Technology in Exercise and Coaching

Why are we undertaking this piece of research?

Over recent years the sport and fitness tech sector has boomed. From wearables and smartphone applications to heat map analysis and goal line technology, almost anything and everything can be tracked, measured and analysed to help us keep on track with our goals and improve performance.

In addition, other technology such as social media applications have become ingrained into the lifestyle of the vast majority of the population. We want to explore the use of technology by both participants of sport and physical activity as well as the technology that coaches/instructors use to manage and deliver their sessions within Leicestershire to see where we can help our coaches to improve their own sessions and keep their participants interested.

Similar research has previously been conducted by Liverpool John Moores University looking at technology use on a national level, this study categorised technology into 8 generic groups, but with so many different products and brands on the market we want to help narrow down the specific technology that people use in our area.

How are we going to use the results?

We want to use the information learnt from the survey to shape the planning of training, workshops and resources for our coaches and discover new innovative methods to make sessions and classes more engaging. We want to combine results from participants with the needs of our coaches to inform our decisions and provide the most appropriate support. As a result of helping our coaches and instructors to incorporate technology into their sessions we hope to provide more enjoyable sessions for participants.

What's in it for you?

To thank respondents for their time they will be entered into a prize draw to win one of 3 prizes. A Xiaomi Mi Band 2 is up for grabs for respondents of the technology in exercise survey. This is a great all-round tracker to see how active you are. It tracks heart rate, steps and sleep, and is also water resistant, includes smart alarms and incoming call alerts.

For those who complete our technology in coaching survey there is a chance to win either a FREE place onto one of our coaching courses (up to the value of £35) or a FREE place onto our behaviour change workshop.

In this workshop you will start your journey to understanding human behaviour…learn techniques on how to attract and retain participants to your sessions as well as looking at how to adapt your session to make them attractive to hard to reach groups.

How can you take part?

To be a part of our research and be in with a chance of winning visit one of the links below before the closing date: Sunday 30^th April.

If you are a coach/instructor of sport or physical activity please complete the survey on this link: http://www.lrsport.org/forms/view/technologyincoachingopen

If you partake in any form of exercise or sport please complete the survey on this link: http://www.lrsport.org/forms/view/technologyinexerciseopen