As more athletes look to leave gym fees behind and create their own home workout studios, they're increasingly looking for a better training experience. Taking advantage of advances in technology can greatly improve in-home training performance. Let's take a look at seven high-tech solutions for getting the most out of your home gym.
Regardless of your fitness routine, available home-gym equipment or health goals, the cheapest and most accessible health technology is readily available on your smartphone or tablet.
These apps can do everything from track your calorie intake, calculate calories burned via exercise, coordinate fitness routines or give you an overall view of your fitness progress, often for free.
While tracking your fitness with an app can give you a snapshot of how your workouts help achieve your goals, using the premium services can give you an advantage. Many fitness apps offer a scaled-down version of their services for free, but quite a few require a subscription to get the most out of these services. While you may hesitate at paying a fee to expand on something you've downloaded for free, there are advantages to using the subscription service to get the most out of these high-tech apps:
- In-depth nutrition coordination
- Trainer assistance
- Fitness plans
- Bluetooth integration with equipment and smart devices
If you're looking to create a high-tech home gym, taking advantage of these fitness apps, free or paid, can help you get the most out of every routine without the cost of a personal trainer.
Devices such as the Apple Watch, the Fitbit and other wearable fitness trackers have greatly increased in popularity. These devices are becoming more readily available and fashionable as some users purchase for integration with their smart phones rather than as a fitness tracker.
Setting up these devices to track your fitness is often simple. You can allow them to share data directly to your favorite health and fitness app for ultimate tracking. You'll be able to see your daily steps, stairs climbed and even periods of rest.
If you're looking to invest in technology that will give you a clear picture of your fitness throughout your entire day, one of these wearable fitness trackers may be just what you're looking for.
More high-end treadmill and stationary bike manufacturers are incorporating smart screens into their designs. These touch screens have a large number of advantages.
- Live remote instruction
- Video training sessions
- Interactive workout
- Exercise customization
One of the major advantages to a treadmill or stationary bike with a built-in touch screen is that it helps take away from the natural boredom that comes with walking, running or biking in place. You can have a live instructor in front of you the entire time and actually participate in a spin class with other remote fitness aficionados. If you have a subscription to a service, you can run your favorite video training sessions any time of day, and many of these smart screens come with interactive workouts that simulate actual competition or fun games.
Finally, these smart treadmills and bikes give you the ultimate edge in customizing your workout. Older models had simple options that only increased speed and incline, but with the new touch screen technology, you'll have the ability to customize every minute of your workout.
It's not only treadmills and exercise bikes that are utilizing modern technology. Everyday home-gym equipment has been given a high-tech upgrade.
Everything from weights to kettle balls to punching bags are beginning to incorporate smart technology.
Motion sensors in weights, boxing gloves and other equipment can communicate with smartphones and other devices to monitor reps, evaluate calories burned and alert you to whether or not you're completing exercises correctly. Some high-tech gym equipment comes in a package that includes all of the apparatuses you need to get an incredible workout. This equipment can even communicate with other smart-equipment to give you a more complete workout.
Having tech-enabled equipment can help motivate you, keep you on track and provide a smoother experience for your routine.
Are you looking for something more competitive from your workout experience? Video game manufacturers have moved into the health and fitness realm.
Whether you own a tablet, television, personal computer or next-generation gaming console, there's plenty of high-tech options to convert your workouts into a gaming experience.
Fitness and gaming technology can be utilized by nearly anyone, no matter what their fitness goals. There are augmented reality games for smart phones for those looking for casual outdoor walks, rowing machines with races against competitors from around the world and even VR software designed to create an immersive experience that mimics boxing and other competitions.
Tech-savvy fitness enthusiasts have begun replacing the gym with a wall-mounted fitness studio.
Essentially, these fitness studios are large screens the size of full-length mirrors hung on the wall. In fact some of these wall-mounted studios even double as mirrors when not in use.
These vertical screens show vital stats from your fitness tracker, elaborate on your routine, lay out your workout plan and allow you to interact with a live or recorded personal trainer. Some of the higher-end models come with all the equipment you need to get a good workout attached to the device itself. You can attach tension weights, foam rollers and yoga mats that send all pertinent information directly to the device.
While these wall-mounted fitness devices are convenient, interactive and improve workout results, they do come with a price and many times a monthly subscription fee.
Technology hasn't just infiltrated gym equipment; it's also becoming embedded in the clothing of athletes. While not readily available in the marketplace, smart-clothing may be something to look out for in the coming years.
Current smart-clothing is embedded with vibrating haptics that pulse to correct form and monitoring sensors that transmit movements and vital signs to your smart device. Who knows what the future will bring with smart fabric, but we're excited to see how this technology develops.
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