There's a struggle commonly faced by anyone who's ever set foot in the gym and tried using a fitness tracking app. You sweat it out on the treadmill, lift the weights, and do the reps, and then you need to manually note down all your workout details. And yet, too often, exact details elude: How many reps was that? What was the exact weight used? Misplacements and oblivions are rampant. Plus, automatic tracking solutions have stumbled upon privacy concerns.
Addressing this prevalent issue, ShapeLog, a fitness technology company, has brought out an innovative solution. They recently got the green light for their patent US20230310939A1 titled "Fitness System."
The spade-work of this solution is it annihilates the need for manual tracking. It comes with a wearable gadget - think wristbands - and incorporates workout machines like treadmills. These devices can detect and monitor movement. The system processes this information to surmise what exercise you're performing and on which machine.
The beauty lies in the fact that it not only identifies the workout details but also supplies you with insights and suggestions based on your tracked exercise patterns, effectively acting as a virtual personal trainer.
Let’s imagine a world post this problem is solved, where workout tracking is no longer a chore but an automatic, efficient process. First-time gym-goers, instead of feeling overwhelmed by tracking their progress, step onto their machines, slip on their wristbands, and focus solely on their workout. Seasoned fitness junkies challenge themselves with real-time feedback and optimized routines, continuously improving their performance.
In essence, it can change how we engage with fitness on a personal level by allowing the pure focus to be on improving health and fitness rather than nitpicking about tracking minutiae.
This patent sure does seem like the foreseeable future of the fitness industry with a great deal of potential, however, there's an important disclaimer. The issuance of a patent doesn’t necessarily mean the product will make it to market or that we'll be wrapping ShapeLog’s wristbands around our arms in the near future. The patent assures that ShapeLog now has the exclusive right to this technology, but the road to market has many turns and bumps. That being said, it's exciting to anticipate how this might revolutionize our workout regimes.