Using technology to stay fit has become a reality for most of us. Mobile applications like SlimKicker and SportyPal make it easy to set down even the most demanding of fitness goals, and track your progress over time. And there’s also social sites such as FitConnect that give you what’s needed the most when trying to pick up healthier habits: motivation.
And now, a service like Fitsquare is here to let even those who’re really busy know about the healthiest venues in town.
Fitsquare has been created by Sam Smith, a 24 year old Managing Director of Specific Gravity Ltd and final year BSc Computer Science student at the University of Lincoln. The whole project has been inspired by the idea that emerging services like Foursquare could provide a new platform for technologies which can aid users lead healthier lifestyles.
Sam Smith created Fitsquare as a final year Computer Science degree research project.
So, Fitsquare sends users real-time messages to encourage them to become involved in physical activities. And these messages are completely personalized. That’s the key aspect of Fitsquare. The application can learn what approach to use in order to make you check in to venues, and base all its recommendations on that. The use of this kind of “persuasive technology” is what makes Fitsquare a fitness service like no other.
And just like Foursquare, Fitsquare is a fun social game where you can earn points and exclusive badges for your involvement. Check them out:
Of course, Fitsquare also gives you the tools for realizing exactly how well you’re doing, and where there’s room for improvement. You can analyze everything using both graphs and charts, and you can also view your full check-in history at a glance. It’ll be published on your wall, and your friends will get to view it there. They’ll be able to comment on any of your check-ins, and also to like/dislike any of them. And you’ll be able to do the same thing yourself. It’s a game, after all. You’ll be competing against each other to make it to the top of the leaderboards for your city.
Fitsquare is a free service, and you can become a user just by signing in with your Foursquare account on the homepage. Messages will be delivered in real-time by Twitter and by email.
