Move over, Fitbit and Up: A trio of Canadian entrepreneurs at Athos in Redwood City think their new line of wearable tech shirts and shorts — with sensors that provide instant feedback about muscle exertion — will blow all other tech fitness devices out of the water, or at least out of the gym.
Athos’ sensors are embedded without wires into the clothing and act as an electronic personal trainer that helps the athlete to correct his or her form and achieve other fitness goals, without an actual drill sergeant looming overhead. Company spokesman Jake Waxenberg, a former European soccer player, said the apparel is as comfortable as any other on the market, a prime consideration along with the technology. ”We want to be a performance apparel company first.”
Said Dhananja “DJ” Jayalath, an Athos co-founder, “For wearables to become commonplace, they need to be able to add value and fit into your life, without just being an interesting gadget.”
On the tech side, the apparel contains sensors as flat as Band-Aids that use electromyography to detect impulses in the body, such as heart rate, breathing and muscle exertion. Jayalath described the sensors as “tiny microphones that sit on every muscle and listen to what’s going on.”
That information is transmitted to an app on your smartphone with a special oblong metal device called the “Core,” which sits in a port on the shirt or the shorts. The Core is described as a brain that presents you with the data, analyzes it, and suggests programs for cardio, muscle building, muscle toning and weight loss.
Athos’ hallmark is providing instant feedback about which muscles groups are working and how hard they are working — as in, how hard the right thigh is working compared to the left in a set of squats and whether the correct right muscles are engaged for the optimal benefit in that exercise.
In early testing, Jayalath noticed that Waxenberg’s thighs produced different readings. Waxenberg, who planted with his right leg and kicked with his left, said despite years of professional sports and injuries, none of his coaches had ever noticed or commented on the fact that his legs were not equally strong, something that the Athos system detected within minutes.
The Golden State Warriors have signed on to use the products, once they hit the market in November (pre-orders are being taken online now), but you don’t have to be a pro to use the technology, which is in the range of affordability for most consumers at $99 per piece of apparel and $199 for the Core device.
“A Fitbit gives you motivation to get off the couch, but there’s no next step to help you get better,” Jayalath said. “You go for a run and you want to know, ‘How am I doing?’ With Athos, you learn you’re doing a lot with your right quad and not with your left, so you work on your left quad to make it stronger, less limiting. It tells you how to improve.”
Like many an invention, Jayalath said he and the other original co-founder, Chris Wiebe , came up with the idea out of personal need. The two were engineering students at the University of Waterloo in Ontario who hit the gym but couldn’t afford personal trainers to provide coaching and expertise. They developed crude sensors that they welded onto their clothing. As a trophy of his experimentation, Jayaleth has a scar on his right bicep to prove it. (A third co-founder, Chamath Palihapitya, came in later.)
Their updated technology was presented as a senior thesis for their undergraduate degrees, and as it happened, venture capitalists were in the audience. The company has secured a total of $16 million in funding since 2012, including money from Joe Lacob, the Warriors’ majority owner.
If none of this raises your eyebrows, consider this: The apparel is not only moisture-wicking, but machine washable, too.
For more info, go to www.liveathos.com.
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