On Sept. 2, 2021, owner and CEO of WHOOP Will Ahmed announced on his Instagram that the performance wearables company acquired velocity-based training (VBT) system PUSH. The acquisition marks WHOOP’s entrance into the VBT market and comes just days after it received a valuation of $3.6 billion.
Per Ahmed, PUSH’s technology “will be integrated directly into the WHOOP sensor over the course of the next six to 12 months.”
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According to the National Strength and Conditioning Association, VBT is a “contemporary method of resistance training that enables accurate and objective prescription of resistance training intensities and volumes.” Put more simply, velocity trackers gather data through motion that can be used by athletes and coaches to improve their programming and track results over time.
What is PUSH?
PUSH was launched in 2013 by its founder and CEO, Rami Alhamad. The PUSH Pro System consists of three parts — Portal, Band, and App — which work together to provide actionable data.
Portal
The online portal allows coaches to program workouts that can then be added to the calendars of their clients or athletes. It then archives collected data from those workouts, such as velocity, power, force, and acceleration, and converts that data into graphs that offer insights for proper recovery and further improvements.
Portal also enables coaches to see the workouts being performed by their athletes in real-time, regardless of location. This allows coaches the ability to relay feedback or make changes to the workouts as they’re happening.
Band
The Band is a one-ounce accelerometer that can strap to an athlete’s arm or a barbell to measure acceleration and velocity via the App. It is the tool the athletes use to track their training and see data in real-time to help maximize the potential output of each training session. The Band has the capacity to measure jump tests, reactive strength index tests, and one-rep-max lifts.
App
The App connects the Band and the Portal to allow athletes to see data and receive live feedback from their coach via their smartphones. It is essentially the mobile version of the Portal.
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Per Ahmed’s Instagram post, WHOOP’s acquisition of PUSH was done to “bolster [WHOOP’s] analysis and strain algorithm for weightlifting.” PUSH’s technology will be directly integrated into the WHOOP sensor over the course of the next year.
Feature image: @trainwithpush on Instagram
