Technology might be considered as one of the best and worst things that happened to humanity. Each day it helps us develop more advanced solutions to our simple problems, but it also makes us being addicted to our modern devices and gadgets. Try to ask ten people what is their biggest fear nowadays, and I’m pretty sure that nine out of ten will answer with “Living without an internet connection”.
With that being said, let’s focus a bit more on how technology is changing the game when it comes to sport and fitness.
Imagine being a passionate football fan and you’re watching your favorite team playing in the finals of a league or a tournament. Some of the players on the enemy team make a mistake and you think a penalty should be issued, but it looks like the judge doesn’t think the same. You sit there frustrated with his poor decision and your day is ruined. Your favorite team ends up losing the game just because of that decision. Well, this might’ve been a thing in the past, but with today’s technology, a lot of that changed. There are countless cameras, including slow motion ones, that judges and their assistants can use to make a correct and fair decision about anything that happens on the playfield. Technology does not only play an important role in the judge’s decision making, but it’s also helping athletes to develop better physiques and keep track of everything they need while training. This includes tracking their heartbeat, the number of sets they did in the gym and many other things of that nature.
If you take a look of a photo from the early golden ages of bodybuilding and walk into a gym in 2019, the first difference that you’re going to notice is that people today have lots of equipment that helps them in their fitness journey.
Almost everyone today owns a smartwatch configured to match their workout routine so they can track everything and be precise with their training. Also, head to the cardio part of the gym and you will find every experienced runner wearing a heartbeat sensor.
Equipment aside, take a look at supplements and modern diets that explain precisely the macros and food intake that an athlete is supposed to eat to meet his goals.
There is more research on every supplement and performance enhancer that you can find in a sports supplement store and a lot more research on athletes and sport in general. All of this helps the trainees perform better and get more insight into how their bodies work.
I spoke to a gym coach and he said that back in the day, the only thing they had were some magazines that weren’t covering even half of the thing that you need to know before you start with sports or going to the gym in general. You had to go and meet someone at the gym, and kindly ask him to explain the exercises. “There were a lot more injuries back in the day because of people trying different things and experimenting themselves until they learn the correct way to perform an exercise,” he says. Now, inexperienced folks can “meet” a professional that explains everything they need with just two simple clicks from the comfort of their room. Everything that we need is on the internet, it’s just up to us to do the research.
