate with many fitness apps, with almost limitless potential.
The biggest names in this category are Apple Watch and Fitbit, but there are many other smaller brands out there too, all jockeying to compete in this increasingly competitive marketplace.
2) Online Personal Training
If you’ve ever thought that hiring a regular personal trainer was too expensive, then this recent development might be of interest to you!
For years, if you wanted someone to coach you personally, you needed to hire a costly trainer, for upwards of $100 per session, which is simply far too much money to be accessible to most people who could use some help.
However, with the advent of online personal training (also sometimes known as online fitness coaching), you can work with your very own personal trainer for a fraction of the cost.
Your trainer will put together a completely customized workout and nutrition plan for you, and can monitor your progress using an app on your phone, continuously guiding you as you strive to lose some weight or put on more muscle.
There are various online personal trainers out there now, but Caliber Fitness is one of the most well-regarded in the industry, having been in business for nearly 5 years, and helping 1000s of people around the world reach their fitness goals.
3) Interactive Exercise Equipment
Gone are the days where you have to slog away at home on an old-school treadmill or elliptical machine, bored out of your mind and counting the eternity of each passing second.
In the last couple years, we have been seeing the introduction of ‘smart’ exercise equipment – which makes working out a far more interactive and less tedious experience.
One of the leading brands in this space is Peloton, with their popular interactive exercise bike.
Unlike a traditional exercise bike, this one allows you to take live fitness classes with other people, led by trainers, and stay entertained with a screen that makes it feel like you’re biking along the side of a mountain or next to an ocean, instead of alone in your living room.
While these smart exercise bikes don’t come cheap, they are a worthy investment for anyone that is tired of the monotony of traditional cardio.
4) Active Wear
Not to be left out, clothing manufacturers have recently jumped into fitness tech as well.
While you might think of fitness clothing as not being all that important, the advancements in technology have allowed exercisers to work out in greater comfort than ever before, and with increased efficiency.
There is a wide range of active wear available, but you can expect clothing that doesn’t retain sweat, keeps you feeling cool during hot summers, and warm during cold winters.
What’s more, there is an emerging potential for active wear to monitor biometric feedback as well, and then adjust based on how your body is responding.
5) Body Composition Scanners
Many people aren’t just concerned with losing weight, but rather with improving their overall body composition.
This essentially means working to improve the amount of lean mass they’re holding, relative to body fat.
Unfortunately, traditional scales can’t really determine your body composition very effectively, since they only record weight with any reasonable accuracy.
And while you can measure your body fat in other ways, like with calipers, this is tedious and hard to do for most people.
This is where body composition scanners come in. They use innovative technology to accurately map out the composition of your entire body – pinpointing exactly how much lean muscle and body fat you have, along with bone density and water retention.
In effect, they create a 3D mapping of your entire body, and then you can track ongoing changes as you strive to improve your body composition through both exercise and diet.
There are several recent entrants to this marketplace, but one of the most notable is ShapeScale, who have been getting a lot of buzz recently.
Looking Towards The Future
While these 5 advancements in fitness tech are exciting, they represent just a small segment of this growing trend.
Over the next few years, we can expect further developments in each of these categories – creating more engaging workouts, making it easier than ever to track your diet, and providing affordable yet bespoke fitness coaching experiences.
So, for the millions of Americans who struggle to stay fit, there is a lot to look forward to in the coming years!
And hopefully, sometime soon, there will truly be a fitness solution perfectly tailored for everyone, thanks to the tireless efforts of these pioneering tech companies.
