There’s nothing wrong with liking old-school workouts, but going high-tech can provide an exercise boost. Modern exercise gear can change the way you exercise, give you a more productive workout or help you mix things up for excitement. There are good reasons to be excited about popular technology for fitness.

What Does Technology for Fitness Include?

Fitness technology includes any exercise equipment that’s augmented with smart features. It combines high-quality fitness gear that gets the job done with tech advances that show you a more efficient way to reach your goals. When you have limited time each day to work out, you want to get the biggest bang for your buck.

Exercise tech falls into six main categories:

• Smart gym equipment: Home fitness equipment with features such as tablets, surround sound, cameras, sensors and Bluetooth
• Fitness tracking technology: Wearable tech that keeps track of your physical condition, exercise performance and progress
• Virtual reality and augmented reality: Goggles and gear designed to immerse you in digital experiences while exercising
• Fitness apps: Apps for your smartphone or TV designed to support your workouts, such as virtual exercise classes
• Recovery equipment: A large category dedicated to muscle recovery and overall well-being, including gear for improved hydration
• Artificial intelligence: A relatively new technology that can analyze your performance, help you plan your next steps and recommend exercises

Explore the possibilities of modern fitness technology.

What Home Gym Technology for Fitness Should You Check Out?

Modern tech makes it possible for you to get comprehensive training from the comfort of your home. Before, if you wanted top-quality equipment and fitness advice, you needed to visit your local gym. These days, you can get in a solid workout even if you have a busy lifestyle and a relatively small living room.

Smart Cycles

Today’s exercise bikes have a huge range of features that yesteryear’s models only dreamed of. LED screens let you stream your favorite series or participate in a virtual ride. You can adjust your bike’s resistance — some virtual courses do it automatically — or enjoy choreographed classes with professional instructors.

Treadmills

If walking or jogging is up your alley, a smart treadmill is a great fit. You can find models that have a sleek profile — some fold up to the size of luggage — and versatile features, including heart rate monitors, streaming libraries, automatic incline adjustments and other technology for fitness enthusiasts.

Rowing Systems

Do you love exercising outdoors but live far from any parks or beaches? Smart rowing tech may help you enjoy your workouts more. Many of these setups have LED screens that stream virtual “trips,” making you feel like you’re rowing down a river in Thailand or kayaking off the coast of Maine as you exercise. This extra level of realism can make your motions feel more “real” and satisfying.

Gym Studios

These days, the sky is the limit for at-home gym equipment with smart sensors:

• Free weights
• Jump ropes
• Resistance bands
• Leg and arm machines

Smart gym studios combine gear with a vertical screen to link you with on-demand workout videos, live classes and more.

Why Is Fitness Tracking Tech Good for Workouts?

Few types of technology have transformed workouts as much as trackers. These exercise essentials give you a wealth of information to improve your performance.

Fitness Wearables

Modern fitness trackers look like streamlined watches. These devices have features designed to make your workout more enjoyable and productive. Music streaming apps keep you energized as you jog and a step counter shows how active you’ve been. You can also keep an eye on your heart rate, blood oxygen levels and similar measurements.

What should you look for in tracker technology for fitness? The answer depends on your price range, but the following features can be a huge help:

• GPS and map features for runs
• Speed sensors, health stats and step counters
• Notes and reminders
• Music storage or streaming
• IPX7 or IPX8 water resistance

Choose something that is durable enough to take a few bumps without problem, as well as lightweight enough to wear comfortably and consistently. When you’re running several miles, you wouldn’t believe how big a difference 20 grams makes.

Smartwatches

Smartwatches and fitness trackers have several differences. Smartwatch features cater to a variety of daily activities, such as apps for productivity at work or microphones to make phone calls. Watches also tend to be heavier because of the larger screen, and their batteries drain faster. Still, if you generally stop at the gym on your way home from work, a watch with fitness features can be a decent tool for your lifestyle.

Heart Rate Monitors

Don’t fitness trackers already measure your heart rate? Yes and no.

Wearables track your heart rate with optical sensors. Wrist sensors have good accuracy, but they’re not as accurate as chest straps. Tattoos, heavy movements and even cold weather can throw wrist sensors off.

If your workout depends heavily on reaching a target heart rate and staying there, consider investing in a dedicated heart monitor. For example, fans of high-intensity interval training can benefit from this type of help. Measuring your heart rate can be important for getting the results you want from walking or biking, too.

Full-Body Scanning Technology for Fitness Goals

In the past, exercise enthusiasts lived by their scale to track their progress. Now, trainers are realizing that weight doesn’t tell the whole story when it comes to fitness. You can have fantastic workouts but not see any weight loss, at least not right away. Muscle really does weigh more than fat, so you can have slimmer measurements without dropping on the scale.

Full-body scanning tech, like ZOZOFIT, can give you a more accurate picture of your fitness progress. With precise measurements and 3D scans of your body, you can see exactly how the contours of your body are changing and where. You can see as your abdomen, chest, legs, arms and other areas start to have better muscle tone, regardless of what the scale is telling you.

What Is Augmented Reality and VR Fitness Technology For?

Have you ever found your mind wandering in the middle of a workout? Your routine may be starting to bore you. The problem is that when you “phone it in” during a workout, your heart rate usually drops and you don’t push yourself to the limit.

VR and AR technology for fitness is designed to make exercise more interactive and immersive. Imagine how you will feel if, instead of just punching the air, you could be seeing a real boxing match. A virtual opponent can make you put more emotion and effort into your punches, dodging, weaving, and performing other motions for a better overall workout.

AR uses glasses or mirrors to show you a digital image over your real-life vision. VR involves wearing a headset that completely immerses you in a virtual world. This type of technology isn’t for everyone — you may not love wearing something heavy when exercising — but it can make workouts more exciting for people who already like VR. If you’re a gamer, for example, why not put your headset to good use for both work and play?

How Do Smartphone Apps Pair With Wearable Technology for Fitness?

Many fitness trackers are designed to sync up with dedicated smartphone apps. The tracker has the sensors and tech needed for measuring your performance, and apps do the heavy lifting when it comes to data.

For example, instead of only seeing your current heart rate, you can look at a graph that shows you the highs and lows throughout your entire exercise period. That way, you can tell if you should be pushing yourself a little harder.

Some apps also have a massive library of exercises to learn, workouts to stream and other fitness-related tips. Some apps help you plan your next run or bike ride. Paid apps offer more features, but there are free options out there, too.

Why Is Recovery Technology for Fitness Trending and What Does It Do?

Recovery systems can include apps, trackers and some exercise equipment. These items are geared toward enhancing active and passive recovery during rest days. Apps may plan out some light exercises or teach you myofascial roller techniques to reduce muscle soreness after workouts.

Some smart home devices and fitness wearables can measure your sleep quality all night long, calculating how long you spend in restorative sleep phases and how many times you wake up. Some smartphone apps even listen for signs of snoring!

Proper recovery is important for avoiding injuries. It can also help you keep your momentum going.

How Can AI Support Your Fitness Goals?

AI is still progressing in technology for fitness, so only the future will tell what it is truly capable of. That said, the possibilities are exciting. AI is great at comparing patterns with a large quantity of data. This can have many applications in fitness:

• Helping you correct posture problems when exercising
• Setting a realistic target of sets for your current fitness level
• Providing weight training suggestions
• Keeping track of your reps and workout history
• Training you in new positions or techniques from a huge library

Some of these features are already available with smart mirrors. These setups have cameras that analyze your movements and give you feedback. This could potentially help you avoid hurting yourself, such as by avoiding risky positions during weight lifting.

What Are the Benefits of Modern Technology for Fitness?

Exercise technology can make it easier for you to work out, in addition to providing other benefits.

Convenience

Having to juggle work and kids doesn’t need to be an obstacle to regular workouts. You just need a little help, which is where fitness tech comes in. Trackers can help you set activity goals every day, breaking large exercise periods into more manageable chunks. Home gym setups and virtual fitness streaming let you make the most of your available workout time instead of waiting in traffic.

Motivation

To reach any long-term goal, it’s helpful to break it into smaller steps. As you reach each milestone, you get a reason to celebrate. Acknowledging your progress makes you happy. Fitness technology can help you do this with exercise goals, whether you want to lose weight, stay active or keep your heart in good shape.

Self-Esteem

Modern technology for fitness can help you view exercise in terms of what counts: physical activity. Instead of feeling frustrated that you haven’t lost as much weight as you want yet, you can feel proud that you’re accomplishing other goals:

• Improving your muscle tone
• Increasing your stamina and overall fitness level
• Exercising regularly
• Strengthening your bones and joints
• Taking good care of your heart

For example, you may notice that you need to run harder or longer before you hit your target heart rate. That means you’re in better shape than you were before, which is worth bragging about!

Precision

Sensors, apps and AI tech can potentially help you plan your workouts more precisely. When you know exactly which muscle groups you want to target, you can approach every workout session with specific exercises that support your goals. In the future, apps might learn to automatically customize a workout plan for you based on recent activity, muscle measurements, soreness levels or similar factors.

Results

It’s not always easy to know your limits. On one hand, you don’t want to push yourself too hard, but you also need to break a sweat. Heart rate trackers and fitness apps can help you learn more about your body and your personal objectives. You can start to get a feel for what low-, moderate- and high-intensity activity means in your case. That can help you burn more calories without overexerting yourself.

What Is the Best Technology for Fitness?

You don’t need high-tech equipment to exercise, but it may help you achieve your goals more quickly or easily. When choosing technology for fitness goals, focus on which exercise tech is a good fit for your lifestyle, workout preferences and habits. After all, making plans is good, but achieving results is even better. Discover how ZOZOFIT's technology and the ZOZOFIT app can keep you on track today.