Training is one of the most important aspects of sports. It is hard to improve if there is no practice or physical training throughout the year. The sports programs at Colorado Mesa University have been very successful, collecting Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference titles and playoff berths, but as any team would, they want more.
With the new “TrainHeroic” app, the student-athletes will be able to track their workouts wherever they go, access tutorials on certain exercises and follow their progress as the season goes on.
Tracking workouts and recording certain weights can be tough to accomplish week to week. The app is a more convenient route for the athletes as they can access their progress no matter where they are at. They can do their workout away from the school gym, with the app having all the information they recorded.
Each player has their own profile. All the workouts and numbers are on there at the tap of the button and will allow each program to reach the next level. Currently, there are about 30 different programs utilizing the app.
Dan Linsacum, the head strength and conditioning supervisor at CMU, is excited about the potential the app can bring to each program.
“It is pretty exciting,” Linsacum said. “It’s definitely a tool that I think helps our program get going on the next level. We can fine-tune our effort better than we have been able to in the past.”
The coaches also have an app called “CoachHeroic.” It allows them to see how the athletes are progressing and lets them adjust workout schedules for each team.
Before the app, Excel was used to log the weight amount each week. There was a struggle to keep track of numbers and types of workouts. Now, Linsacum believes the app will allow them to put programs in five times faster and allows coaches to make better adjustments for the team’s training cycles.
Linsacum hopes the app will bring a competitive edge between different programs.
“Hopefully we can get a competitive atmosphere between sports,” Linsacum said. “Maybe some guy is the strongest lifter on their team, and if they’re starting to see that an athlete on another team is lifting better than they are, then that will increase their desire, and it can have a domino effect on the whole program.”
Technology is integrated every year in the sports world. Teams are looking for an edge, any way to improve their teams. Whether that’s by watching film or improving training programs, the prospects for improvement is growing every day for CMU.
