2022-CMEB-Step-N-Count

h1. Introduction

Exercising with certain regularity is considered one of the most important factors in life to maintain and improve someone's health and fitness condition. The fitness industry is one that has been growing due to the growing interest of people on a healthy lifestyle and is expected to grow in 7.25% from 2022 to 2026. [1]

The fitness industry suffered in big part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with fitness clubs and gyms getting closed, and with lockdowns and the health situation people were forced to find alternative ways to exercise, move their bodies and stay healthy. People started doing workouts at home, going on walks, and just trying to find different ways to keep track of their fitness journey. After everything started going back to "normal", with the people who have missed the motivation and social interaction from in-person classes, going to the gym and exercising outdoors, the fitness industry is experiencing a mini-boom[2].

Another factor that is influencing growth in this area is the growing of awareness on the importance of mental health and prioritizing one's wellness, and exercising being one important factor of a healthy state, more people have started to put more thought on keeping track on their exercising, either in taking walks and counting steps, doing yoga and low impact exercises, or going to the gym and doing weight training or any specific sport and counting how many calories they burn[2]. The best tool and solution for this has been the technological developments. 

The technology has impacted and benefited so many different industries, one of these being the fitness and health. It has helped to develop different tools such as wearable devices, apps, smart gym equipment, etc [3]. These technological developments have created a lot of opportunities for people interested in fitness, health and sports to offer an easier access to their personal measurements, guided exercises and track their progress, with the apps being one of the fastest growing fitness trends due to their efficiency and easy access[3].

Following these, the principal objective of StepNCount is to offer the user an interactive interface where they can check different variables such as step counter, distance, energy expendure and also to keep track of their goals and progress over time in an easy and efficient way.

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_Fig. 1: StepNCount Logo._

References:

European Health and Fitness Market: Analysis By Value, By Membership, By Club, By Region Size and Trends with Impact of COVID-19 and Forecast up to 2026 (2022) Research and Markets

L. Dishman, “3 ways the pandemic changed the Fitness Industry Landscape,” uschamber, 22-Jun-2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.uschamber.com/co/good-company/launch-pad/fitness-industry-pandemic-effects. [Accessed: 03-Jan-2023]. 

K. Karolina Luzniak, (2022) “What Are Current Technology Trends in Fitness Apps?” Neoteric. Available at https://neoteric.eu/blog/what-are-current-technology-trends-in-fitness-apps/#:~:text=What%20is%20fitness%20technology%3F,typically%20very%20easy%20to%20use [Accessed: 03-Jan-2023]