Technogym


Technogym is a manufacturer of fitness equipment based in Cesena, Italy.
It was founded in 1983 by Nerio Alessandri.

History

In 1985 Technogym launched its first complete strength training line, and in 1986 it presented Unica, a home trainer.
Then, in 1990, the company added its first cardiovascular training line.
In 2000 it launched the Selection line and in 2002 it launched Excite, the first cardiovascular training line with an integrated TV screen. In 2000 Technogym was nominated official supplier for athletic training equipment at the Olympic Games in Sydney. Since then the company has been an official supplier for numerous other Olympic Games, including Athens 2004, Turin 2006, Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
In July 2014 Technogym partnered with industrial designer Antonio Citterio to create a sleek line of home gym equipment. The Kinesis Personal Vision line integrates tablets that run a program called VISIOWEB that runs on an Android platform
In August 2014, the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, announced it was choosing Technogym as an exclusive supplier.

Sponsorship

In 1993, Technogym sponsored the Formula One motor racing team Benetton Formula.
Technogym has sponsored the Olympics in Sydney, Athens, Turin and Beijing where it was of two official sports related official suppliers to the 2008 Summer Olympics, together with Adidas. The company is set to provide equipment to the London 2012 Olympics.

Performance index

Technogym's cardiovascular training equipment displays a proprietary Performance Index when used in conjunction with a heart rate monitor. Results are displayed on a scale from 0 to 99 with higher numbers indicating stronger performance. Results are not directly comparable with other measures such as VO2 max. The ranges quoted in manuals are:
P.I.Performance
Up to 10Poor
11 to 20Fair
21 to 30Good
31 to 40Very good
Over 40Excellent

The P.I. is based on the ratio between average oxygen consumption and average heart rate as a percentage of maximum heart rate during exercise. Further , where METs is calories used per hour divided by weight in kilograms. More specifically, this formula is used to calculate the P.I.:

As can be seen from the above formula, the P.I. is heavily dependent on the calculation of maximum heart rate. Technogym equipment calculates maximum heart rate as 220 minus age. Thus the calculated P.I. of an individual will drop year by year even if the performance itself does not change.
The P.I. is intended as an estimate of an individual's cardiovascular capacity. More strenuous exercise will increase both VO2 and the relative heart rate, which makes the ratio between the two relatively stable at least for intermediate levels of intensity.