By Naveed Siraj Country Manager Intel Pakistan
Tablets are replacing clipboards, boundary lines are becoming 3D, and players are now able to give live event commentary via cameras in their helmets.
As we saw during the recently concluded ICC Cricket Worldcup 2015, technology and sport are increasingly forming a powerful union transforming the viewing experience of sports lovers across the world. In fact, this union is reinventing how we train, watch, and play our favorite games. With live feeds, big data, mobile applications, and wearables at our fingertips, technology’s influence over sport ripples from the big leagues down to the at-home enthusiast.
With so much sports technology at the ready, we’ve pulled together a list of what we think are the ‘Top 10 Ways Technology and Sports are the Perfect Training Partners’ to help you get the most out of your training sessions.
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There’s something for everyone
Intel’s number one reason why technology is the perfect training partner is the plethora of intelligent devices and programs out there to help you train better.
Whatever your fitness goal, technology can help get you there from apps helping you find and compare the best sporting equipment or locations to keeping up to date with the latest sports news. There’s also wearables that track your heart-rate and speed, and by syncing with your devices, you can manage your performance data with incredible speed, reliability, and precision.
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Your personal cheerleader
We all need a little encouragement now and then to go out and train or attend that early morning gym class – especially during the winter months – but thanks to technology you can exercise in the comfort of your own home. There’s even applications that will give you motivational boosts while out and about training.
There are plenty of fitness focused devices as well as mobile apps which can use the technology in your smartphone to track your running progress, including speed, elapsed time, and distance. Whether you need motivation, videos to see the correct form for your workout or just want to track progress, there’s something for everyone.
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Holding you accountable
Sports wearables make being lazy hard work. Fitness trackers and smartwatches now are able to sync data to phone-based apps, displaying daily activity including heart rate, calories burnt, distance covered, sleep, and steps. If the guilt of low numbers doesn’t get you moving, some wearables even go so far to beep and buzz at you after a while of inactivity.
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Get your own personal trainer
Apps and trackers like the Adidas MiCoach, which was used by soccer World Champions, Germany, provide detailed performance data which allows you to fine tune your skills and plan workouts – and those of your friends.
You can access free world-class training sessions in the comfort of your bedroom, office, or garden. These handheld personal trainers offer customizable workouts including audio guidance and visual demos to help get that six-pack underway. To keep your momentum flowing, track your data, and watch the demo videos on your ultra-light device to ensure you get the best picture and results from your workout.
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Reaching new heights
Today, technology can use big data from training, preparation, and tournaments to enable individuals, teams, and coaches to assess and improve outcomes with new degrees of accuracy.
A great example of this is STATS’ SportVU technology, which captures one million data records per game and is already being used in the UEFA Champions League and the NBA. For instance, NBA teams can track the shot location of every player and their success rate allowing them to identify strengths and weaknesses to adapt accordingly. The workstations tasked with managing these significant data volumes are able to generate reports within 90 seconds, allowing teams to take immediate action to steal a march on the competition.
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A deep understanding
Want to use your device at the gym without having to pause mid-run to change music or that news article you were reading? If so, then devices with 3D cameras might be the ideal choice for you. The devices use motion-tracking software to create a touch-free interface that responds to hand, arm, and head motions as well as facial expressions, making it the perfect companion for when you’re logging those kilometers on the exercise bike or treadmill in the gym.
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Learning from the greats
Social media and digital content has revolutionized the way we engage with and watch our favorite sporting teams and athletes. You can now gain unprecedented insights to better understand high-profile athletes, or consume visual content delivering behind-the-scenes exclusive access to their favorite sports club. This means it’s easier than ever before to learn new styles, moves, and strategies that could help you improve your own game.
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Never forget a workout
Whether you’re simply syncing your gym schedule to your smartphone’s digital calendar or looking for new exciting ways to get active, technology helps you train harder by keeping you organized. Some smartwatches even display emails and enable you to take calls while training – ensuring you never have an excuse to miss a session again.
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Stay inspired and keep at it
With the online fitness revolution exploding, there is an endless supply of great, motivating information out there that can help improve and strengthen your training. Whether it’s online communities that focus on like minded people enthusiastic for particular sport or activity, there is no shortage of inspiration for those who choose to be inspired.
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Unite with likeminded training buddies
Thanks to technology even those who don’t play in a team will always have somebody to train with. Whether it’s bonding over a mobile app, finding a class online, streaming an exercise program, or competing with friends using your wearables or apps that function as workout trackers, technology creates new ways for people to connect both on and off the field. Technology creates new sports buddies, which is the greatest inspiration of all!
