When you watch footage of the Olympics from back in the 1920s, it’s hard to imagine the athletes involved did any training at all. Their physiques are by and large what we would consider average, not the sculpted and toned competitors we know today. But that’s because back then the image of the ideal athlete was based on classical human proportions—and average was considered ideal.
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Toronto-based startup PUSH is hoping to add some professionalism to an essentially amateur space with its fitness tracker aimed specifically at pros and demanding athletes who want data, not vague metrics, about general activity levels. The PUSH can provide solid data about reps, sets, force, power, balance, velocity, max weight, tempo and more to athletes who depend on informed workouts to push themselves further, and it’s nearly halfway to the $80,000 funding goal on Indiegogo it needs to make that happen.
The PUSH is a device that pairs with an elastic armband for wearing while you work out, which incorporates a motion sensor, orientation sensor, Bluetooth 2.1, a rechargeable battery good for between 6 to 8 hours of continual use (or around a week of exercising), as well as a physical button and LEDs for basic input and display. It pairs with a companion app that features an exercise database, motion analysis, sharing and trend tracking as well as visual reporting of the data it collects.
I spoke with Mike Lovas, Chief Designer of PUSH hardware and co-founder of the company. He explained that, while the activity-tracking segment is well-covered now, there’s still a huge gap when it comes to professional-caliber devices – and a strong appetite and willingness among organizations and users to spend on such hardware.
“One of the big things we’ve been really interested in is the pro-level interest,” he said. “A lot of guys from the NHL, NFL, MLB, pro soccer in Europe, rugby and those kinds of high-end users are loving what we’re doing, so that’s been super encouraging.”
PUSH is seeing a lot of that interest being driven at the organization level by coaching staff and trainers who want to help their athletes train more effectively and efficiently; a truly quantified workout routine has the advantage of being able to provide the tools needed for athletes to work out smarter and safer. You’ll have less chance of injuring yourself if professionals have access to more data, and you won’t waste time with exercises that aren’t really adding anything to your existing workouts.
“Sports science is big. Pros are using high-end, expensive research equipment and pay through the nose for that stuff,” Lovas explained, describing how it differs from what’s already out there. “We had this product that we could offer at a fraction of the price, give them similar metrics and also have it so that every athlete could wear this every time they work out, so it’s not just once a month that they could get this data, but every time they hit the gym.”
Individual users can pre-order the device for a one-time fee of $139, but for coaches and teams there’s going to be a subscription software and service product that provides them with a dashboard where they can monitor and compare all their athletes on an ongoing basis. Obviously, the hope is that this becomes a competitive advantage that teams are climbing over themselves to get at.
Lovas also says that PUSH is looking at expanding the types of activity it can monitor with different types of mounts for the PUSH, and could even get into specialized hardware and software for individual sports down the road, depending on how things go. Judging by the progress they’ve made so far toward their funding goal, there’s strong demand out there for this type of thing.
While watching sports, have you ever stopped (midway through a bowl of Cheetos) to wonder, “How far are those guys actually running?” It’s a common question, one that’s historically been subject mostly to guesswork, Thanks to some recent technological developments, though, we can now actually apply some data to it. More »
A pair of socks is a pair of socks is a pair of socks. Right? Not anymore. Even a pair of socks have technology that can improve athletic performance now. More »
Got someone in your life who’s addicted to exercise? Someone who proselytizes the active lifestyle? There are so many fitness-related items out there it’s hard to separate the muscular wheat from the sweaty chaff. But we’ve selected a few of our favorite items you could get your fit friend, if you can catch them. More »
Yeah, it’s absolutely an ad for Red Bull but so what. This extreme athlete-powered Rube Goldberg ‘machine’ is even better than the free running machine they pulled off a month ago. Watch the entire thing and you won’t believe how they use world famous athletes like Lolo Jones and Ryan Scheckler to pull off one stunning act after another. More »
The Olympics are over. Athletes have been crowned. GIFs have been made. And World records have been broken. In four years, we’ll do the same thing all over again. And world records will continue to be broken. How is that possible? How do Olympic athletes keep getting better and keep breaking records? Will it ever stop? Can humans ever max out? More »
Adidas is known for making connected shoes — but never quite as linked-up as a Nash Money concept making its appearance late into the London Olympics. The Social Media Barricade weaves the guts of a phone and a basic two-line LCD into a running shoe, letting the footwear take Twitter updates very literally on the run through a public account. Even the signature Adidas stripes change their hue through remote control. Before anyone gets visions of athletes checking congratulatory tweets after the 100-meter sprint, just remember that it’s an idea rather than a production blueprint: although Adidas is quick to call the Social Media Barricade the “future of athlete connectivity,” the only athletes putting eyes on a pair right now are those swinging by the Olympics’ media lounge for interviews. Knowing this, we can still imagine some future shoes padding runners’ egos at the finish line during the 2016 Rio games.
Continue reading Adidas Social Media Barricade shoe concept moves tweets to the track (video)
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Adidas Social Media Barricade shoe concept moves tweets to the track (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2012 15:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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You would think that if you were an Olympic athlete, you could fleet through airport security, fly on a G6 and walk on clouds til you reach Olympic Park. Not exactly true! For pole vaulters, it’s a pain in the ass to travel because of, well, their gigantic poles. More »
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