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Happy Wednesday! We’ve got some truly wild updates from the world of wellness-tech this week. Let’s go!

In this week’s newsletter:

• 🤖 WHOOP unleashes ChatGPT powered fitness coach

• 🎭 Therabody debuts new high-tech, anti-aging LED mask

• 👂 Niura innovates powerful brain-monitoring earbuds

• 🧑‍⚕️ Health Hack of the Week: Doctor’s Orders

• 🥽 Explore the booming $15.7B VR fitness market

📊 Poll of the Week 📊

Last week, we asked about the most valuable feature of your wearables…

And the most selected choice was:

Heart Rate Monitoring. 🫀

One person even wrote in to say:

“My Apple Watch notified me of extremely low HR when I was sleeping. I now have a pacemaker. The watch saved my life.” 🤯

This week, we're venturing into the futuristic realm of AI-powered fitness coaching.

As AI continues to revolutionize personalized fitness, we're curious:

Grain-Free, Delicious, AND Good For You!

While grains have been the FOUNDATION of the US government’s food pyramid since 1992, they’re actually terrible for you.

In fact, they’re the main dietary source of what’s called anti-nutrients…which earn their title because they block the absorption of nutrients – especially those required for strong, healthy bones.

And most of the grains you consume contain THREE of the worst anti-nutrients for your system.

1.) Lectins: these “sticky proteins” interfere with the absorption of calcium, iron, phosphorus, and zinc…and lead to symptoms like nausea, diarrhea and bloating.

2.) Phytates: humans are completely unable to digest phytates and leach calcium from your system that was destined for your bones.

3.) Gluten: a protein which causes an allergic reaction in some people and can cause a wide variety of issues including vomiting, bloating, stomach pain, and diarrhea… yikes!

But WAIT!

We’ve made a spectacular & delicious 100% grain-FREE alternative to satisfy your cravings!

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🧑‍💻 The Wellness-Tech Roundup

WHOOP Launches ChatGPT-Powered Fitness Coach 🤖

WHOOP is stepping up its fitness-tech with their new WHOOP Coach, powered by ChatGPT, ready to serve you personalized recommendations and enhanced data insights.

Like a personalized fitness advisor, WHOOP Coach functions as a health-focused chatbot that extracts information from your WHOOP data to design custom plans, routines, and recipes, tailor-fitted to your fitness goals.

So whether it’s running a half-marathon or understanding why you might be feeling excessively tired, WHOOP Coach has got you covered!

Key Takeaway: With WHOOP Coach, personalization in fitness tech is reaching new heights, offering users not just data, but insightful, tailored advice and plans.

It's a peek into the future of fitness, where technology is not just a passive tracker but an active participant in our wellness journeys. Just remember to take it easy when the AI is being difficult. 😉

Therabody Debuts High-Tech, Anti-Aging LED Mask 🎭

Therabody, widely recognized for its innovative wellness tech like the Theragun, is branching out with a new addition: the TheraFace Mask.

This fancy LED light therapy mask claims to combat signs of aging, utilizing 648 medical-grade infrared LED lights to promote firmer, radiant skin, and even featuring Therabody's signature vibration therapy for an added relaxation experience.

The mask offers a range of therapies, adjustable settings, and 15-minute vibration-only massage session for stress reduction. Take a peek over on Therabody’s website.

What do you think? Cool anti-aging gadget, or a harrowing, high-tech Halloween mask?

Key Takeaway: Therabody is blending tech and anti-aging with its new TheraFace Mask, marking the brand's ambitious expansion into the beauty sector.

This innovation is a response to consumer demand for tech-driven beauty solutions, reflecting a growing trend where wellness and beauty intertwine.

It's a notable leap, showing that our quest for wellness and youth is increasingly supported by advanced technology and consumer-driven innovation.

Niura’s Brain-Monitoring Earbuds: Tuning into Your Mental Symphony 👂🎶

Niura has innovated a pair of groundbreaking earbuds that can monitor brain activity, potentially detect health issues, and recommend music according to the user's mood.

Born from the personal experiences of the founders, this state-of-the-art device, integrating EEG technology, offers a versatile and less intrusive way to keep an eye on brain health.

The earbuds, with features including real-time EEG data visualization and comprehensive data analysis tools, adhere to strict security and health standards.

Niura aims to license its technology to prominent brands in audio and biomedical sectors and is in the process of raising seed funds to propel its pioneering product through partnerships.

Key Takeaway: Niura is revolutionizing the wearables space with its EEG-integrated earbuds, offering a seamless and versatile approach to monitoring brain health and personalizing music experiences.

This innovation stands out by providing continuous, comfortable, and precise monitoring, showcasing the untapped potential of integrating advanced medical technology into everyday devices.

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🌿 Health Hack of the Week: Doctor’s Orders 🧑‍⚕️

This is brilliant.

One doctor brought together doctors from every single medical specialty to contribute to a video…

Where they each share one top health tip they give to their patients.

With tips like:

• Never stick anything smaller than your elbow in your ear canals (sorry Q-tips!) 👂

• Brushing your teeth at a 45° angle 🪥

• Eating more fiber 🍊

You’re bound to find something in here you’re NOT doing…

That could make a positive impact on your health.

💡 Go watch this short video for a great set of health tips from doctors across every medical specialty.

📲 The YDY Download

HealthHack is the sister publication of YDY, the "kart style" fitness video game that lets you compete against others using your heart rate as fuel!

We’ve added 7 new races this week across our four different levels.

Shoutout to Jarod Burton for climbing up the leaderboard. 🙌

Diving into Virtual Realms: The Latest in VR Fitness

Virtual Reality (VR) fitness has undergone some exciting, rapid developments in the last month, doing even more to transform workout routines into exciting, immersive experiences.

Whether it’s bringing workout studios to your home, or letting you go on wild adventures while exercising…

The landscape of working out is going through major updates, fast.

Let’s jump into the latest updates on VR Fitness and how it’s changing the way we work out!

Leading Innovations and Collaborations

Two major collaborations lead the way in VR fitness innovations in September. Zumba, the global dance fitness leader, is leaping into the virtual world through a collaboration with FitXR, offering a diversified range of 32 classes in mixed reality and VR.

This alliance aims to render the energetic and lively Zumba experience virtually, making it more accessible and inclusive.

Similarly, Xponential Fitness is unveiling a VR app for Meta’s Quest 3 headset, allowing users to immerse themselves in a virtual fitness studio, providing a seamless blend of the studio environment with users' space.

FitXR is not only leading in collaborations but has also reached a milestone with its on-demand workout library, offering over 1,000 classes across diverse fitness studios.

This proliferation of classes emphasizes the versatility and accessibility of VR fitness, allowing users to incorporate varied workouts into their daily routines from anywhere in the world.

Market Growth and Trends

The global VR fitness game market is witnessing exponential growth, with predictions of reaching $15.7 billion USD by 2030.

This growth is spurred by the increasing demand for immersive workout experiences and the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, which elevated the pursuit of home-based fitness solutions.

The market’s advancement is characterized by innovations, diverse workout routines, multiplayer options, and compatibility with various VR headsets.

Companies like Meta Platforms, FitXR, and Resolution Games are prominent players contributing to the market’s expansion.

Oculus, a brand under Meta Platforms, is notably expanding its library of workout options, while partnerships between VR developers and fitness equipment manufacturers are resulting in gamified fitness machines that synchronize with VR platforms.

Development Direction

The future of VR fitness innovations looks promising, with ongoing developments focusing on data analytics, personalization, and the integration of wearables and AI.

These integrations are crucial in offering users a comprehensive fitness experience by enabling progress tracking and workout customization.

However, the industry also faces challenges including high initial costs, potential motion sickness, content quality and variety, and privacy concerns related to data collection and sharing, which could impact user trust and the market’s long-term sustainability.

Conclusion

With Zumba, FitXR, Xponential Fitness, and Oculus all contributing big developments in the last month, VR innovations are transforming the wellness tech space at lightning speed.

Big collaborations in the space indicate a hopeful outlook, too, as more companies work together to tap into and build this new world of VR fitness.

With the market poised to witness sustained growth, the integration of advanced technologies and continuous innovations will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of this field, making it a mainstream component in the fitness industry.

Developments don’t seem to be slowing down any time soon, either, so we can’t wait to see what gets developed next!

💡 Logging off! See you next week with more wellness-tech insights! 🌟