Goji Play: Gamify Your Halloween Calories Off!

Into the Dead zombie game (above) is another spooky game Goji Play has partnered with in time for Halloween.

I first wrote about Goji Play last December, and since then they have more than tripled the number of games linked to the platform. The device and fitness wearable attaches to any cardio machine to track workout metrics. The data relays back to a tablet or phone, which can be sync’d to any one of Goji’s games. The faster you move, the better you play in the game.

For those of you indulging in a couple pieces of Halloween chocolate, note how many calories these fun sizes can add up to! Here are the number of games (and minutes of cardio) it takes to burn off some of the top Halloween candies:

Goji Play comes with wireless controllers and a clip on activity sensor. Compatible games are available on any iOS device. At less than $100, Goji Play transforms any piece of cardio equipment into a gaming machine. Available at bluegoji.com or Amazon.com today.

BioBeats: Adaptive Media Blends Heart With Music

BioBeats has merged entertainment and healthcare into their first experimental app, Pulse. Experiment #2 is coming soon – BioMuse. While Pulse is fun – your heart beat drives the rhythm and force of the music, the main goal for BioBeats is to change the sensory settings around you to improve your health and/or entertainment factor. An example would be playing more upbeat music to make you run faster or changing the music to something slower when your heart rate reaches its peak. On the entertainment side, knowing how a person’s biometrics react to a scene in a movie could encourage movie producers to change the music/lighting to engage with the way a person feels. The company is “built on a cloud-based responsive platform designed to support the management of chronic conditions and general wellness,” so I’m sure they are working on clinical and hospital functioning apps as well.

BioBeats and Far East Movement created an event that was powered by over 1.5 million heart beats, see the video they made below:

Turn Up The Love from BioBeats Inc. on Vimeo.

Nike+ Accelerator: 10 Companies Bringing Health and Fitness to a New Level

NIKE announced this week that they’ve chosen 10 companies to participate in its Nike+ Accelerator program, co-facilitated with startup accelerator, TechStars. Nike filtered through hundreds of applications to create the following list:

• FitDeck: Digital decks of exercise playing cards that deliver ever-changing workouts for fitness and sports.
• GoRecess: Helps users find, book and review fitness activities.
• Chroma.io: An indie game studio that creates virtual worlds tied to real-world activity.
• CoachBase: Provides a digital sports coaching platform.
• FitCause: Leverages fitness data as a means of raising money for charities.
• HighFive: Ad network for health and fitness apps that helps people achieve their goals by rewarding them along their journey.
• Sprout At Work: Provider of corporate wellness solutions leveraging social and gamification tools to inspire employees and empower employers.
• GeoPalz: An interactive gaming and rewards platform for kids and families.
• Incomparable Things: Creates activity-driven fantasy sports leagues.
• RecBob: Offers a platform that makes recreational sports easy by organizing play.

These companies will present their businesses at two investor Demo Days in June (one at the Nike World Headquarters and one in Silicon Valley) and I look forward to seeing their progress these next three months.

Tradeshow: International Consumer Electronics Show (CES)

CES 2013 had a greatly expanded health and fitness related consumer device section of the tradeshow. I navigated my way through the massive exhibit floor along with over 150,000 other attendees from around the world. There will be a number of exciting devices of various price points aimed at physical and mental fitness coming to market this year and I will be sure to cover them in more detail as they are released. As for now, here are a few teaser photos from CES.

Interview: Brent Poole, Mindbloom Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Brent Poole is engaging on the phone – no wonder his company, Mindbloom, founded with co-founder Chris Hewett, has taken health engagement to a new level.

Before Mindbloom, Brent and Chris realized that they took the stresses and pressures created at work back home, leading to a decrease in quality of health and lifestyle. With Chris’s knowledge of behavioral sciences from his work with video games and Brent’s focus on finance and operations, the two created Mindbloom, which couples behavioral psychology with social gaming. In Brent’s words, “To really innovate in the healthcare space you need to take a perspective outside of healthcare. When you are talking customer engagement, you should look at gaming.” Last year the company partnered with Aetna to optimize the Mindbloom Life Game experience and released the program to all Aetna members.

Adding a level of personalization (users’ music and media), the Bloom* app helps people think more deeply and become more engaged in their health through focused motivation. “This isn’t about creating another experience for the Quantified Selfers – it’s about getting people who aren’t focused on their health outcomes to become more active by showing them that small decisions can create a healthier lifestyle,” explained Brent. The Bloom* app sends self-directed and preset inspirational reminders and notifications to your mobile device throughout the day, anything from a reminder to drink more water to a reminder to go for a walk. The app currently has 320k downloads.

 

Mindbloom also recently partnered with Vivacity, a workforce wellness company, to give their users access to various Mindbloom applications. The first of which is Juice, an app that tasks users to track their energy levels during the day based on levels such as sleep and exercise. The app creates awareness on how your behaviors change the way you feel. Launched November 20th, traction has been fantastic with 31k downloads to date with more than a third of users engaging with the app at least 7 days in a row.

What can we look forward to in 2013? The company is working on making all its existing applications cross-platform, not just on iOS. Also, Mindbloom has several apps in the ideation stage and two in production. We should see the first 2013 release in early spring, and another shortly thereafter. Brent wouldn’t release further details, but did say that they aligned with Bloom* and Juice, both linking positive psychology, personal efficacy, and behavioral health. We are certainly excited for what’s to come!

BitGym: Making Stationary Workouts More Interactive

I use the stationary bike in my living room three times a week while watching Homeland and Nashville, biking at a moderate pace. After using BitGym’s Fit Freeway for 10 minutes, in a retro-arcade-style land dodging cars and sharp turns, I’m totally in the zone. I don’t even notice that I’m pedaling like crazy until I’m off the saddle to catch my breath.

The concept of using head-tracking games to influence a more intense workout is an interesting concept. Perhaps the company will roll-out an iPad plug in – like a simple handheld one button detonator so I can shoot at dinosaurs or zombies while biking as fast as I can away from them.

For those who want a more calming application, Virtual Active takes you through beautiful locations throughout the world including Italy, the Grand Canyon, and US cities on a 10-60 minute tour while you are on your bike, elliptical or treadmill.