Virtuagym, Matrix Fitness Team Up to Launch Connected Strength Solution as Strength-based Workouts Gain Steam
In 2016, the two health and fit tech providers worked together to integrate cardio. Now, they want to focus on strength so that club members can track sets, reps, and weights between Matrix Fitness equipment and Virtuagym’s coaching platform.
Matrix Fitness and Virtuagym have teamed up to launch a connected strength system that incorporates Matrix’s connected strength machines and the Virtuagym platform, as the strength-training trend is heating up.
The two health and fitness technology providers initially collaborated in 2016, when there was an integration between Virtuagym’s app and Matrix Fitness’s cardio equipment.
As a result of their latest project, Virtuagym’s business customers can now offer their members the ability to automatically log training data for both strength and cardio machines directly into the Virtuagym app and coaching platform.
The new integration brings together Virtuagym’s coaching and engagement platform and Matrix Fitness’s Intelligent Training Console, part of the Ultra Series line of training equipment.
Fitness performance data is tracked by the Virtuagym-connected RFID tag that is used to log into the Matrix Fitness machine. The results are then added to the member’s activity calendar as soon as a workout is completed. The new integration is available to members and coaches, and works with other Virtuagym features like the community and challenge module and nutrition coaching.
“After already providing a seamless connection with Matrix Fitness cardio machines, we are really excited to launch this integrated strength solution,” said Hugo Braam, CEO & Co-Founder of Virtuagym. “It aligns with our vision that the future of fitness is a connected one. Our open platform philosophy enables partners such as Matrix Fitness to utilize our comprehensive coaching technologies, which are fully integrated with Virtuagym’s tools for club mobile apps, communication, engagement and club management.”
Braam founded Virtuagym with his brother, Paul, in 2008 as a consumer app before launching it as one of the first B2B SaaS solutions in health and fitness coaching in 2013.
The latest digital solution is compatible with 22 strength exercises, supporting trainers and fitness clubs by delivering enhanced connected fitness experiences, and allows club members the ability to track sets, reps, and weights between Matrix Fitness equipment and Virtuagym’s coaching platform.
Sennen van Ieperen, Matrix Fitness Sales Director for Benelux and DK, remarked that the Virtuagym and Matrix integration strengthens her company’s position within the digitalization of the fitness industry. The rollout comes when 94% of fitness centers and trainers use mobile apps to drive business, a finding that the all-in-one fitness software revealed last summer.
Christoph Pomper, CEO of LOVT Fitness in Austria, reports that the integration is working well and that his members are enjoying the latest feature.
“It’s great that when you finish an exercise, it appears in the app instantly, giving you a sense of accomplishment right away,” Pomper said. “Our members can now track their progress over time and have told us that the integration has made their workouts more efficient and streamlined, as they don’t have to manually input exercise data into the app.”
The latest integration marks a new phase of growth and product investment for Virtuagym. Last year, the tech company received sizable funding from Icecat, an Amsterdam-based technology company.
The fit tech provider is looking to expand to over 80 countries. Braam confirmed in an interview last fall that he expects North America to become Virtuagym’s biggest market within the next three to four years.
