Chartered physiotherapist Eoin Everard sees the painful consequences of bad back behavior every day in his clinic. “People are exercising, lifting things, and rehabilitating with terrible techniques,” says Everard, who holds a PhD in biomechanics and human movement from UL.
“The reason for this is that they are not aware of their position. This can overload the spine and cause injuries and injuries.”
Everard’s solution is Back Aware. This is a smart belt for recreational exercisers and elite athletes that provides instant feedback on the user’s hip position.
“The idea is to allow someone to track and train their lifting techniques and postures to improve their back health,” he says. “It also gives them confidence that they are exercising properly, which can cause uncertainty for someone exercising alone at home.”
Everard began working on the Back Aware idea in 2019 and the product was soft-launched towards the end of last year.
“I know from clinical experience that people who lift with poor skills will have problems later in life,” he says. “So I thought about developing a device that would let them know when they weren’t exercising and help prevent the onset of back pain.
“People are exercising because they want to be healthy and healthy, but they aren’t getting the results they expect, or in the worst case, they’re causing problems for themselves. With BackAware, physiotherapists are exercising. It’s like overseeing a session. “
BackAware founder Eoin Everard
Learning curve
To activate the belt, the user downloads the app and pairs the belt with their smartphone. The belt is tuned to fit the individual’s “normal” posture and you will hear a beep if someone bends or stretches too much.
“There are posture trackers on the market, but their main function is to see if someone is upright,” says Everard. “BackAware is the first tracker and trainer linked to a user’s specific back position and can be used on any lift, exercise or even sitting at a desk.”
The electronics inside the BackAware belt are made in Asia, but the belt itself is manufactured in Nenagh, County Tipperary. Covid put a brake on Everard’s plans, so it took about three years and a steep learning curve to bring BackAware to beta. “I’m neither a designer nor an engineer, so it was hard to turn the concept in my head into a real product,” he says.
When someone was running his business, Everard knew the importance of keeping things lean and was able to keep development costs down to € 35,000. The project was funded by Kilkenny LEO, but Everd recently participated in the Enterprise Ireland New Frontier Program for Start-ups operated by TU Tarat’s Synergy Center.
The BackAware belt targets three customer groups: Anyone who wants to learn the right techniques for gym exercises and Pilates. Manual processing training companies / ventures interested in employee health, given that back pain is one of the main causes of absenteeism.
The belt can be used by individuals or groups, and the company is already interested in the products of the English Premier League football club. We also partner with the Irish Football Association to help young players develop superior athletic skills.
The belt retails for € 149 and users can also enroll in a series of exercises and Pilates programs (monthly fees) to further leverage their investment. The belt was launched this month and Everard is currently in the process of launching a € 500,000 seed round to accelerate product rollout to multiple markets.
