Augmented Reality (AR) is shaping the future of sports and fitness industries.
The market cap of AR is expected to hit 118,98 billion USD by 2032 – as forecasted by Statista.
No wonder companies left and right are employing AR app development services to widen their market reach.
Take the trends of wearable devices, for example.
Smartwatches, virtual reality (VR) headsets, and web-enabled glasses come equipped with AR technologies that transform the way people stay active.
If your business plans to increase your market share in the sports and fitness sector, perhaps implementing AR into your product will be the right move.
Let’s tap into the potential of AR and how it will revolutionize your business.
How is AR Technology Benefitting the Sports & Fitness Industry?
You’re probably wondering, “What’s in it for me if I adopt AR for my business?”
Aside from the popularity of AR in retail as well as eCommerce, the technology is gaining wider adoption in the sports and fitness sector.
Research says 44% of people stay inactive because they don’t find exercise to be fun. AR can make exercise more exciting with its immersive and interactive technologies.
If you want to find out the benefits of AR for your business, you need to understand the relevance of AR for customers. Here are some of them:
Convenience
The rise of AR adoption goes all the way back to the pandemic.
As people were unable to go to the gym, they had to move their exercise activities into their homes.
The sales for home fitness equipment went through the roof, and AR was taking the lead.
Even after the pandemic subsided, the hype towards AR shows no signs of stopping.
This is because AR is making it easier for people to exercise.
No longer do they have to go to the gym after a tiring day of work.
Thanks to AR, people can save a lot of time by engaging in physical activities at home and still have a lot of fun in the process.
AR also gives flexibility to people with busy schedules. AR allows people to work out anytime and at their own pace.
This aspect of AR is also beneficial for introverted sport-goers.
When they’re not in the mood to meet people, they can proceed with their fitness routine from the privacy of their homes.
Interactivity
The biggest strength of AR is that it provides as much interactivity as you would experience when exercising in person, or with a coach.
With fitness AR, people can customize their ideal workout environment.
They can try out a range of exercise activities, such as ping pong, yoga, or boxing.
Some AR technologies even allow you to interact with celebrity gamers.
It is no wonder that AR sports and fitness games are topping the charts.
Additionally, AR applications offer detailed fitness instructions and step-by-step guidance in real-time, helping beginners to exercise without trouble.
A study suggests people are more likely to take up habits of activities they enjoy as they easily get bored from doing repetitive tasks.
The gamification of AR motivates people to increase their exercise frequency due to the stimulating experience.
Now, you probably have some insights as to how AR can benefit your customers. These translate to the following advantages for sports and fitness businesses:
- Broaden market reach. With AR, your target audience will not only be limited to sport-goers but also passive exercisers. AR will give you an edge to dominate the market.
- Activate a new revenue stream. Offering AR-powered products can generate huge interest, especially among Gen Z and millennial audiences.
- Expand your business. There’s always a new trend to hijack in the world of AR. By keeping up, your business will always bring new innovations that excite customers and continue to scale up.
- Increase customer retention. The gamification nature of AR motivates people to work out harder and more often. Adopting AR into your app or product can even influence users to stay with you for the long term.
Use Cases of AR in Sports and Fitness for App Development
Perhaps you’re convinced that implementing AR into your product will be a strategic decision for your business.
But, where to start? Here are some inspirations to enlighten you on the use cases of AR in sports and fitness.
Mobile Apps
Many mobile apps come embedded with AR to help users exercise or even improve their skills in different fields of sports.
AR brings in a range of features to improve user’s experience, such as:
- Goal setting – Using AR, you have control over how much you want to exercise in a given time.
- Monitoring – AR can detect your movements, such as how far you have run, and even your heart rate – all in real-time.
- Reminders : With AR, you can schedule future fitness sessions to promote regular exercise.
An example of AR in fitness mobile apps is Prayoga, which uses body tracking to give personalized feedback to improve the users’ yoga postures.
Fitness Games
AR games bridge the virtual world with your reality.
The technology works by overlaying your physical surroundings with 3D elements to set up an interactive environment.
An AR fitness game is highly addictive because you can go on a multiplayer mode and compete with your friends.
The scoring system also encourages people to improve their progress and improve their rank on the scoreboard.
This in turn will help users reach their fitness goals.
One of the earliest fitness AR games is Zombies, Run! in which users have to run and escape from. Audio cues are also in place to give the runners a sense as if they’re truly being chased.
But, if we’re talking about the most popular AR game, nothing comes to mind other than Pokémon GO.
This game may not be fitness in nature, but it motivated people to go out as they exercise their way to find a new Pokemon.
The app uses AR to bring in a live view of a Pokemon through a real-world camera.
Wearable Devices
AR-powered devices are taking the world by storm.
Here are some examples of wearable devices popular among customers:
- Smart glasses: Also known as AR headsets, this device allows users to perform their workouts in a co-pilot mode while still being aware of their physical world. Users can also keep track of their heartbeat rate or other indicators through their smart glass screen.
- VR headset: A VR will convert your physical space into an AR-enhanced exercise space, and project it with the hologram of a coach or digital projects. The device comes with wireless controllers to track movements.
- Smart clothing: AR smart clothing comes with accurate movement tracking and ergonomic design to help improve users’ postures.
A real-life example of augmented reality in sports can be found in Solos Smart Glasses.
This device has full-range tracking capabilities to monitor users’ steps, calories burned, distance traveled, heart rate, and more.
The glasses will gather data on the wearer’s exercise performance and use it to customize workouts.
Conclusion
AR is predicted to be the biggest computing technology in the future, especially in the sports and fitness sector.
If you’re unsure where to start with AR implementation in your product or app development, our experts at Intelivita offer a range of AR app development services suited to your goals and needs.
