Transforming workouts with a personalized media experience
May 27, 2010 | Length: 00:02:37
Start-up Netpulse is developing new technologies to motivate people to get in shape, first by enabling access of their favorite media on any piece of workout equipment and secondly by helping people better monitor their health with new analytics software. SmartPlanet visits New York Sports Club and NetPulse's San Francisco offices to get a closer look at the new fitness gear.
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They have been available as predecessors to Netulse and proliferation of all the Wii variants. They're all worthy when interest motivates activity along with affordability and access but the cloud definitely opens the variety of selection. I'd like to provide a design for this but I prefer to be outdoor and use my home facilities so haven't been in touch with the gym facilities but can remember some equipment.
They were mostly cycling or rowing but there was an especially memorable game that involved a variant on the Aztec game, Ullamaliztli. I believe it was called Azteka but I can't find it. For a while, there was a league in San Diego but I was in the Navy and eventually went to my next assignment. Haven't seen it since.
It was really fun and effective but the equipment suffered because it needed to be more durable and rugged. It was a demanding, dynamic, and engaging apparatus that involved pedaling for speed, movement of the handles and recumbent seat for steering, along with pressing buttons for braking and to manipulate the ball for passing and kicking it through a hoop.
The game allowed competing or partnering with an automated or human players. I think the view was selectable from first person and omnipresent. I miss it and would like to own at least one so long as technical support would be available.
All of the equipment I had used employed sensors and algorithms that provided real-time feedback data and summary information. Unless I'm getting tested or the weather is inclement, I can't deal with cardio inside a gym especially on a treadmill. I do like the VR aspect and the idea of connecting with other people that is reflected on a display. The features have to be engaging else I'm outside in the real world.
Transcript
Music Sumi Das: Everyone knows exercise is good for you. Still, getting on that treadmill is never easy. But Bay Area startup Netpulse is developing new technologies to motivate people to get in shape by enabling access of their favorite media on any piece of workout equipment. Brian Arp is the CEO of the company. Brian Arp: This machine regardless, if in New York, San Francisco, LA, will configure to your personal settings. When the user comes in, they enter their ID number and their password, and now, that quickly, this machine is completely configured to my settings. Sumi Das: So for example, say a person wants to watch and listen to music videos. They can customize their own playlist from home and then have it ready when they get on the treadmill. Brian Arp: When they go to any Netpulse equipped device, when they log in, their music video playlist will be there. Sumi Das: Exercisers can also access on-demand TV content. Brian Arp: They can watch last night's episode of Survivor or different TV shows while they're working out. So they're not limited to working out at 2 o'clock in the afternoon and having to watch Oprah or daytime program that may not be interesting. Sumi Das: Or if they use an iPod, they can bring the device to the gym and dock it right into the machine. But obviously, people go to the gym not just to be entertained, but to get fit, so Netpulse is also trying to change how health analytics is measured on gym equipment. Brian Arp: We take the data out of the exercise equipment, store it up on the inaudible and it will track all my different workouts. So I can go to any gym in the country with Netpulse, work out on the treadmill, and then I can go online and see my workout data, analyze it, share it with my trainer. Sumi Das: Arp says as the platform evolves, users will be able to share their results with their health care providers, and maybe even their company to receive discounts for staying healthy. Also in the future, there are plans to add Twitter and Facebook functionality so that people can share their workout data on line or connect with one another from other gyms. Brian Arp: You'll be able to challenge your friend in New York, so you get on a treadmill in San Francisco, see your friend is logged in because his Twitter account pops up, and you'll be able to virtually run with him on different sides of the country on the same treadmill, see them as a dot ahead of you, you can catch up, slow down, do different things like that. Sumi Das: Personal fitness gets smarter with new technologies to distract you while you work out. For Smart Planet, I'm Sumi Das.
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