How to Keep That New Year’s Resolution You Keep Failing At
It’s that time of year again.
Most people come up with at least a couple New Year’s resolutions, and one of them, almost invariably, is to get in better shape.
The bad news? You still have to hit the gym.
The good news? Getting fit is arguably easier than ever.
As obesity rates reach all-time highs, a new culture of health and fitness is emerging to rally against sedentary lifestyles. Fuelled by new technology and the rise of the “quantified self,” the future of fitness combines apps and analytics with good old-fashioned iron pumping to deliver optimal workouts and the motivation necessary to pull them off.
The next generation of exercising is here. Below are some of the Canadian companies driving this sea change, from hardware to software to apparel.
PumpUp. For people who are inclined to skip a gym day or two when they’re feeling lazy, PumpUp can keep you motivated. Using the same sort of motivational power that a gym buddy might give you, the app acts as a social community for workout enthusiasts and encourages them to follow other users, upload pictures after workouts and even create custom workouts for themselves that other users can see if they choose to make it public.
Push. The makers of a band that offers “scientifically validated and actionable metrics” to help you improve your training, including power measured in watts and velocity.
OneSet. It’s similar to Instagram in that you can like, comment and follow people, but what makes OneSet unique is their helpful categorization model for people building workouts. Rather than sifting through hashtags in Instagram, which can be messy and include irrelevant pictures of people with protein shakes, users can explore workouts based on categories like muscle group, or by workout style like fat-burning, yoga, power lifting and crossfit.
Strongbody. This luxury sport apparel’s garments, all of which are designed and manufactured in Canada, are “engineered to accelerate the performance of your workout through specialized fabrics and ergonomic design,” including body-mapped panels, strategic ventilation, odour-fighting technology, and moisture-wicking technology.
Gymnut. An “iTunes of fitness” app that targets gym trainers and fitness enthusiasts. Users can follow trainers that inspire them, go to their “workout store” where they can purchase published workouts based on individual goals (which start at 99 cents) and users can even request customized workouts and meal plans from trainers.
Gymtrack. Targeted at gyms and their trainers, Gymtrack products are composed of an ecosystem of three devices: a smart pin attachment that replaces current pins on weight stack machines and detects the weight, reps and sets you’ve done; a barbell attachment that tracks how much weight you’ve done; and a wearable that detects what exercises are being done and counts reps for dumbbell, barbell and body weight exercises.
OMsignal. Categorized as “biometric smartwear,” OMsignal’s innovative technology powers Ralph Lauren’s new PoloTech shirt, a machine-washable garment that has built-in tracking and mobile app connectivity.
Now you’re out of excuses. It’s time to workout.
